ABOUT my writing
The financiers of the Industrial Revolution were the aristocracy and the gentry, gambling for glory and profit. The drivers of the Revolution were the great engineers, some educated, some straight from the colliery. Those were the days when a man could change the world, by his character, by his innate skill, by his grit and determination.
What a background, the good and the bad, for some passionate human-interest stories. When turbulence swept away the old rules, when the first steam trains travelled so fast, people feared speed itself would surely kill. When good clothes, travel and domestic machinery became affordable for most. And when women became seriously disempowered as wealthy men shaped the world for themselves, when the gap between rich and poor became a yawning chasm and when Britain’s glory rested on the shoulders of slaves.
Romance would be the way to explore this thoroughly, to put one protagonist close to one of the great engineers and the other close to that driving force of the aristocracy. Liberally sprinkle with the tensions, opportunities and pitfalls of the time, and let it grow.
That was five years ago. The first book is written and is ready to throw into the mill of publishing. It may take a while, but if you’d like to read it, please use the Contact form to add your details to the mailing list.
ABOUT ME
Early retirement gave Rachel Whitby time to indulge her passion to write. On what to write, she didn’t need to look far. Her working life as an engineer, hands-on and professional, including some steam heritage work, led to her fascination in the Industrial Revolution, the birth of today’s technological society.
When not writing, Rachel can be found walking in the mountains, driving the classic sports car restored by herself and her husband or enjoying the diversity of Spanish, French and Basque cultures surrounding her cosy wood-heated home in the foothills of the Pyrenees.