Liz and Nellie, Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland’s Race Around the World in Eighty Days
New York City, November 14, 1889.
Young newspaper reporter Nellie Bly sets sail on the Augusta Victoria for a trip around the world. She plans to beat Jules Verne’s fictional record from the novel Around the World in Eighty Days. She thinks she can circumnavigate the globe in under seventy-five days and prove that a woman can do what no man has even tried.
Hours later, and unbeknownst to Nellie, another writer, Elizabeth Bisland, boards a train going in the opposite direction attempting to beat Nellie back to New York. Elizabeth is a reluctant player in this high-stakes publicity stunt, but financial needs outweigh her pride.
Neither woman is prepared for what will happen on this trip, or how the race will change her.
**Available in ebook for Kindle and paperback everywhere.
Look for LIZ AND NELLIE, available through Kindle and in print via your favorite bookstore.
A few years ago, while conducting research for a novel set in the late 1800s, I came across the story of Nellie Bly’s solo trip around the world in 1889 and was amazed. I became a bit obsessed with her story (ask my family) and dug a little deeper. Turns out, there was another woman reporter who raced against her, going in the opposite direction. Now I was doubly intrigued. What they accomplished as single women in Victorian times was simply fascinating to read. I just had to retell their tale. The result of my obsession is the novel LIZ AND NELLIE.
Listen to me gush about Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland:
It’s such an odd duck of a book, but I love it. It’s YA, but the characters are in their twenties. It’s more adventure than romance (even though one of the women has a beau waiting in the wings) so it wasn’t really what my regular publisher publishes. It’s told largely in their own words (think 1800s lingo) so will appeal more to people who like classics more than contemporary novels.) I sent it around to a few agents, but they weren’t interested…not a clear category, etc. Thus….I’ve struck out on my own like these courageous young women and published it myself. I hope you check it out!
And if you want more details about the writing of this book, read the blog post: The Making of Liz and Nellie
I also did an A to Z challenge based on the history of the time period. Lots of interesting trivia here: A to Z Challenge: 1800s Race Around the World.