Diana Gabaldon today released a provisional table of contents for the new Outlandish Companion, Volume Two. This companion bookis currently scheduled to be released on October 27, 2015. It will cover The Fiery Cross, A Breath of Snow and Ashes, An Echo in the Bone, and Written in My Own Heart’s Blood. You can pre-order the book on Amazon. An updated version of the original Outlandish Companion is still scheduled to be released March 31, 2015.
“TABLE OF CONTENTS (provisional)
Introduction
Section 1: Chronology of the Outlander Series
A complete listing of all novels, novellas and short stories, including the eight (so far) novels of the main series, the three (so far ) novels of the Lord John series, and quite a few novellas, which deal with various lacunae in the main novels, secondary characters, and anything else it struck me to write about.
Section 2: Detailed Synopses
I do mean “detailed”. These are synopses for THE FIERY CROSS, A BREATH OF SNOW AND ASHES, AN ECHO IN THE BONE, and WRITTEN IN MY OWN HEART’S BLOOD, and they run about 15-20,000 words each. The point being that 20K is a whole lot less than the 380-500K that each novel runs, and therefore ideal for readers who want to refresh their memories before a new book comes out, but haven’t got time to go back and re-read the whole series.
Main Outlander Novels:
THE FIERY CROSS (done)
A BREATH OF SNOW AND ASHES (done)
AN ECHO IN THE BONE (done)
WRITTEN IN MY OWN HEART’S BLOODLord John Novels (if I have time…)
LORD JOHN AND THE PRIVATE MATTER
LORD JOHN AND THE BROTHERHOOD OF THE BLADE
THE SCOTTISH PRISONERSection 3: Cast of Characters
This is a big chunk, as it includes all the characters from the second four novels and from the Lord John books, with brief notes as to which book each character is introduced in, who they are, and whether they’re fictional or real historical persons.
Section 4: Controversies and Conversations: Sex and Violence
Spanking, Beating, Flogging and other Interesting Topics involving Physical Interactions of a Non-Consensual Sort
(This one consists of two parts: a basic essay on the spanking scene in OUTLANDER, plus a discussion of intrinsic cultural bias and the effects of reader frame of reference.)
“Don’t You Think That’s a Little Rapey?”
(Discussion of rape—or not rape—as depicted in the books. Rant about current ideolization of rape. (No, that isn’t misspelled; I _mean_ “ideolization”—i.e., the conversion of a cultural phenomenon to ideology.)
The Role of Sex and Violence in Fiction and Real Life
Sadism (Character Analysis of Black Jack Randall – Redemptive violence vs. Unredeemed Violence)
Selection of Reader Letters (and the Author’s (more-or-less) Witty Replies)
Adultery (or not)
Bad Language and its Uses,
Cultural and Ethnic Depictions
The Loch Ness MonsterSection 5: History and the Three Levels of Lies
(basically an analysis of what history actually is—i.e., it’s not necessarily “what really happened”—and the relationship between history and historical fiction, with notes on the responsibilities a writer of historical fiction may or may not have to the people of the past.)
History and the Responsibility of a Writer of Historical Fiction
A Note on Organizing the Past; How to Keep Track of Your Research
Section 6: A Comprehensive Annotated Gaidhlig Glossary and Pronunciation Guide – by Adhamh O Broin
[Section 7: The OUTLANDER Family Tree]?
(I put this one in brackets, because it might be better to use it as endpapers, as was done in MOBY. If we do it in the body of the book, though, I might add a page or two of commentary—such as notes on Davina Porter being Jamie’s grandmother, his mother’s middle names including Caitriona, and where Heughan the foul-mouthed smith (not show in the family tree, but relevant to the discussion) came from.)
Section 8: Writing, and other Games You Play by Yourself
(essays on writing in general, with specific notes/advice on certain topics. Includes: )
“Mind Games”
“Watch This” – just a stream-of-consciousness example of what goes on in my mind when I’m working. (I do this live all the time, and there’s a good version of it on YouTube under “Author’s Road – Diana Gabaldon”)
“An Annotated Coda” – How to Read Like A Writer
“A Brief Footnote on Tidiness”
Section 9: Claire’s Medical Procedures
Section 10: Costume, Cookery, Herbs and Music in the 18th Century
Section 11: Maps and Floor-plans
Map of Lallybroch (exterior)
Floor-plan of Lallybroch (interior)
Map of Fraser’s Ridge
Floor-plan of the Big House at Fraser’s Ridge
(maybe a few other things)
Section 12: The Methadone List (as of 2015)
Section 13: Bibliography
Similar to the one in OC I – i.e., broken down into relevant categories.
Assorted Photos, Sidebars and Personal Recipes”
Source: Diana Gabaldon on Facebook
