Jazz Age Wednesdays — Speak Flapper #NewBook

Posted on by Teagan Riordain Geneviene

Wednesday, January 8, 2020

Announcing my first non-fiction book! 

Well, not exactly. In my long career of writing and editing in the “Federal world,” I produced volumes and volumes of non-fiction.  However, I didn’t get the credit for that work.  So, I should say that this is my first independently published non-fiction book.

I hoped to release it close to the launch of the third of my Roaring Twenties novels about Pip and her friends, A Ghost in the Kitchen.  The launch for that, a trolley tour of haunted Savannah, was huge fun, and a great time was had by all. 

However, the actual book fell flat. So, I won’t be writing any new stories for Pip or Granny Phanny.  With that in mind, I almost didn’t make this new book available either… but then I thought, why not?  I’m not doing a full-on book launch, just making this announcement. 

I present to you, Speak Flapper — Slang of the 1920s.

Speak Flapper, Slang of the 1920s by Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene
Speak Flapper, Slang of the 1920s by Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene

 

Here’s the blurb

This is a dictionary of slang from the Roaring Twenties, also called the Jazz Age. I collected these terms while researching my various fictional stories set in the 1920s.

The book is not meant to be a scholarly work. It is intended for entertainment purposes. It is also peppered with history and trivia about the era. You might use it in preparing for a 1920s costume party, or for a gathering to watch a favorite movie or TV show set in the Roaring Twenties. Or use it for the simple personal fun of speaking flapper! 

Kindle: relinks.me/B083HNK3BB

Paperback: relinks.me/1656168553

All the Pip stories by Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene

All the Pip books by Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene. Purchase links: The Three Things Serial Story, Murder at the Bijou, and A Ghost in the Kitchen

Thanks for visiting.  You’re the cat’s pajamas!

 

118 thoughts on “Jazz Age Wednesdays — Speak Flapper #NewBook”

  1. I have purchased Speak Flapper and look forward to reading it. Having written a novel (Jazz Baby) set in 1925, I am always interested in books and stories from that era. I intend to begin the JB sequel this year, and this book of slang just might come in handy! Congratulations on the new release, Teagan. BTW, I wrote a short story many years ago, set in 1922, with a male character named Teagan. 😊

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    1. Welcome, Beem! I hope you enjoy Speak Flapper. I tried to add as much of an entertainment-factor to it as I could for a dictionary.
      A few authors have told me about female characters they’ve named Teagan. While I’ve only heard it given to a male one other time, I think it sounds androgynous enough give to a male. Over the years I’ve found various meanings: attractive, little poet, king’s bard. And more recently: beautiful or fair. It’s usually regarded as a diminutive. LOL, I’m into name meanings, as you can tell.
      I’ll have to look for Jazz Baby. Good luck with the sequel. You’re the monkey’s eyebrows! 😀

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  2. Pingback: Stupid Stuff & Skippy – #SoCS #JusJoJan – No Facilities

    1. What a wonderful memory, Suzanne! Thank you for sharing it here. Maybe I was a flapper in a past life… I have an endless love of fringe, and no matter how I change my hair, I always eventually go back to my favorite bob. LOL, but the dancing… I have no ability there. 😀
      That means a lot to me about the book. I appreciate you. You’re the bee’s knees!

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  10. Pingback: Getting Along – #SoCS #JusJoJan – No Facilities

  12. Hi Teagan, I left my comment on Chris’ blog by accident. A ghost in the kitchen is a very entertaining book but I think it may have been lost in translation because your blog tour was fabulous but complex. You are welcome to come over to me for an author interview for this book. I can share it together with my review.

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    1. Thanks, Jan. Carefully added period slang can make things more real and entertaining, as long as it’s done the right way. So I don’t think of this dictionary as a companion piece to my books. But it was just so much fun collecting it all, that I hope others will have fun speaking flapper too.
      Maybe we can bring a little of that fun language back into the 2020s too. 😀 You’re the oyster’s earrings!

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    1. How funny that you should mention that, Kev. I’m in the midst of an identity crisis, more than partly centered on my hair color. I never got over some hair-color-shaming from a friend last spring. But I’m not ready to have gray hair. I wish people weren’t so judgmental over such unimportant things as hair color. I don’t judge their choices…
      Anyway, thanks for visiting. You’re the cat’s pajamas!

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  16. I’m glad you are releasing it, Teagan:) I will definitely be checking it out. I did a lot of researching for a children’s book set in 1917/1918 and find this period fascinating. Now we are 100 years out….

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    1. I love research Denise. I’ve collected a lot of Victorian/Edwardian slang too. It’s actually hard to choose which of the two eras (slang) I like best. However, I had collected more and spent more time on the 1920s. I’ll publish the Victorian vernacular too, eventually. Thanks for visiting. You’re the kitten’s ankles!

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    1. Billy Ray, we’ll put on our glad rags and jump into the jalopy, toast one another with giggle water, and bring it all back. 😉 Thanks for visiting. You’re the monkey’s eyebrows! (And I promise that is a very good thing.)

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  20. Berries on your first official non-fiction work Teagan! I’ve been enjoying your sprinkling of Flapper-speak in the stories. Maybe I’ll have the chance to sling a few phrases around like “I’d love some cash from a choice bit of calico! Cheers and please pass the giggle water.” 🙂

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    1. LOL, I find the slang of the 1920s and even the Victorian Era much less confusing than all the acronyms in which most people tend to speak today, Brad. There are so many “definitions” for each acronym that people basically expect the world to read their minds. Okay — that was my biggest gripe as an editor. I’ll step off my soapbox. Here’s to good giggle water! You’re the berries.

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    1. Thanks so very much. I know you know your onions! 😀 I love that one, John. I can’t remember whether I used “biscuit” with Pip, or with the Hullaba Lulu story, maybe it was both. Their slang was so much more fun and creative than what we use today. I wish we could bring it back for the 2020s. You’re the bee’s knees!

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    1. Thanks so much, Teri. I had been working on it for about six years, and I finally decided to share it. I was thrilled to find the main image for the cover, although I made hours of subtle alterations to get it just the way I wanted it. I’m happy you like it. You’re pos-i-lutely the cat’s pajamas!

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    1. Hi Michael. I put a lot of effort into subtle alterations of the main cover image. So, I’m extra pleased that you like it. I thought long and hard about how I could present a dictionary in an entertaining way. Thank you again. You’re the cat’s pajamas!

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    1. Thank you so much, Marcia. I put a lot of effort into subtle alterations of the cover image. I’m extra pleased that you like it. I thought long and hard about how I could present a dictionary in an entertaining way. Thank you again. You’re the cat’s pajamas!

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    1. You know Dan… I know I’m still sick, but it had not registered with me that we are in another 20s! Duh! I really love the slang of this era, so it would be pos-i-lutely keen if we could bring it back. You’re the bee’s knees!

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    1. Hi GP. The slang of the 20s was so much more creative and fun than anything we’ve used in the past 40 or more years. I feel the same about Victorian slang, but still think the 20s was the most fun use of language. Thanks for visiting. You’re the cat’s meow!

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    1. Why thank you so much, Judi. I spent many years collecting this slang and trying to verify the rea from which words came. Then I thought long and hard about how I could present a dictionary in an entertaining way. Thank you again. You’re the caterpillar’s kimono!

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    1. Indeed it is fascinating, Priscilla. I started writing about the Roaring Twenties purely by chance, but I quickly came to love the era. Collecting the slang and creating the dictionary was a lot of work, and I spent years on it. Yet it was so much fun that I had to share it. Thanks for visiting. You’re the oyster’s earrings!

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  38. The 1920’s — what a fascinating era. Women went from long dresses and corsets to sleeveless, short hair, and to-the-knee dresses within a matter of 10 years. It was the punctuated equilibrium of style.

    Good luck on your writing endeavors, and I wish for you many sales.

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    1. Welcome Joelle! Wow, “the punctuated equilibrium of style” is a fantastic phrase. You’re so right. I see that you “know your onions.” 😀
      I started writing about the Roaring Twenties purely by chance, but I quickly found that I loved the era. Our fore-mothers achieved so much during that time. Thanks for commenting. You’re the oyster’s earrings!

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    1. Dear Chris, thanks for letting me know. I become a scardey cat about checking reviews. Thank you so very much. It truly means a lot to me. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I know Amazon makes it difficult to leave reviews nowadays. You’re pos-i-lutely darb!

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    1. Hi Jill. I hope you are far along the road to recovery from the flu. The language of the 1920s really was fun. It would be great to bring some of it back to the 2020s. Thanks for visiting. You’re the oyster’s earrings!

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  42. Teagan, huge congratulations! 🎉🎉 You’ve kept this quiet! I really like anything connected with the 20s, 1920s I might need to add and I look forward to reading my copy! It’s always fun to see which words are familiar, learn some new ones! I bet it was fun collecting and compiling this! 😀😀

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    1. It was a fascinating time, Annika. I started writing about the Roaring Twenties purely by chance, but I quickly came to love the era. Collecting the slang and creating the dictionary was a lot of work, and I spent years on it. Yet it was so much fun that I had to share it. Thanks for visiting. You’re the oyster’s earrings!

      Liked by 1 person

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    1. You know Barb (blame it on the “Everything Flu” I’ve had, but…) it had not registered with me that we are in another 20s! LOL. I really love the slang of this era, so it would be pos-i-lutely keen if we could bring it back. I put a lot of thought and effort into presenting this dictionary in an entertaining way. Thanks so much! You know your onions. You’re pos-i-lutely the caterpillar’s kimono!

      Liked by 1 person

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  44. Congratulations, Teagan! It sounds like great fun and also an invaluable resource for people interested in the period. Thanks for sharing your research expertise and good luck!

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