Announcing “The Alchemist & the Woman in Trousers! / #ThursdayDoors in the story

Posted on by Teagan Riordain Geneviene
Thursday, March 20, 2025

Steampunk Banner in Distressed, Vintage-Inspired Font

Hello, all.  First, let me apologize for all the “break” images and symbols.  I had to put images between paragraphs to make WordPress stop jamming all of my text together.  Even using HTML code wouldn’t work… (WordPress, all the love has left our love/hate relationship!) I digress — onward to the point.  Yes, it’s been ten years since I wrote the story, but the novel version is finally available!  The Alchemist and the Woman in Trousers: A Cornelis Drebbel Adventure.

Video trailer below

In advance of this novel, I’ve been talking quite a bit about Cornelis Drebbel — COR-NEL-IS, not Cor-nel-i-us.  I don’t mean to be snooty about the character’s name.  I only say that because I’d like for you to be able to find the book.  Search utilities already make it difficult by “correcting” my surname… (I’m having way too much fun with the all the tech that I can’t control.)  

Reblogs and sharing of this post are welcome, invited and appreciated!

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Thanks to Dan Antion for his announcement of the book yesterday!  Click here for his post.

Thursday Doors

The Doors portion of this post includes snippets from the novel that involve the word “door.”

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The bell affixed to the shop door chimed and a wide-eyed moppet came cautiously inside… She had hair the color of a new penny.  There was a smudge of dirt on her little nose.  Her eyes twinkled with intelligence.
JP Holland General Store in Mogollon NM 2006 Cam Vilay Wikimedia
JP Holland General Store, Mogollon NM, 2006, Cam Vilay Wikimedia

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For a moment I considered how I should approach a frightened child.  I decided to simply knock on the front door.  I expected that convention would outweigh Copper’s skittishness, especially within the familiarity of her home.  After all, when there was a knock at the door, one tended to answer it.  …  Though it irked me, I dressed in socially acceptable feminine attire.  Under the circumstances I realized that was best.  However, I still refused to wear a corset, and I absolutely did not ride sidesaddle!
Doctors House Glendale CA By Konrad Summers Wikipedia
Doctors House Glendale CA, Konrad Summers, Wikipedia

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Another earsplitting screech made me look over my shoulder.  However, the noise was not simian, rather it was a metallic sound.  Then I heard the shrill whistle of escaping steam.  The doors of the outbuilding where Cornelis was working burst open.  The road locomotive moved toward us with a loud clickity-clack, clickity-clack.  As it increased speed, the clicks and clacks blurred together into a continuous noise.
Road Locomotive exiting barn by Teagan
by Teagan via Night Cafe

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Our host looked somewhat apprehensive.  After all, he certainly had reason to be concerned, considering that wayward alchemy caused his washing machine to break down the storage building door, and do other assorted damage at his hot spring.  However, he quickly caught the contagious gleam of excitement in the alchemist’s eyes.  …………………..    Offshore, the movement of the water became intense.  Something was rising to the surface.  Involuntarily, I took a step backward.  Victoria took Copper’s hand and pulled her several feet away from the shore.
Wringer Washing Machine ad Getty Images, altered
I appreciate you browsing the doors of my novel.  Thanks for opening this door.  Hugs!

Gold Diamond shape section break line

The Alchemist and the Woman in Trousers: a Cornelis Drebbel Adventure

I must include the obligatory shameless self-promotion.

Universal Purchase Links

E-book:  relinks.me/B0F1KWXJ5P

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Paperback:  relinks.me/B0F1KVQGFR

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Thursday Doors is a weekly feature allowing door lovers to come together to admire and share their favorite door photos from around the world. It’s hosted by Dan Antion.  Feel free to join in on the fun by creating your own Thursday Doors post each week and then sharing your link in the comments below, anytime between 12:01 am Thursday morning and Saturday noon (North American eastern time).

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No part of this work may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission.  Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.

All images are either the property of the author, or used with permission, or from free sources.

Copyright © 2015 and 2025 by Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene

All rights reserved.

76 thoughts on “Announcing “The Alchemist & the Woman in Trousers! / #ThursdayDoors in the story”

  1. So many interesting elements in this beautiful presentation! The picture with the wringer washing machine reminds me of when I was about 4 years old and my mom got her thumb stuck in the wringer in the washer in the basement. I think the washer had some automatic parts, so she had to turn it off to get her thumb out.

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    1. Thank you, Kerfe. It feels good to finally let this one loose on the world. I think it’s the last of my finished blog serials to be “bookized.” One of my goals when I stopped my career was to make book versions of all of the serials. At least one of my intentions when I left DC has come to fruition. Hugs.

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  7. And congrats on your publishing of this wonderful story. Pretty soon, you will surpass Terry Pratchett’s novel count and be hosted in homes and libraries across the world. I think that is an admirable accomplishment. Don’t let WP beat you.

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  8. I’ve been delving into the dysfunction of WordPress and have found the culprit. It appears the World’s largest web hosting organization, which envisioned itself as open source and free, must allow the service provider overlord their fees because they are NOT a nonprofit NGO. Now it seems a war of internet ideologie has broken out between the two parties, each accusing the other of grievous sin and heavy handedness. During this lengthy spat, the 80% profits for the service providers has risen to 100% profits because no effort is being made to maintain the service you pay for if you have a paid subscription. If you have a free website, there is no chance of getting your money or your time back. So, in short, as the underlying backbone of internet science and technology moves at light speed with new tweaks, bells, and whistles, WP becomes more and more incompatible with what me might call functionality. When the two parties have settled their eye poking, ear twisting, nose pulling in international courts, someone will be punished and the price for WP will soar to new unimaginable heights. Sadly, that won’t cover the costs of making WP functional again but it will allow the billions of dollars of profits to continue. I do exaggerate a little because it makes the sordid tale more interesting.🤨🤔

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    1. Daniel, based on the way everything else goes up by leaps and bounds, I wouldn’t be surprised. I have a paid subscription, but only enough to keep ads off my blog. With every post, I get so frustrated that I almost quit blogging altogether.

      Thanks for your supportive comments. Hugs.

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  9. Congrats on the new release, Teagan! I’m glad you pointed out the spelling of Cornelis. In my head I was saying Cornelius (a name I still remember from Planet of the Apes). Hugs to you and the Scoobies!

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    1. Much appreciated, Teri. Ah! I had forgotten about the Planet of the Apes character. Most of us (including me) tend to assume the familiar. Even though it’s an unusual name, most people have heard the name Cornelius. Cornelis on the other hand, not so much. Hugs winging back to you and Bond. ❤

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  12. What a great intro to your book! And the cover – wow! Thanks for pointing out the difference in name spelling – all along I was thinking your character was the inventor of the submarine!

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    1. That’s right, Noelle, he was indeed the inventor of the first navigable submarine. Although my fictional version of his submarine is full of surprises. I’m happy you enjoyed this post, and thanks about the cover. I’ve been holding onto the image of the man (the main part of the cover) for ten years. Nothing else worked for me. Hugs.

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    1. What a lovely comment, Denise! Thank you, and about the cover too. I’m glad I held onto that image of my alchemist, because I bought it ten years ago. I made several variations with different characters (and versions of them) in the background, but he was always going to be part of it. I never saw anything/one that I liked better for the cover. Hugs.

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    1. Many thanks, Liz. Recently I saw a history video explaining that in those days, corsets weren’t as tortuous as they are depicted in movies and books (or the way they are worn by a few women today). Rather they were close-fitting, but intended to fit and support, not strangle the waist and make smaller. Even so, they still look stiff and uncomfortable to me! Thanks for your feedback on the trailer. Hugs.

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        1. I didn’t know about it until recently. Although, I wouldn’t call it a myth, not exactly. Corsets before the 1820s, originally provided support and shaped the bust, but were not as focused on extreme waist reduction. They might have been snug, but not tight. None of them look comfortable to me though, regardless of how tight or loose.

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  17. Girl, my mother had a washer/wringer very much like that when I was in high school! As I recall, it was electric, though, and made of metal, but the design was almost identical. You did NOT want to get your fingers caught in the wringer! Trust me on this.

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    1. I hear that, Marian. My granny had one of the manual wringer washing machines, that she kept for years after finally getting an electric one. She mentioned that more than a few of my uncles and aunts had gotten an arm or a hand caught in the wringer. Thanks for opening this door. Hugs.

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    1. Hi Deborah. LOL, you are far from the only one. Back when I was doing the serial version, a guy (I don’t remember who) asked why I “spelled his name that way” (meaning that he thought I was misspelling it). I said, “Because that’s how it’s spelled.” and pointed him to a 1600’s engraving of him to a historic resource. Thanks for the good wishes. Hugs.

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  21. Oh wow! Your trailer was great, loved that music with it too! You’ve really gotten me into the steampunk/adventure/suspense genre that you write so well!

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    1. Thanks, GP. I appreciate that feedback. I spent a lot of time looking for music and listening to different songs. Because of that one’s title, I wanted to save it for something “pirate” related that might come along. However, of the main contenders for this story, I liked it best, so I went ahead. Hugs.

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  22. Congratulations on this release, Teagan. I didn’t mean to get ahead of you, but I Was so excited to see your new book arrive. I’ve been waiting for this novel. Cornelis Drebbel is one of my favorite characters. I’ve begun reading, and I feel like I’m on the Road Locomotive. Best of luck with this wonderful addition to the bookshelf, and thanks for announcing on Thursday Doors! Sorry about the WordPress trouble-we all can relate.

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  23. Congratulations, Teagan! Fantastic news! Your doors and fragments reminded me of the story, and made me want to read it even more! I hope the technical issues are sorted, but I know it’s one step forward and two back. Big hugs and love to the Scoobies! ♥

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            1. You’d think, but that would make too much sense. Once I opened my “Reader” and there were only 3 bloggers posted (of the many I follow). It’s enough to make you think they’ve put the DOGgiEs in charge. (snorts) I’m beyond frustrated with the bizarre formatting problems. Anyhow, have a good weekend — it’s almost here.

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