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Writing

This page contains Christine's external writing projects. Her personal blog, hosted on this site, can be accessed either here or from the navigation bar above. 

academic non-fiction

"Elton John—"Candle in the Wind 1997" (1997)", One-Track Mind: Capitalism, Technology, and the Art of the Pop Song, Routledge (2022)

This essay provides a narrative history of Elton John and Bernie Taupin’s “Candle in the Wind 1997” in order to explore the factors that led to the song’s record-breaking success, including the reputation of its subject (Diana, princess of Wales), media attention, the timing of its release, and the power of shared grief. It then examines John’s influence in controlling the use of “Candle in the Wind 1997” over the last two-plus decades to prevent it from assimilating into mainstream popular music and to ensure that “Candle in the Wind 1997” remains wholly connected to the memory of Diana, Princess of Wales.

"James, Jane Manning (1820?–16 Apr. 1908)", American National Biography, Oxford University Press, (2022).

A biographical essay about Jane Manning James, one of the first Black woman members of the LDS Church.

Independent Scholars Meet the World: Expanding Academia beyond the Academy. Co-Edited with Elizabeth Keohane Burbridge. University Press of Kansas (2020).

A volume of essays from academically-trained individuals who, because of their work outside of the traditional professoriate, are known as "independent scholars." Here, they tell their stories in order to provide others with a broadened view of how a graduate-level education can be used in a variety of occupations that are actually an extension of academia.

"Barrow, Blanche (1 Jan. 1911–24 Dec. 1988)", American National Biography, Oxford University Press, (2019).

A biographical essay about Blanche Caldwell Barrow, outlaw and associate of Bonnie and Clyde.

fiction

"London, 1803", The First Line, 17:1 (Spring 2015): 40-46.

Fairy tales hardly ever come true for quiet girls. Clémence sat in her bedroom, alone amidst the damask walls and mahogany furniture, wondering about the choices she made. Her husband had promised, ‘marry me and we will be a family together in London,’ yet never fulfilled that oath. She had left her son in France with his father, promising to send for him once she was settled in England with her husband. All too soon she found out what he truly meant...

Non-Fiction guest blog posts

"Transferring Colleges, Finding Success", Strategy Girl, (27 August 2019).

Where you start need not be where you finish. Every year thousands of students change colleges, and if you are unhappy in your original school, why should you not consider your other options? Changing institutions can open a whole new - better - world.

"Rethinking Your Day Job", Strategy Girl, (24 April 2019).

A day job need not take precedence over a passion project where a person's identity is concerned. What small, free steps can a person take to redefine themselves by the job they wish was paying their bills?

"Six Years of Work; One Line on the CV", The Honest Actors' Blog, (27 November 2018).

Podcasting is wonderful, building a resume is stressful. How does a person cope with seeing passion projects and years of work summarized in only one line on their resume - a line which may never be noticed by the reader?

"Elizabeth Patterson Bonaparte: Napoleon's Unwanted American Sister-in-Law", History is Now Blog, (8 July 2018).
Approximately twenty years after the executions of King Louis XVI and Queen Marie-Antoinette, France was poised to become an empire under Napoleon Bonaparte. Amidst these changes, a scandal occurred when Napoleon’s youngest brother, Jérôme, surprised the world by marrying Miss Elizabeth Patterson of Baltimore, Maryland...

podcast episodes - audio scripts

​Footnoting History, available to hear via FootnotingHistory.com
(2013 - Present)

  • A Royal Son: Eustace, Count of Boulogne (November 2024)

  • Napoleon Bonaparte and the Malet Coup (August 2024)

  • Tales from the Tower: Gruffudd ap Llywelyn and Ranulf Flambard (July 2024) - w/Kristin Uscinski

  • Owney: Star Pup of the US Railway Mail Service (April 2024)

  • Murder and the Mignonette (January 2024)

  • The Many Adventures of Pope Innocent III (November 2023) - w/Josh Hevert

  • Leo Frank and the Murder of Mary Phagan (September 2023)

  • A Royal Son: Geoffrey, Duke of Brittany (August 2023)

  • The Newsies Strike of 1899 (April 2023)

  • Margaret Eaton and the Petticoat Affair (March 2023)

  • The Greatest Knight: William Marshal, Part II (November 2022) - w/Kristin Uscinski

  • The Greatest Knight: William Marshal, Part I (November 2022) - w/Kristin Uscinski

  • The Milne Family, Part II (September 2022)

  • The Milne Family, Part I (September 2022)

  • The Brothers York, Part II (April 2022)

  • The Brothers York, Part I (March 2022)

  • Winnie-the-Pooh (January 2022)

  • Moe Berg, Baseball's Scholar and Spy (July 2021)

  • Anne Neville and the Wars of the Roses (April 2021)

  • Divorcing in Revolutionary France (March 2021)

  • Marie Louise: Napoleon's Second Empress (November 2020)

  • Jane Manning James (September 2020) - w/Elizabeth Keohane-Burbridge

  • Revolutionary Movies, Part II: Dr. Zhivago and The Last Emperor (July 2020) - w/Elizabeth Keohane-Burbridge, Gil Kidron, and Rutger Vos

  • Revolutionary Movies, Part I: The Patriot and Les Miserables (July 2020) - w/Elizabeth Keohane-Burbridge, Gil Kidron, and Rutger Vos

  • The Parnell Affair (May 2020)

  • Footnoting Disney III: Pocahontas (February 2020)

  • The Unquiet Afterlife of Elizabeth Siddal (November 2019)

  • Revolutionary Notre-Dame de Paris (August 2019) - w/Elizabeth Keohane-Burbridge

  • Henry II of England and Thomas Becket, Part II: Rivals (March 2019)

  • Henry II of England and Thomas Becket, Part I: Friends (March 2019)

  • King Henry I of England and the White Ship (3 November 2018)

  • How to Avoid Serving in Napoleon's Army (11 August 2018)

  • The Marriage of John Quincy and Louisa Adams (19 May 2018) - w/Elizabeth Keohane-Burbridge

  • Evacuating the Loyalists (24 March 2018)

  • Napoleon Bonaparte's Near-Fatal Christmas (2 December 2017)

  • Guy de Montfort and Dante's Inferno (3 June 2017)

  • Jumbo the Elephant (6 May 2017)

  • A Royal Son: Henry the Young King (25 February 2017)

  • Olga Nethersole and the Sapho Scandal (3 December 2016)

  • The Un-Engagement of Jane Austen (5 November 2016)

  • The Murder of Sweden's King Gustav III (8 July 2016)

  • Easter Rising, Part II: Aftermath (23 April 2016) - w/Elizabeth Keohane-Burbridge

  • Easter Rising, Part I: Origins (9 April 2016) - w/Elizabeth Keohane-Burbridge

  • After Napoleon: Josephine Divorced (13 February 2016)

  • The Royal Teeth of Louis XIV (12 September 2015)

  • Bonapartes in America: Jerome and Elizabeth (9 May 2015)

  • British Royal Siblings (2 May 2015) - w/Elizabeth Keohane-Burbridge

  • Empress Eugenie in Exile, Part II: Life After Empire (17 January 2015)

  • Empress Eugenie in Exile, Part I: Flight from Paris (3 January 2015)

  • Hugh O'Neill and the Tudors (4 October 2014)

  • Laura Bridgman, Charles Dickens, & Helen Keller (2 August 2015)

  • Before Napoleon: Josephine's First Marriage (24 May 2014)

  • Buck and Blanche (and Bonnie and Clyde) (15 February 2014)

  • Edward Gibbon Wakefield, Part II: Australia and New Zealand (30 November 2013) - w/Elizabeth Keohane-Burbridge

  • Edward Gibbon Wakefield, Part I: The Abduction (23 November 2013) - w/Elizabeth Keohane-Burbridge

  • Cheating on Jesus: Bigamy in the Medieval Catholic Priesthood (2 November 2013)

  • Napoleon, Part II: Life in Napoleonic Society (24 August 2013) - w/Nathan Melson

  • Royal Baby Names (22 July 2013) - w/Elizabeth Keohane-Burbridge

  • Napoleon, Part I: The Man (13 July 2013) - w/Nathan Melson

  • Let Me Entertain You: Amusements in Medieval Towns (29 June 2013)

  • How Simon de Montfort Earned a Relief in the US House of Representatives (15 June 2013)

  • The French Revolution Countdown, Part II (4 May 2013) - w/Nathan Melson

  • The French Revolution Countdown, Part I (6 April 2013) - w/Nathan Melson

  • Henry II and the Accidental Invasion of Ireland (16 February 2013)

drama

"Happiness in Palaces" for 365 Women a Year: A Playwriting Project, (2017).

Hortense de Beauharnais Bonaparte is primarily known as Napoleon's stepdaughter but she was also the reluctant Queen of Holland, an unhappy wife, devoted mother, and conflicted lover. Inspired by her extensive memoirs, "Happiness in Palaces" chronicles her ill-fated love affair with Charles de Flahaut from end to beginning, taking her from tragedy to hope, and giving voice to her joys and sorrows. (39 pages, Flexible casting based on 5 F, 2 M)

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