All posts tagged: Historical era

Somewhere to write…

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So far in this blog I’ve written a few articles on the process I use when I write, the aspects of writing that are important to me, and also how I avoid issues such as writers block.  This time I want to discuss WHERE I write.  This may seem strange topic, as everyone’s situation is different, and a where a writer lives should never be a hindrance to writing – after all, most of my writing is done from my South London flat which is hardly exceptional.  However, sometimes London doesn’t provide the necessary inspiration, or the peace and tranquility to write my best work.  It may be because I am approaching a particularly difficult section of a novel, or I just feel flat and not in the correct frame of mind.  In these situations there is just one place for me to go, and that is my family’s cottage in Northumberland.  Far from the nearest city or town, the cottage truly is isolated in the Cheviot Hills, alone on a hilltop miles from the …

The Coming- Part 2 by Alan R Lancaster

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A couple of months ago, Alan R Lancaster kindly submitted a post for this site, that described the coming of the Vikings into the British isles. In this post he continues his history, and sets the scene for the later invasion of William the conqueror in 1066.  So over to Alan…. Thomas M D Brooke THE COMING – 2: EADWARD & GODWIN On Eadward’s accession he called Earl Godwin to task about the killing of his younger brother Aelfred a few years earlier when Harold Knutsson held the throne as regent for Harthaknut in 1036. Godwin had intercepted Aelfred on his way via Guildford to see his mother Emma, then in Wintunceaster (Winchester). Aelfred was taken from Godwin by Harold’s men, blinded and then murdered. To atone for his part in Aelfred’s fate Godwin had a ship built, decorated and manned at his expense to give to Eadward.            The king accepted the gift, grudgingly. Next Godwin had his daughter Eadgytha married off to Eadward, who assented to this dynastic connection, although also grudgingly. So Eadward found …

Graham Clews – Eboracum!

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It is always nice to meet someone who shares my passion for the ancient world and it is why I am always delighted to showcase other authors work on my site.  Today I am delighted to introduce Graham Clews who made contact with me and told me about his trilogy on Eboracum, set in ancient Roman Britain.  I have attached the description to the first novel of the trilogy, ‘The Village’ and underneath Graham has written a few words about the series, and why he felt impelled to write it. Thomas M D Brooke From the time Cethen Lamh Fadha and his sharp witted wife Elena see a Roman ship slam into their village dock, to the clash of arms that takes place almost two years later as a result, their life is an uprooted trail of turmoil. Led by a Brigante king who, at times, seems to be an affliction that rivals that of the Romans, the couple find their paths reluctantly crossing that of Gaius Sabinuis Trebonius, senior tribune of the Ninth Hispana …

Eight alternatives to swords

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A great swordsman is a wonderful asset to any historical or fantasy novel, but it would be a pretty ordinary literary world, if the only weapon we ever came across in such literature was that versatile and elegant weapon.  Variety is a virtue in itself when it comes to writing, and just as the Roman’s discovered in their gladiatorial contests, sometimes matching opponents with contrasting weapons and skills often made for the best shows.  Take for example the unarmoured Retiarius armed with net and trident, matched against the heavily armoured Murmillo with sword and shield.  I have no tridents in this list, but I have a few options to arm your literary characters with. victorbrenntice.hubpages.com The Mace. In the Dark ages, only the richest of warriors could afford chain mail, and therefore it was relatively rare.  However as we approached the 11th Century this form of armour became more common and therefore protagonists often found that more damage was inflicted by heavier concussion weapons rather than penetrative or edged weapons such as swords.  The mace …

Bernard Cornwell, The Winter King. A great combination of myth and history.

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Bernard Cornwell has always been a great favourite of mine, managing to combine exciting action with historical events – informing the reader, whilst keeping them on the edge of their seat.  So I was intrigued when he decided to write a series of novels based on the legend of King Arthur.  The Winter King is the first of the Warlord chronicles and is set in ancient Britain just after the Romans left its shores and the Saxons started to make incursions into the British Isles.  King Arthur comes to hold back the impending storm, and by so doing spawns the legend that has inspired the myth that has lasted through the millennia. The difficulty with any Arthurian novel is striking the balance between historical accuracy and the myth that has grown over the past fifteen hundred years.  Most people realise that Sir Thomas Mallory’s concept of knights in shining armour is completely inaccurate, but do you throw out all the elements of the legend you think untrue or exaggerated?  If so you may come up …

10 Castles to see before you die!

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picture from Etonnantes-pyrenees.com Montsegur, Southern France.  Unless you know your European history well, you might be unaware that there was another branch of Christianity once.  They were called the Cathars and were based mainly in Southern France in the 12th and 13th century.  Alas, they fell out with the Catholic Church, who declared them heretics and with the co-operation of the French King pursued a religious crusade to wipe them out.  The Cathar’s last stand was held in this tiny castle in the Pyrenees.  A year long siege was ended by a daring raid of French knights who climbed up the cliffs to take the castle in the night.  The Catholic Church then burnt the 225 Cathar priests alive at the foot of the mountain (they apologised in 1979). picture from en.wikipedia.org Alnwick Castle, Northumberland UK.  I had to have this one on the list because it used to be my favourite as a child.  My grandmother had dinner mats of different English castles in her cottage in Northumberland.  I used to always insist I had …

2 books on Roman cookery to give away!

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Today I have two copies of Mark Grant’s book on Roman cookery to give-away.   I used this excellent book on researching the food eaten by my characters in my novel Roman Mask.  Roman cookery is so intriguing because it is both so similar to our modern palettes, but also subtlety different.  The Romans were of course famous for lavish banquets, but Mark Grant focuses on what the normal people ate, rather than the over-indulgence of the few.  His recipes come from ancient writings and he attributes each source for each of the dishes.  The Romans used herbs and strong flavours and you can see the origins of the Mediterranean diet that we know today.    Having an authentic meal in a book is a great way to set a scene and instill a particular mood, and I found this book incredibly useful in my research.  It also comes in handy if you want to host a dinner party that has a unusual edge.  All his recipes can be compiled by gathering commonly bought ingredient’s today – …

Ancient Roman sites to inspire you…

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Whilst writing my novel Roman Mask, I was inspired by many of the great ancient sites that can be found all around Europe and the Mediterranean basin.  This is by no means a complete list of all the wonderful sites that are in existence, but here are a few that inspired me… Rome, Italy.  How could I start anywhere else?  The ancient city that was at the heart of her Empire has to be on everyone’s list of places to visit if they are interested in Ancient Rome.  So much still remains and is easily accessible in this fantastic city.  The Colosseum was incredible, but as it was built later than my novel was set I couldn’t use it for research, but it still gives an amazing perspective on the sheer power and dominance that Rome held over the world at the time.  The Augustan palace on the top of the Palatine Hill nearby was very useful for me, and stretches all the way to the ancient forum at the centre of Ancient Rome.  But …

C J Sansom, Sovereign

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I don’t often read crime novels, I’m not sure why, my grandmother used to love them, but I could never generate the necessary enthusiasm for finding out whodunit.  Maybe my mind just doesn’t work that way, or I have too much sympathy for the bad guys, either way, I’d have made a terrible detective. So it’s an unusual choice of novel this week that I write about – C J Sansom’s Sovereign that features her sleuth Matthew Shardlake.  I was drawn to it because of the period of history, Tudor England in all its pomp and splendour; a court full of intrigue and danger, the land in a flux of great change and upheaval, yet beginning to erect the pillars of society that we now identify with as forever English. As this is a crime novel I don’t want to give away the plot by discussing the characters too much, because as with any crime novel, they are key to the storyline.  I’ll just say that Shardlake is an interesting and unusual investigator, hunchbacked and often …

Apologies if I drive you all crazy tomorrow…

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Ok, I better apologise in advance, because tomorrow I think I might drive everyone mad telling them about my book which comes out tomorrow!! It’s so exciting having my novel go live, so grant me this day of  blatant self-promotion! My blog will return to normal soon, where we can discuss other novels in the Historical or Fantasy genre…but tomorrow is MY DAY! Roman Mask: A fast paced action packed novel that begins in Rome AD 9, but leads to the events that will resound down in history, in the dark forests of the Teutoburg…. It’s been a long journey getting to this point, so it is wonderful to finally see it all come together.  I have loved the Historical-novel genre my entire life, so I am delighted to finally be able to contribute something to it.  It truly is a lifetime’s ambition just to get to this point, regardless of anything else that might come of this in the future. I plan to be doing lots of promotional work over the summer for Roman Mask, and …