September 22, 2015 by AdamAH

End of a Summer Odyssey

Greetings readers and fellow history-lovers.

Well, I’m back from my adventures across the sea, and I had an amazing, blessed time.

I tried to keep you all up-to-date via the Instagram feed, but my Peloponnesian connectivity was a bit dodgy.

Needless to say, I’ve got a tonne of pictures and some video which I’ll be sharing with you over the coming months.

The ancient theatre of Epidaurus

The ancient theatre of Epidaurus

I didn’t get to all the sites I wanted to see, but I did manage to visit the ancient theatre and agora of Argos, which I’ve wanted to see for years. I also made return visits to the theatre of Epidaurus, as well as the Sanctuary of Asclepios there. In Athens, I made a return visit to the Acropolis, and the new museum which was amazing.

Feeling good after lunch by the sea

Feeling good after lunch by the sea

Normally, I would have taken in many more sites, but this trip was more about family and friends for me. That said, just driving across the landscape in Greece, or swimming in the turquoise sea, is not only inspiring, it’s also a form of research. This ancient landscape, especially in the Peloponnese, remains relatively unchanged, from the incredible light and colour, to the flocks of goats and sheep bounding up mountainsides, to the whirring of cicadas in the dry, pine-scented heat. You step back in time in rural Greece.

The Temple of Olympian Zeus in Athens, as seen from the Acropolis

The Temple of Olympian Zeus in Athens, as seen from the Acropolis

I’ll share my experiences of the sites and more with you in future blog posts.

As for the book I had planned on finishing, well… let’s just say that the goal I had set myself was unrealistic. I managed to finish about a third of Heart of Fire, and I’m happy with that. Here’s why:

For the first half of the trip, I was getting up at about 7 am every morning to write outside for a couple of hours, but, as the ‘schedule’ began to fill with visits from dear friends and family I hadn’t seen in a long time, it became harder to squeeze in the writing time. Worse, I began to stress about getting that writing time!

Theatre and agora of ancient Argos

Theatre and agora of ancient Argos

That’s when I had an epiphany.

I realized that my vacation was slipping by, and that I was wasting my precious time worrying and not relaxing. After all, isn’t that what vacations are for?

I also remembered that, in the past, I wasn’t trying to squeeze in writing while on vacation. I was always absorbing the history, the sights, the smells, and the feel of the world around me.

The Wine-Dark Sea

The Wine-Dark Sea

The writing was always something that came afterward, when I was missing the places I had been to, reviewing my mental tapes of the entire odyssey. I forgot that I would have an acute case of the ‘Aegean Blues’ after my trip, and that this would be something I could use well after the fact.

So, about half-way through my trip, I stopped worrying and began to absorb and enjoy much more. I wrote when I could, but I just let it go if the day was not conducive to it – plenty of time to write afterward.

Detail of the Erectheion on the Acropolis of Athens

Detail of the Erectheion on the Acropolis of Athens

I’m happy with what I’ve written of Heart of Fire so far, though as often happens when writing historical fiction, there are a few research gaps I need to fill in. That’s fine, as it keeps me immersed in the period.

This was a wonderful holiday and it reminded me what a lovely country Greece is, the land, the sea, the history, the people. I miss it already, and I can’t wait to go back.

DSC_0608 (1)

Sunset in the Olive Grove

I’m struggling now, back in my cubicle. Honestly, who wouldn’t? But I’m writing full speed ahead.

On Friday, I finished the first draft of an Eagles and Dragons series prequel novel which I have kept secret till now (more on that to come!). It’s called A Dragon among the Eagles.

Now, I’m going to stay put in the year 396 B.C. and Heart of Fire, until the story is completed.

That’s the update for now.

Thanks for following along, and thank you for reading!

April 27, 2015 by AdamAH

Quiet and Contemplative – Essentials for Writing Historical Fiction

There is a truth which I have forgotten lately. With the day-to-day workings of my modern, connected life, I’ve been missing out on something essential, something that in the past has always helped me to nurture my creativity, and better my historical fiction. What is it?

Quiet.

Yes. That illusive modern-day grail, that has the power to slow us down, to help us think, to regroup and empower ourselves.

Now that I write that, it really does seem obvious, not ground-breaking at all. But it is, and I’ve found that without taking some calm time to contemplate the past, my fiction suffers.

Like many, I suspect, my days are pretty full. All the tasks and to dos that are swirling around me feel more numerous at times than the number of arrows raining down on the Spartans at Thermopylae, blotting out the sun.

Now, I’m sure there are a great many people who have much busier days. We all have our own threshold.

There is a distinct lack of quiet time, and by this, I mean time in which I sit away from a computer or device, not doing any sort of task, and actually think about history and historic places, the things that I love and that fascinate me.

Of course, I think about history throughout the day, but contemplation of the sand seas of Roman North Africa, or the city streets of the Forum Romanum doesn’t come as easily on a crowded subway car when one is trying to ignore some anonymous person’s flatulence. So gross.

Lately, I’ve ‘forced’ myself to set aside all computers and devices when I have some spare moments (even 5 minutes!) in favour of sitting down with one of my favourite, big, coffee table books about ancient Greece and Rome, or the Middle Ages.

I’ll look at anything from architecture to landscapes, artifacts and archaeological sites, to artistic recreations of places and everyday life in the past. It all helps, it all inspires.

If I can sit in a sunny spot with a cup of coffee and some of my favourite soundtrack music on, even better.

I’ve found, or rather, I’ve remembered, that when sit quietly and allow my mind to wander calmly through some part of history, I am more in touch with it. When I do that, I am better able to bring that world to life when I’m writing about it.

For me, historical fiction is highly dependent on setting.

You can have the most wonderful three-dimensional characters ever, but if you don’t have the historical setting to transport the reader, or place those characters firmly in the past, then your book could be taking place at any time in history.

I don’t know about you, but when I pick a work of historical fiction, I pick it largely for the period. If I’m not transported to that period in history, I’m disappointed.

I’ve had a lot of readers tell me that they loved my books because they learned a lot about the ancient world, or about the Roman Empire. That makes me very happy, as it has always been my goal to make history interesting and entertaining.

Without having taken the time to be Quiet, and to contemplate the physical world of those distant eras, I know I would not have managed to pull it off.

I’d like to share with you a very special book about the Roman Empire that has given me no end of inspiration. It is Splendours of the Roman World, by Anna Maria Liberati and Mario Bourbon.

This book was a gift from my parents who bought it at the Roman Bath museum, in Bath. Ever since I first flipped through it, I was rapt, sucked into the ancient world.

I have many other books that do this for me, but this is one that I continue to go back to again and again.

Are there any books that you like to flip through at a leisurely pace, or that inspire you and fire your view of an historic period?

Or, do have a favourite work of historical fiction that you felt really did a good job of transporting you as a reader?

Share your favourite book titles in the comments below.

While you do that, I’m going to step away from the computer, sit quietly, and immerse myself in the ancient world.

Thanks for reading…

January 3, 2015 by AdamAH

Writing the Past in 2015

Janus, the two-faced god of doorways. Give him a thought as we step from one year into another.

Janus, the two-faced god of doorways. Give him a thought as we step from one year into another.

Happy New Year to all of you!

Yes, 2015 is here. For an historian especially, I think the passage of time is all the more acute. Maybe that’s because we are a bit more aware of dates and periods in history.

We’ve had a very enjoyable holiday in my house. Lots of food and drink, family and friends, movies, music and of course, reading. The Wassail and mulled wine were especially big hits with the adults! There was definitely a lingering feeling of magic in the air.

Wassail Feast. Wassail!

Wassail Feast
Wassail!

However, New Year to me is always a mix of excitement and melancholy. I find it bitter-sweet to let another year go by, but then there is so much more that I want to do, that I look forward to doing, personally and professionally.

For this first post of 2015, I thought I would go over some of the big things I have on my ‘To Write and Publish’ list.

First of all, I’m just about finished the first draft of Thanatos, Carpathian Interlude Part III. This will be the last part of the trilogy and it has definitely taken some unexpected turns, thrusting Gaius Justus Vitalis into realms of darkness and despair.

Secondly, I want to write a prequel novella to the Eagles and Dragons series. This will take readers through Lucius Metellus Anguis’ first years in the Legions and the Parthian campaign in which Emperor Septimius Severus conquered the Parthian Empire and sacked Ctesiphon. It is in this campaign that Lucius comes to the Emperor’s attention and this story will show how Lucius came to be in Alexandria and what led him to be made a tribune in charge of the patrol across Roman North Africa which is where Children of Apollo begins. I’m really looking forward to going back to Lucius’ early, idealistic days.

Third, I’m in the middle of working on the second draft of Warriors of Epona (Eagles and Dragons Book III). This book will be out, I hope, for next summer at the latest. Because I write my first drafts long-hand, I need to type the manuscripts out. This is good for revision but it does slow the process down. So, related to that, I want to try and type directly onto the computer if I can work something out as far as technology. I do most of my writing away from my computer, so, we’ll see how that goes. Writing long-hand, I find, helps me to think and formulate my thoughts as I go. Change is good, however, so here’s to improved processes in 2015!

Salve 2015!

Fourth, I now have an idea for the second instalment in the Mythologia series. I’m not letting that beast of the bag just yet, suffice it to say it will be full of intrigue and an epic battle that only a great hero can come out of alive. It will not be something you will expect.

Fifth, my research for the tentatively titled ‘Heart of Fire – A story of the Ancient Olympics‘ has begun, but I want to get even more stuck into it. I probably won’t finish writing this book in 2015, but I do want start it. I’ve got a great story idea for this stand-alone novel!

Sixth, after having let it languish for over a year, I’m determined to get back into the Killing a God series about Alexander the Great. With the Amphipolis discovery in Greece over the past several months, the time certainly is ripe for this story. Of course the series is not finished, but I have a few hundred pages which I will probably serialize. This is going to take a good deal of planning, but it will be well-worth the wait as I think I’ve developed a great storyline and take on the Alexander story from a very different point of view.

Seventh, once Warriors of Epona is out, I’m going to jump right into book IV of the Eagles and Dragons series. I’m developing the story more precisely and doing a bit more research, but I do know that it’s going to be a beautiful and intense follow-up to book III.

Those are my writing goals at the moment. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t daunted by all this work, but in truth my biggest challenge is not writing. After all, I love writing about the past, and it’s always a great joy to me that (Thank the Muses!) comes relatively easily. Time, and my lack thereof, is where I need to strategize. Hopefully 2015 sees an abundance of Roman Legion efficiency for my part.

Time to get down to some serious writing!

Time to get down to some serious writing!

I’m curious about your own goals for 2015. Do you have any places you would like to travel to this year? What are your reading goals? Do you have your own writing or research goals? Are there any historical films you’re looking forward to this year? Please do share in the comments below!

Whatever you do, or aim to do, I hope that 2015 is a brilliant year for all of us!

I’d like to close this post by saying Thank You to all of you for the e-mails and various other interactions in 2014. I love sharing the past with you all, and look forward to writing more of it.

Cheers and Happy New Year!

Thank you for reading.

August 3, 2014 by AdamAH

The World of Children of Apollo – Part I – The Desert

Matmata

Matmata

For this series of posts that I’m calling The World of Children of Apollo, we’ll be taking a brief look at the Roman Empire at the beginning of the 3rd century A.D. Not to worry, this will not be an exhaustive history lesson but rather an historical and modern tour, guided by fiction. I’ll post photos and little anecdotes related to my travels and research over the course of writing Children of Apollo.

In this first entry, I’m going to look at the desert. From my very first glimpse, first smell and touch, of the North African Sahara, I knew that the desert itself would be a character. I had always wondered how something so plain could be such a draw. However, I immediately fell in love with the landscape. It’s unlike any other place, a sand sea of undulating dunes and scattered oases. In some areas, the sand is literally as soft as sifted flour.

Saharan Dunes

Saharan Dunes

Children of Apollo (you can read an excerpt HERE) begins with a Roman cohort marching through the desert in the provinces of Cyrenaica and Africa Proconsularis, which included modern Libya and Tunisia. I was not able to visit Libya but, when I was in the Tunisian Sahara, the image of a marching Roman column in the heat of the bleak but mysterious landscape was something that stayed with me. This was the southern frontier of the Roman Empire, from Egypt to the Atlas Mountains of Mauretania province. The II Traiana garrisoned Alexandria and small auxiliary detachments were stationed at settlements along the coast. The only other full legion in North Africa at the time was the III Augustan stationed at Lambaesis, to the west, in Numidia.

Troglodyte Dwelling

Troglodyte Dwelling

In Tunisia or, what was Africa Proconsularis, the Sahara is not only made up of soft, sandy dunes that lend themselves to a meditative, barefoot promenade. The terrain toward the coast can be quite green at times. Other areas are covered by great salt lakes where the crystalline formations reflect the sun with diamond-like fascination. There are also the rocky, desert regions, such as Matmata and Tataouine, where some people live in troglodyte dwellings. Star Wars fans will be interested to know that Owen and Beru’s farmstead was filmed in one such dwelling in the same area. Basically, these are caves below ground level where the walls are painted white so that the people can stay relatively cool even in the intensity of the summer heat. I was there in January, so I experienced no such discomfort.

Salt Lake of Chott El Jerid

Salt Lake of
Chott El Jerid

At one point, we pushed on to some of the southerly Tunisian settlements. Our 4×4 bounced along through olive groves, through rocky passes and on into the dunes as our driver, Sami, grooved and ululated to a cassette called ‘Couscous Beats’. The writer in me was absorbing all of the stimuli and one such place was the Douz Saharan market where I could have bought a camel or donkey, if that was my inclination. The market had vintage radios, tin jewellery with Berber designs, fezzes and mounds of fragrant spices. But watch out for the pickpockets! One of our group had her purse sliced with an exacto knife and she was none the wiser. Luckily, she was a birder and her binoculars blocked the thief’s hand from grabbing anything from that side of the purse.

Oasis

Oasis

Watching the sun set on the Sahara was a peaceful, awe-inspiring experience that I will never forget. That is, until three Berber horsemen wielding rifles pounded up toward us. My French came in handy as I explained our presence and our admiration of the beauty of the desert. I don’t know if they actually gave a toss or not because they just circled us a couple times and galloped off.

Sahara near Tozeur

Sahara near Tozeur

The next day we visited the Mos Eisley set of Star Wars (Episode II at that time) near Tozeur (guarded by a couple of Berber men, their camels and two really long rifles). For me this was a real thrill and though the main part of the set was blocked off, there were other, smaller set pieces that could be visited. It was a beautiful spot and difficult to imagine what it might have been like with the entire cast and crew of Star Wars there. Somewhat less peaceful, I imagine.

From there we headed north along the Algerian border. We asked our guides if we could go into Algeria, which seemed much rockier, and they said that if we approached the boarder we would be shot at. I tried to imagine Lambaesis, in the distance, where an entire Roman legion was based so long ago. I knew it had to be a part of my story, but at that early stage I wasn’t sure yet how big a part it had to play.

Douz Animal Market

Douz Animal Market

In the next instalment of The World of Children of Apollo, I will look briefly at some of the towns and larger settlements of Roman North Africa.

Wine, olives and gladiatorial combat are optional!

Thank you for reading.