NEWSLETTER FOR SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015

Oh dear! Is it really that long since my last letter? Time just seems to disappear these days.

So, what news is there? At the end of September I was in Whitley Bay again, at the studios of Soundings, to record the audio version of TWICE ROYAL LADY. It’s a pretty intensive exercise, two six hour days plus another couple of hours on the last morning. We work in sessions of one and a half to two hours, and reading aloud for that length of time, trying not to fluff and to bring out the characters and the changes of pace and mood in the story, is quite hard work. But the producers, who sit at the recording desk in the next studio and keep a check on everything, are very helpful and understanding. In spite of the effort of concentration, I really enjoy doing it because it seems to bring the characters to life in a way that reading the text doesn’t – even when it is something that has lived in your imagination for months. I hope that it does the same for people who listen to the books. If any of you have listened to one of my recordings, I’d love to hear from you.

If you remember, I told you that sales of the printed text of ‘Lady’ were disappointing, particularly to the libraries. So I spent a long time checking the on-line catalogues of as many libraries as I could contact to see if they had a copy. To my surprise, I found that several of them had the audio version and not the book. I emailed all those who did not have it, and found that quite a few did not even know it had been published and said they would order a copy at once. It seems that in many cases some unknown person at some central point decides which books get sent to the libraries, instead of the librarians being able to choose. So it would be very helpful if you could check your own library’s catalogue to see if they have it.

In October I went down to London again to teach the Brick Lane group, as mentioned in my last letter. It was an very interesting weekend. There was a wide variation among the members of the group, in age and background. Many of them were of Asian origin, some born in the UK, others recent immigrants, but there were also ethnic Brits, so we had a variety of cultural perspectives. They were all lively, intelligent people, well educated and well read, so they were a pleasure to work with. I hope that as a result of the classes they will be able to come up with some really interesting stories.

As it happened, I already had tickets for the Cumberbatch Hamlet on the Friday night, so that worked out very well. I thought the production was excellent and I admired Cumberbatch’s interpretation very much. It was the first time I’ve seen a Hamlet with a sense of humour! He really enjoyed pretending to be mad and the audience laughed more often than at any other production I’ve seen; but that did not distract from the inherent pathos of the play.

We also managed to get tickets for ‘Farinelli and the King’, with Mark Rylance, another actor I admire very much. It’s an ingenious story about a king of Spain who suffers from some kind of mental instability and can only be calmed by the voice of the castrato, Farinelli. It was staged as if we were back in the C18, with candlelight as the only illumination, and the part of Farinelli was doubled, shared between an actor for the speaking part and a counter tenor for the singing. Rylance is brilliant, as always.

As far as the writing goes, I am at a bit of a standstill. It’s hard to motivate myself when there is no assurance that the work will get published. I’m hoping that I might find an agent who will take IRONHAND on and find a publisher; meanwhile I’m working on the sequel, GOD’S WARRIOR. If the worst comes to the worst I can always self-publish, as I did with THE LAST HERO.

Speaking of which, I was excited a week or so back to hear on the radio that a group of archaeologists from the University of Cincinnatti had made a fabulous discovery while excavating near Pylos. They have found the tomb of a Bronze Age warrior, complete with a wonderful collection of treasure in bronze and silver. Pylos, is, as those of you who have read the book will know, the setting for THE LAST HERO, and much of my research was based on the earlier work of Professor Carl Blegen of that university, in excavating the palace of King Nestor. The warrior whose grave they have discovered lived earlier than that, but he must have been an ancestor of my hero, Alkmaion, and the discovery is further evidence of what a brilliant and sophisticated society existed there. I managed to find the name of one of the leaders of the current excavations and sent her an email, telling her about the book. I’m delighted to say that she is a fan of historical fiction and asked for a copy. I’ve sent it and shall wait with bated breath for her reaction.

So, it’s been a busy month, as usual. On December 4th I am talking about my books at Darwen library, near Blackburn, so if any of you live near there and would like to come along I’ll be delighted to meet you.

Newsletter for August 2015

NEWSLETTER FOR AUGUST 2015

I’ve been a bit lax in keeping up to date with these letters. Blame the garden and a glut of French beans, runner beans, courgettes etc etc – to say nothing of the weeds!

I have also been busy working, though not doing much writing at the moment. Until I find a publisher for IRONHAND there isn’t much incentive to write more. However, at the beginning of the month I was in London, teaching another two day course on writing historical fiction at the City Literary Institute. It all went well and as a result I have been asked to repeat the course in October for a group in Brick Lane, who are working on a project about the history of the East India Company. We managed to squeeze in a couple of theatre visits while we were there, but I have to admit I was a little disappointed in both. ‘Hay Fever’ is one of favourite plays and I was looking forward to seeing Felicity Kendall as Judith, but it was the last night and I had the impression that she was very tired and couldn’t wait to get the performance over! Next night we saw ‘Constellations’, a two hander with an interesting premise – that in parallel universes the same actions can have very different results. Unfortunately, this led to a great deal of repetition as the same scenarios were played out with different endings.

Later in the month we had a few days away, first on Derwentwater and then in Pitlochry. Both are lovely places and we were lucky with the weather, so it made a nice break. Pitlochry has a beautiful modern theatre, which stages an ambitious summer season. We saw a new play, ‘Pyrenees’, extremely well written and acted and better than anything we saw in London.

So here we are in September and the summer (what summer, I ask myself) is almost over. Next week I’m off to Whiteley Bay to record ‘Twice Royal Lady.’

Adventures of a Visiting Speaker

I was asked to talk to the Little Bollington WI – subject Women At War. Looked up the venue on the net and it seemed fairly straightforward – basically straight up the M56 and then a short diversion. However, decided I’d better take the Sat Nav just in case. Big mistake! Instead of sticking to the M-Way she (my Sat Nav’s name is Jemima by the way) decided we should take the scenic route. After about half an hour of wandering through the country lanes she told me to turn right, down a road that was clearly marked as a dead end. I ignored her and hoped she would find another way round. After a long diversion she brought me back to the same point. ‘Turn right!’ she ordered. I was in the middle of nowhere, with no identifiable landmarks. Beginning to panic by this time, I telephoned the number of the lady who had asked me to speak. She had left, but her husband eventually managed to work out where I was. ‘Oh, you’re almost there.’ he said. ‘Keep on along the main road and take the first turning on the left.’ Reassured, I set off again. None of the roads to the left seemed to be what I wanted and I found myself at a busy and complicated roundabout system. Jemima had completely lost the plot by now and wanted to take me back across the M-Way, which I knew must be wrong. I consigned her to the glove box and phoned again. No answer! I headed back the way I had come. Now half an hour late and reduced to a gibbering wreck I rang the lady’s mobile. ‘I’m completely lost! I’m sitting outside a pub called the Swan with Two Nicks.’  ‘Oh, you’re nearly here. Wait and I’ll send someone to find you.’ This she duly did and it turned out I was withing half a mile and had already driven past the place once! So, instead of arriving in good time, cool, calm and collected, I arrived hot, bothered and teetering on the edge of a nervous breakdown. Luckily, the members were still dealing with the business of the meeting so I had time to draw breath. In the end, the talk went very well and I sold a lot of books – and afterwards I was given a guide to get me back to the motorway. So it was worth it in the end – but boy! was I glad to get home!

Review of The Miniaturist by Jesse Burton

This is an intriguing book but I found it ultimately disappointing. Set in Amsterdam during the 17th century it tells the story of Nella, an initially naïve country girl trapped in a marriage of convenience to a wealthy merchant. The author admirably conveys the claustrophobic atmosphere of a city in the grips of extreme puritanism and Nella’s desire to become a ‘proper’ wife and to fit into this society. Little by little we come to understand that her husband, Johannes, is hiding a deep secret and that he is in rebellion against the laws and customs of the time. He is shown as an attractive man, but Nella cannot understand why their marriage is not consummated.

Another character who plays an important part in the story is Nella’s sister-in-law, Marin, who has been used to running the household and seems to resent Nella’s arrival. She appears to be a very strong personality but she, too, has a secret. As the story progresses we see these two strong people slowly disintegrate under the blows of fate, while Nella grows into someone capable of taking over her husband’s business and coping with, first, the death of Marin in childbirth and then the execution of Johannes by drowning.

So far, so good. The characters are believable and we become involved with their fates and the slow transition of Nella from a rather pathetic little girl to a strong woman is well portrayed. But here is what I find is the weakness of the book. Early in the story, Johannes buys Nella what amounts to an elaborate doll’s house, which is a miniature copy of the house she now lives in. Nella see an advertisement by the miniaturist of the title and orders some pieces of furniture for it. From then on, more and more items arrive, unordered, and each one shows an uncanny knowledge of the household. Later tiny dolls representing Nella and Johannes and Marin appear and the miniaturist appears to be able to predict what is going to happen to them. Nella makes repeated attempts to contact this mysterious person, who is apparently female, but only catches tantalising glimpses of her.

All through the book I waited to discover who this person is and how she knows so much, but the changes in the miniature dolls, echoing or foretelling what is happening to their real life counterparts, became more and more inexplicable and ultimately unbelievable. The book ends with no resolution to the mystery and I found this most unsatisfactory. If an author chooses to present her readers with a mystery at the start of a book, I feel we have a right to some explanation by the end of it. Did the author herself have any answer?The use of the miniatures is a clever plot device, but ultimately I felt Burton was cheating. There seems to me to be a trend in modern writing to introduce supernatural elements into otherwise realistic stories in order to add twists to the plot, but personally I think this is illegitimate. It is a pity, because the book stands on its own merits and does not need this extra elaboration.

Review of The Mistra Chronicles Books 1&2

Review of The Mistra Chronicles Books 1 and 2.

by James Heneage.

I love books that take me to exotic and unfamiliar times and places and these books do that in spades. They are set during the last days of the Byzantine Empire, when Constantinople is under threat from the Turks. I did not know that Mistra, on the Greek Peloponnese, was one of the last outposts of the empire but Heneage’s description has made me want to visit it.

His hero, Luke, is descended from one of the Varangians, exiles from England after the Norman Conquest, who formed the emperor’s elite bodyguard and who, we learn in a preface, escaped from Constantinople just before it was sacked in the Fourth Crusade with a great but mysterious treasure. He is in love with Anna, the daughter of the ruler of Mistra but his low birth means they are destined to be kept apart. His adventures take him first to the island of Chios, another unfamiliar place to me, and I was fascinated to learn about the importance of the trade in mastic and the labyrinthine villages constructed to save the people from pirate attacks.

The story progresses and both Luke and Anna are caught up in the machinations of the Turkish Sultan, the wily Venetians and Anna’s devious father-in-law. There are plenty of unexpected twists and turns to the plot and Luke and Anna are brave and far-thinking in their efforts to outwit them.

In Book 2 the action moves even further afield as Luke is sent to to the court of Tamburlaine the Great, the Mongol lord who swept through Asia minor in the fifteenth century. This is a part of history I knew little about and Heneage evokes brilliantly the exotic combination of barbarism and luxury surrounding Tamburlaine’s court. He was a bloodthirsty monster, massacring whole populations of cities that opposed him and leaving pyramids of skulls to mark his passage.

I was gripped by these stories but I have some reservations. Luke seems to me a little bit too perfect; a warrior who can overcome all opposition; a wily negotiator; brave and honourable – but I found my sympathy for him stretched to breaking point when he remains with Tamburlaine, as a trusted companion, even after the most terrible massacres. The excuse is that he is oath sworn and has a task to do, to persuade Tamburlaine to attack the Turks and so distract them from Constantinople and the writer shows that he is driven to despair by what he sees, but I kept thinking ‘why don’t you just ride away?’.

A more important criticism is the writer’s reliance on elements of the supernatural. Luke learns in a dream that Anna is in no immediate danger, so he can leave for the east; she knows that he is still alive by looking into the eyes of his horse. There are books which are entirely predicated on the existence of the supernatural, such as Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones. I can happily accept that. But when they are used as plot devices in an otherwise well researched and realistic historical novel I think that is illegitimate. Most irritating is the use of the mysterious treasure rescued from Constantinople, which is unearthed and gazed upon with awe and wonder at the end of both books. We are never told what it is, only that it will ‘change the world’. I assume the author’s idea is that we will keep reading subsequent volumes in order to find out; but I fancy that the final revelation will be an anticlimax. What can possibly live up to the significance laid upon it? Does the author himself know what it is?

These caveats apart, I was hooked on these stories and would recommend them to anyone looking for a gripping historical read.

Newsletter for June 2015

Dear All,

There isn’t a lot to report for this month. I’m working on the last chapter of the new novel, and up against the publisher’s word limit of 100,000. I think I might just be able to bring the story to a conclusion within the limit but I wish I had a bit more leeway. The book has involved a lot of research, particularly the second half in which the hero becomes a merchant plying the Mediterranean in the years just before the First Crusade. There is so much fascinating information about the trade in spices and silk, the origins of which were a mystery to western Europeans at that time; but the political situation in the Middle East was very volatile and confused and I am constantly having to check up on who controlled which area at any particular time – Turks, Byzantines. Egyptians ?? And there is so much technical detail to discover. How many men did it take to row a galley? How long did it take to get from Amalfi to Alexandria? What were conditions like on board? It’s very interesting, but time consuming.

I’m afraid the writing has had to take a back seat in favour of the garden lately. While the weather has been so lovely it seemed a shame to stay indoors and it is looking so beautiful. The roses are glorious at the moment, and so are the peonies. The lupins and foxgloves are going over now, but the herbaceous border has been a blaze of colour for weeks. Now it is the turn of the delphiniums and the penstemons and soon there will be dahlias and cosmos and day lilies. It’s a lot of work, but worth every moment.

I had an enjoyable day last Thursday at the Authors North summer social, run by the northern branch of the Society of Authors. We had a half hour cruise on the River Dee in Chester and then ‘afternoon tea’ at 12.30 in the Town Hall, followed by a very interesting discussion which centred mainly on the problems and advantages of self-publishing. It was good to chat to other writers and share experiences and tips.

I’ve been a bit disappointed by the muted reception given to TWICE ROYAL LADY. There is one really good review on Goodreads and so far nothing on Amazon, or in any of the papers. It hasn’t made the sort of impact I was hoping for. If any of you have read it and can contribute a review I shall be very grateful – and remember, if you want a signed copy you only have to let me know.

I hope you are all having a wonderful summer.

Best wishes

Hilary

Newsletter for May 2015

NEWSLETTER FOR MAY 2015.

I apologise for the gap in sending out my usual monthly letter. As I think you know, I have been working as drama coach on the cruise ship Balmoral. I started to compose a letter at the end of March and then found I had not copied the group address onto my tablet, so I was unable to send it.

I have mixed feelings about the experience, coloured largely by the fact that David and I both picked up a bug that had us coughing and wheezing and which we never managed to throw off completely. Being asthmatic it hit me particularly hard. I even had to spend a night in hospital in Singapore. Wonderful service, but the cost!! I hope the insurance company will pay up. Well, we’re home safe and sound but still coughing. Now on our third course of antibiotics. Now comes the struggle to catch up on the admin and battle the weeds which have taken over the garden.

Anyway, here’s a summary of my conclusions.

  1. Cruising is an unhealthy occupation.

  2. It’s not a good way to see the world. Most of the far east ports were miles from anywhere you would really want to see and people were doing two and three hour coach journeys to spend an hour or so in Beijing or Bankok or at the pyramids. It didn’t worry us, because we’ve already been to all those places, but if you didn’t go on an excursion of some sort there was nothing to look at. I’ve seen enough ugly container ports to last me a life time!

  3. On the plus side: It’s nice to be pampered and have your food cooked and your cabin cleaned etc – and the food wad very good. Also the entertainment. The resident company were all very young but extremely talented and we had a succession of visiting acts which came on a different ports, most of which were well worth watching or listening to, including some very good musicians. I particularly liked Matthew McCombie, a very talented pianist.

  4. My work as drama coach was challenging, to say the least. People in the age range for a cruise like that, ie retired and mostly elderly, either can’t or don’t want to learn lines. However, I did find some talent and we put on two very successful productions. This, in spite of the unhelpful attitude of the deputy cruise director, who was supposed to facilitate with finding props etc. His first reaction to any request was to say ‘Oh, no that won’t be possible.’ In the end I found it easier to cut him out of the loop and go direct to potential providers – the restaurant for china and cutlery, for example. Basically, I don’t think anyone had attempted to put on a properly staged production on the ship before. But even allowing for all the hard work, I should have gone mad if I wasn’t there to do a job. The idea of lying around for months sunbathing and passing the time with various talks and classes and silly games just does not appeal! Would I do it again? It would have to be a very tempting itinerary, and I would far rather stick to teaching creative writing. At least then people are not required to learn lines.

As far as the writing goes I have had to put a hold on the new novel for the duration of the cruise. I simply didn’t have the time or the spare energy to write. However, I shall get down to it now. Meantime TWICE ROYAL LADY will be out this month. I do hope you will read it. I know the period is far from what you are used to in my other books, but I found Matilda a fascinating character. She was proud and sometimes arrogant and short tempered, but she was also intelligent and well educated and deeply religious. Betrothed at the age of eight to the German Emperor, married at twelve, widowed at twenty three and then forced into a second marriage with a boy of sixteen. After her brother was drowned she was her father Henry 1’s only heir; but when he died her cousin Stephen seized the throne. She had to choose between her husband and her three sons and her duty, as she saw it, to the people of England. Her husband, Geoffrey of Anjou, refused to support her claim and in the end she was forced to sail from France with a small band of supporters. Many rallied to her cause, but she had to battle it out with Stephen for ten long years. Meanwhile, her position prevented her from finding happiness with the only man she ever really loved. So it is a story of love and war, just like the other books. Do give it a try!

Newsletter for October 2014

I’ve been ‘networking’ this month. I attended the Authors North meeting run by the Society of Authors in Manchester, where I heard a very comprehensive lecture from Stephanie Hale about marketing your books. It was so comprehensive, in fact, that I have filed it away for future consideration when I have more time! If one did all the things the marketing experts saw you should do, no books would ever get written in the first place.

I also managed to catch the last event in the History Writers Festival at Harrogate. This is much more interesting, to my way of thinking. The festival is modelled on the very well established Crime Writers Festival which has been held in Harrogate for several years now. The History equivalent is fairly new but looks set fair to be as popular as the older one. It was crammed with talks and discussions from writers of both fiction and non-fiction, with some very big names attending, and I just wish I had been able to go to all of it. I am hoping that next year I may be able to take part, to promote TWICE ROYAL LADY; but the organisers do require the publishers to come up with some sponsorship and I am not sure whether Hale will oblige. Their initial reaction was that the money involved rarely pays off in terms of book sales; but I’m still hoping to persuade them. It is a matter of prestige as well as cold cash.

We stayed on for a few days in Harrogate and caught up with friends and also explored some of the lovely countryside of the Dales. A nice break.

I have been lucky enough to get the offer of another cruise, teaching creative writing. This one is with Cruise and Maritime, on board the Marco Polo In Search of the Northern Lights. We leave at the beginning of March and I am really looking forward to it. At the same time, I have had to turn down what sounded at first hearing like a fabulous opportunity. I was asked to be a drama coach on a cruise to the Far East. It would have involved putting on a play with the passengers for each leg of the voyage, which would have been hard work but exciting, and the destinations would be marvellous. Unfortunately, the cruise leaves on Jan 2nd and doesn’t get back until May 4th. So I was already committed to the Marco Polo in March and we have a holiday to Teneriffe booked for February; besides which neither David nor I really fancied being away from home for four months, especially during the spring. It would have meant nothing getting planted in the garden, for one thing. All the same, I have lingering regrets and if I wasn’t already committed elsewhere I would be tempted.

Right now, I have the copy edited text of LADY to go through. I keep trying to get on with work on the new book, but there always seems to be something more urgent to do. But I’ll get there one day!

Newsletter for September 2014

 

 How fast the months fly by! When I look back and think, what have I done this month that might be of interest, it is hard to remember.

 

I gave a talk to the Ellesmere Port ladies luncheon club on Sept 9th about the inspiration behind my WWl novels and as usual it was very well received. I also spoke to the Manorgate society in Burton on the same topic. People are fascinated by the stories of Grace Ashley Smith, the commandant of the FANY, and Mabel Stobart, founder of the Women’s Sick and Wounded Convoy, and the exploits of Flora Sands. They should all be better known.

 

Work continues on preparation for the publication of TWICE ROYAL LADY in May. I have been sent a picture of the front cover and it is absolutely gorgeous! As the book is being published under the new Hale Broken River imprint I think it is getting special attention. I can’t wait to see the finished product.

 

Another topic that has been in my mind, with the commemorations for the outbreak of WWl, has been the fate of my paternal grandfather. He was killed during the retreat from Cambrai within days of the end of the war. He has no known grave but my sister has recently been to France with her husband Lyndon and found his name recorded on the great memorial in Arras. I copy her account of her visit here:

 

‘I have been researching my family tree. My grandfather Alfred William Gladdon born 1881 died in March 1918. He was originally in the Royal Flying Corp and enlisted in 1916 in the 10th battalion of the Lincolnshire Regiment . In World War 1 he saw action at Albert, Vimmy Ridge, Beaucourt, Arras, Messines and Passchendaele, and qualified for the Victory and British War Medals.  He was killed during the retreat from Cambrai in March 1918 and has no known grave.  In September Lyndon and I visited the Arras Memorial in northern France and miraculously amongst 20,000 names found his name carved on one of the walls. We laid a bouquet of poppies beside the official Lincolnshire Regiment wreath. We also went to the Menin Gate in Ypres for the very moving Last Post ceremony performed every evening by four buglers from the local fire brigade. A representative of the Last Post Society recited the famous “Ode of Rememberance” by Laurence Binyon with the line “At the going down of the sun and in the morning we will remember them” repeated by the hundreds of people who had gathered. An excellent visiting UK choir sang Herbert Howells edgy setting of the prayer which ends “God be at my end and at my departing”, and the Kernow Pipes and Drums paraded in full Scottish regalia. We also visited the “In Flanders Fields” museum where we  were given bracelets so that we became participants in World War 1. I was a nurse at the Front and Lyndon was a French soldier. When we returned to our B&B we discovered that the owner`s grandfather was a stonemason who worked for five years on the building of the Gate. He showed us unique  photographs of various stages in its construction.’

 

One project I have been busy on is some research into which libraries stock my novels. I’m glad to say all of them do, to a greater or lesser extent, but some had never heard of THE LAST HERO, so I took the opportunity to bring it to their attention and I am please to report that a good many of them have now ordered copies.

 

I have been asked to judge a short story competition run by the village of Curry Mallet in Somerset. They have an annual history festival and this year the theme is WWl. More details can be found at

 

www.currymallet.org . It is quite a big commitment but I think it is right to encourage other would-be writers.

 

On Saturday I shall be at the Society of Authors meeting in Manchester and at the end of October I am going to be at the Harrogate History festival. This is a really vibrant event and thoroughly recommended for all you history buffs out there. Go http://harrogateinternationalfestivals.com/history/ for details.

 

 

All this has rather interrupted my research for the next book, but I shall get back to it eventually!

 

 

I hope all is well with all of you.

 

 

Best wishes

 

 

Hilary