Pamela Hartshorne's Blog, page 9

Witch-bottles

Lately the news seems to have been full of exciting archaeological excavations, most notably the discovery of Richard III’s remains under a Leicester car park (as you might imagine, I’m in favour of him being [...]

A History of York in 100 Pictures 10: St Andrewgate

I walk along St Andrewgate almost every time I go into town, and I always think about how often it was mentioned in the wardmote court records.  It was a poor parish in the late [...]

Indictments for witchcraft in Elizabethan England

The last decades of the 16th century saw a sharp rise in indictments for witchcraft. In spite of some scepticism amongst the educated, a belief in the harmful power of sorcery was widespread at the [...]

A History of York in 100 Pictures 9: Monk Bar

One of the first things you learn when you come to York is that streets are called gates, and gates are called bars.   Monk Bar is one of the four great gates into the walled [...]

Elizabethan names

Finding the right name for a character is one of the most important stages in writing a book, particularly when it comes to historical fiction when names must feel authentic.  I’m often asked where I found [...]

Shortlists and signings

I’m delighted to announce that Time’s Echo has been short-listed by the Romantic Novelists’ Association for one of their coveted RoNA Awards in the Historical Romantic Novel category. Here’s the complete shortlist : Charlotte Betts, The Apothecary’s [...]

The Memory of Midnight

So much for my plan to keep this blog updated weekly!  But between Christmas and revisions, something had to give, and this was it.  But the holidays are over, the revisions are done, and I’m [...]