Deborah Swift's Blog, page 26
September 28, 2017
Publication Day for Pleasing Mr Pepys – Read an extract!
Publication Day Pleasing Mr Pepys I’m delighted to announce that Pleasing Mr Pepys is out today with Accent Press. In years gone by, when there were far less books produced, and all of them physical copies, publishing a book was a much more unique and celebrated event. Now there are thousands of e-books released every […]
September 22, 2017
More than one way to tell a story – The Girl and the Glim
This week sees the launch of not just one, but two books in my family. First to launch this week is ‘The Girl and The Glim’ – a graphic novella, by Doig and Swift to be launched at the Thought Bubble Festival in Leeds this weekend. Here’s a page from the book, which has been […]
September 15, 2017
Carol McGrath’s ‘The Woman in the Shadows’ – Review
Carol McGrath’s new novel is a wonderful insight into the world of the Tudor merchant class. Elizabeth Williams, a widow who has inherited her husband’s cloth business, meets Thomas Cromwell, at her late husband’s funeral. She remembers him as a childhood friend, and from there a sturdy marriage alliance is begun. Like most marriages of […]
September 5, 2017
10 tips for Editing Historical Fiction no.8 ‘Suddenly’
It must be a month ago that I started thinking about writing a blog post on the difficulties of writing about sudden events, which was something highlighted by Hilary Mantel in her Reith Lectures. In the meantime I’ve been on holiday in walking in Wales, and with historical fiction writers Carol McGrath and Jenny Barden […]
August 15, 2017
This Deceitful light by Jemahl Evans #HistFic
Having read The Last Roundhead, I didn’t think Jemahl Evans could produce a better book, but This Deceitful Light is a tour-de-force. His character Blandford ‘Sugar’ Candy sits right up there with Rose Tremain’s Merivel as one of the great creations of a seventeenth century man. Opinionated and rascally, Candy gives us his take on the […]
July 19, 2017
Launch Day for Hostage to the Revolution by Diane Scott Lewis #18thC
I’m delighted to welcome Diane Scott Lewis today as she launches her latest book. Diane and I met a few years ago at the Historical Novel Conference in St Petersburg, Florida. Here’s Diane to talk about how she was inspired to write Hostage to the Revolution. A few years back I visited Cornwall, England, and toured […]
July 14, 2017
Cabinet of Curio-stories – A Viking Slave Collar
Today I welcome Ken Hagan who writes historical fiction set in the age of the Vikings. Here, he explains how an artefact from a museum inspired his story. Dublin was the hub of the Slave Trade in 10th Century Europe For the Norse kings and warrior merchants of Dublin, overseas trafficking of war captives was a […]
July 11, 2017
A German powder compact causes trouble in #WW2
Today I welcome author Clare Flynn, who I met at the Historical Novel Conference where we were both helping out stuffing goody bags for all the delegates. Clare is going to talk about how one particular object speaks to the themes in her new WW2 novel, The Chalky Sea. The German Powder Compact The Chalky […]
July 9, 2017
10 Tips for Editing Historical Fiction. No.7 Detail
When my agent sent off my first manuscript to publishers I had high hopes. Yet it came back with a slew of rejections before it found its publisher. One of the rejections said ‘overwhelmed with period detail’. Another said, ‘not enough period detail.’ Clearly, different editors had different expectations about the amount of detail a […]
July 4, 2017
Tuesday Treat – Bargain UK Historical Fiction #99p #TuesdayBookBlog
Found these whilst browsing – Ten fabulous historical reads all at 99p today only plus two of my own young adult novels, also at 99p. Must be something there that appeals to you. Click the books to buy.
