Gordon Doherty's Blog, page 10

Chasing the dream: the ups and the downs of becoming a writer

Writing was always the dream; penning a novel, telling stories for a living. I chased it for years… until one day I caught it. I was stunned and euphoric for a time. Then the dust began to settle and I realised that the dream actually entailed a lot of hard work and a huge change in outlook and attitude. I’ve come through five years of ‘living the dream’. Along the way it has tested me, tickled me, stoked me with moments of thunderous elation and deep angst. The transition into this new way of life has taught me a lot, so I thought it would be worth looking back on how things have changed for me…

Read the full story here:
http://pruebatten.com/2017/07/04/chas...


Swapping the day job for a life of writing - wonderfully terrifying!

Strategos: Island in the Storm - the audiobook

It is with a great sense of satisfaction that I can announce the launch of 'Strategos: Island in the Storm' on Audible. It's been a while since I finished writing the trilogy (2014 I think), but it has always felt like there was something missing, and adding the audio version of books 1, 2 and now 3 really have given things a sense of completeness.



Buy link: http://getBook.at/Strategos3Audio

Rob Goll has been an absolute joy to work with - funny, witty and inventive in his approaches to narrating this third and final volume of Apion's tale. You can hear a sample of his work here.

Hope you like. And here's hoping the Greek translation (agreed but parked for the moment) will happen soon.

Turma! Charge of the Roman cavalry.

Just back from a top weekend in Carlisle watching many groups of experts and re-enactors coming together to put on a rather amazing Roman cavalry display. We had Legionary battles and displays, horse parades and mock-battles (Hippikia Gymnasia), all judged by Emperor Hadrian himself. And just how intimidating and spooky are the masked, plumed elite riders?!
One of the many things I took away from this was the sheer 'presence' of a turma. I have been guilty of writing about such a 30-strong group of horsemen as mere skirmish-fodder, but these guys showed just how much a unit this size, draped in full armour, standards and colours could inspire awe and fear in those they might be fighting or protecting. Here are a few pics:


Me and my mucker, Simon Turney, trying not to be trampled underhoof.


The Ermine Street Guard at work.


Hadrian and his elite riders.


The turma ranks cantering past.



The elites - how intimidating would it be to face them in their emotionless, steely masks and bright, rippling plumes?

Originally published at: http://www.gordondoherty.co.uk/writeb...

Legionary 6 Goodies

Find out more about Legionary: Empire of Shades (Legionary 6): Volume 6
Free stories, articles, pics, maps and more: http://www.gordondoherty.co.uk/legion...

For the Claudia!

A look at the famous old legion in the days before Pavo and Sura:

http://www.gordondoherty.co.uk/writeb...

Launch Day - Legionary: Empire of Shades

At last, it's LAUNCH DAY for 'Legionary: Empire of Shades'!

Fancy it? You can pick up a copy here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07...

And read all about it here: http://www.gordondoherty.co.uk/writeb...

Happy reading :)

Republic or Empire? And some rather more gutter-level subjects...

Republic or Empire? Pavo of the 'Legionary' series chews the fat with Fronto from 'Marius' Mules'

http://www.gordondoherty.co.uk/writeb...

Empire of Shades - Prologue

Legionary: Empire of Shades is almost here. Read the prologue on my website:

http://www.gordondoherty.co.uk/legion...

Legionary: Empire of Shades

City of the Blind

City of the Blind is a piece of flash fiction, set between Legionary: Gods & Emperors and the soon-to-be-released follow-up Legionary: Empire of Shades.

Chalcedon, perched on the eastern shores of the Bosphorus strait, was once branded 'the City of the Blind' by a 6th century BC Persian general named Megabyzus, when he contrasted the settlement with the far superior and sparsely-occupied site on the opposite shores. By Late Antiquity, Chalcedon languished in the shadows of the city that had risen on that far shore through the intervening centuries: the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, Constantinople.

Yet something that happened in Chalcedon in that twilight era which suggests that ancient lessons had gone unheeded...

Read the story, here:

http://www.gordondoherty.co.uk/writeb...

Pavo and the XI Claudia are back!

Legionary: Empire of Shades will be published on 25th May and is available for pre-order now!
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Legionary-Em...