(Photo courtesy of Sophie Perinot)
The (in)famous green jacket and I went to the very green island of Ireland for this year’s Historical Novel Society conference.
West of Dublin, Maynooth University is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland and combines historical roots with modern technology.
I was delighted to contribute a talk on alternative history on the Saturday – more below!
Never having visited it, I enthusiastically went on the Friday excursion to the Newgrange complex of ancient monuments (UNESCO World Heritage Site).
Set on a rise in a curve of the river Boyne, it dates from 3,100 BC making it older than Stonehenge or the pyramids in Egypt.
First off though was nearby Knowth, the site of numerous passage tombs, but containing the largest passage tomb ever built. Next on to Newgrange itself which is massive!
We were allowed inside for a few minutes and stood under 5,000 tons of Neolithic stone. Then the guide switched the lights out. Spooky, but in a positive way. A simulation of the midwinter sun piercing the chamber gave us an eerie connection back to people thousands of years ago.
A supper in the Pugin Hall (reminded me of Hogwarts) restored our strength ready for the conference proper on Saturday. Full Saturday programme here, but some sessions need a special mention. After the organising team was introduced – an excellent touch! – Professor Terence Dooley gave us an informative and lively guide to tracing the eventful and tragic life of Hermione, 5th Duchess of Leinster (1864-95) by means of estate papers.
We all took notes during BooksGoSocial‘s marketing expert Laurence O’Bryan’s presentation. I always learn something new from Laurence!
My own presentation ‘Alternative history – the stuff of legend or made-up twaddle?‘ was the first after a delicious sandwich lunch. (The food was outstanding during the conference: salad boxes and wraps, and pastries with tea and coffee in the breaks.) I was amazed and rather pleased that so many people came. They just kept filing in! And they looked interested, even when i kept referring to the Romans!
After explaining how althist worked and highlighting things to consider when writing stories in this framework, I gave some examples. People were surprised at the range of writers who had tackled them from Livy to Kingsley Amis, Kazuo Ishiguro, C J Sansom to Robert Harris. Great questions afterwards and I think that we may have some new althist readers…
The Gala Dinner on Saturday was lively, friendly and noisy! When you have hundreds of people in one room all eagerly talking, you’re bound to not hear everything above the hubbub.
Left to right: Laura Morelli, Jessica Bell, me, Jean Gill, Clare Flynn, Amie McCracken (Photo courtesy of Jessica Bell)
But we all quietened down for Justin Hill and Matthew Harffy’s dynamic duo after dinner speech. I stayed for a few minutes of joyful Irish music which followed, but I was quite tired by this stage, so called it a night.
Three highlights from Sunday
- Vaseem Khan’s Who Owns the Legend, an insightful talk delivered with sharp insights, balance and occasional wry humour
- Jean Gill, Justin Hill and Matthew Harffy’s panel on Beyond Kings and Queens: Giving Voice to the Hidden Folk, mostly in the Viking and Medieval periods
- Essie Fox and Karen Sullivan (publisher) on Gothic Legends for Today’s Readers
Left to right: Tracey Warr (chair), Justin Hill, Jean Gill, Matthew Harffy
But I particularly enjoyed Confronting the Legend with Christopher Cevasco (participating chair), Sophie Perinot and Michelle Moran. How do writers manage reader expectations for a book that seeks to be faithful to ‘history’ when that history is merely a familiar legend or a beloved pop-cultural depictions of characters? Then I asked about Robin Hood… 😉
Alison Morton with Christopher Cevasco HNS 2026 (I have no idea why the blue elephant is in the foyer but it adds to the photo.)
What did I take away from the conference?
A lot of very positive memories. The silken cord running through was warmth and friendship. I reconnected with many historical fiction friends from both sides of the Atlantic and made new ones from even further afield. Much socialising occurred at Brady’s Pub a couple of streets away in Maynooth as well as at the hotel itself.
Even though I’ve been going to HNS conferences since 2012, including one in the USA in 2015, I always learn something from the other speakers.
You share experiences, meet fellow sufferers, celebrate with colleagues, discuss writing and publishing with people whose eyes don’t glaze over when you mention the ‘W’ word. And in our solitary creative life, that’s immensely valuable.
Left to right: Navy Jardine, Anna Belfrage, Carolyn Hughes, Linnea Tanna, Cathie Dunn, me. (Photo courtesy of Cathie Dunn)
Alison Morton is the author of Roma Nova thrillers – INCEPTIO, CARINA (novella), PERFIDITAS, SUCCESSIO, AURELIA, NEXUS (novella), INSURRECTIO and RETALIO, and ROMA NOVA EXTRA, a collection of short stories. JULIA PRIMA and EXSILIUM, set in the late 4th century, tell the story of Roma Nova’s foundation. Audiobooks are available for four of the series. Double Identity, Double Pursuit and Double Stakes form a new contemporary thriller series. A new collection of Roma Nova short stories, HEROICA, is now out.
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