EXCERPT for Mother's Day: Aurelia and her daughter Marina

Aurelia and Marina

We should celebrate mothers every day, of course. Aurelia is fierce in her protection of Marina her only child; it’s her greatest strength and her greatest vulnerability… —— Caius smiled at me this time, but it didn’t reach his eyes. ‘Your mother’s right, you know. You have a duty to […]

Why INSURRECTIO?

Destruction, Thomas Cole, 1836

Good question!

It’s about characters under pressure, their failings and struggles. Strong, sincere characters like Aurelia Mitela, although worldly wise, think that everybody has good intentions and are ready to do their best. This may seem naive; they consequently become frustrated and angry when things turn out differently. Those […]

"What if" stories – historical fiction?

Historical fiction is a broad church; a re-telling real events, quasi-biographical fiction, romantic, adventure, fantastical and detective stories, tales from the cave to the 1960s and set in every country and social situation you can imagine. And within that mix are counter-factual, alternative history stories, the ‘what ifs’ which project a possible different timeline from […]