Roman women in late antiquity - a slippery fish to catch

Helena, mother of Constantine the Great (author photo, Naples Museum)

I set out to write a piece about women in the late Roman period – ambitious for a blog post I know, but I thought I could pull some threads out of a big subject and produce a digest. Not that easy, as […]

Shining a light - women in historical fiction

My writing friend Helen Hollick, a powerhouse of fiction production and historical fiction champion, is hosting a month long blog tour featuring heroines in modern historical fiction. She’s enlisted nine others, including me, to take part. Each Tuesday, Helen will talk about one of her heroines and introduce two further ones.

Last week (6 October), […]

What inspired Roma Nova?

I’m often asked this when I do interviews, talks or simply chatting to readers, but I don’t think I’ve ever put it all in one place on this my own blog.

Well, three things!

Ampurias mosaic

The first was when I was on holiday in north-east Spain one summer. Here’s the story…

A […]