The necklace of Rhea Silvia is one of the fantastical elements of the ancient world. The Sibylline Chronicles is actively incorporating provocative relics from the ancient world – many of which disappeared between 391 and 415 c.e. The Necklace is actually wonderfully mythological and full of mystery. It hung around the neck of her statue in the Temple…
Hand-drawn maps are life-savers. One of the most daunting parts of writing historical fiction based in times thousands of years in the past is a very limited public historical record. It’s one thing to recount history in a reference book. Something entirely different to create the intimate relationship to place required for a novel. I’ve…
When you are diagramming a scene, you can see the characters in it. Writing is an art steeped in the lyrical use of words (stunning revelation, I know). Figuring out the magical combination of phrases, nouns, verbs and a participle or two is something we as novelists fret over on a minute-by-minute basis. Jumping in today…
Women In History are still a novelty. Where are all the voices of irrepressible women throughout history? It’s a question I’ve asked out loud since I discovered the revolutionary art of Central and South America in my early 20s. After a very white, conservative American upbringing, I found my worldview leveled by them. Women such…