Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all.
Tyrant Book Two (Storm of Arrows)will be out in a few days,and the paperback of Tyrant is out on Saturday, so I assume that this site will suddenly receive quite a few hits. Let me say again, please feel free to visit the forum. You will have to sign in. A Greek name is NOT required. Until you post at least once (for instance, an introduction!) you won't have any greater access. But I am easily swayed by reader input.
And YES I will have a story about Chaeronaea available in a week or two.
Even from the depths of near full immersion in the wars of the Diadochoi, it has become difficult to ignore the effects of the world-wide economy on the world of history--and on my friends. In addition to ill-considered lay-offs in service and industry, museums and historical sites are cutting personnel in Canada and in the U.S. Thousands of people are losing their jobs--at Christmas.
Will any corporation that is "laying off" people in the month before Christmas actually perish due to over-employment? Isn't this just knee-jerk cutting to marginally improve the bottom line for 4th Q.? And shouldn't these companies be punished for their lack of public spirit?
Personally (and what is a blog but personal?) I think that cutting away at our historical and cultural institutions is just as short sighted. History usually holds answers--the sort of answers that politicians are afraid to face. Anyone who knows the history of the rise and fall of Athens is assured of understanding where the current crisis could lead.
Finally, not even the coward Demosthenes ever demanded the suspension of the assembly. There is a reason why the Spanish say "May no new thing arise." Steven Harper has done a "new thing." And we will all pay for it in years to come.
This week, I finished reading both "The Other Greeks" by Hanson and "Traveling Heroes" and I'm re-reading Herodotus. And Satyrus is sailing away from Byzantium, looking to make a deal with Lysimachos. I hope that's an interesting clue for the future.
Was Athens a major power before the Battle of Marathon? That's become my current historical question.
Was there technological development of the Panoply within the late Archaic and Classical Greek period? Did hoplites change?
What did the Greeks use as tents? Herodotus and Thucydides both mention them. What were they? What did they look like? What were they made of?
I don't have answers to these questions--just more questions. But if you're interested, feel free to visit the forum. Sign up, send a welcome message, and then fire away.
Last weekend, my Rev War group and many of our friends spent three cold, wet days recreating early winter patrolling in the Adirondacks in 1782. We did an excellent job as experimental archaeologists of demonstrating why soldiers ended their campaign season in the fall. We were cold, wet, and often lost--water and lack of foliage changed the terrain to an amazing degree. Worth noting, however, that we ate well and slept warm--all in period kit. They knew what they were doing, back then--we're the ones who struggle! This week, I completed my mess gear for my Greek kit, and started writing Tyrant 4, king of the Bosporus (or whatever it may eventually be called.) As usual, a good immersion event fires me for further writing.
I took a week off to polish up the last text, tie up loose ends, pay bills, and make kit--my aspis nears completion and I have the basis of a tube-and yoke corselet cut out on the ping-pong table. Tomorrow is Halloween, and Bea will be resplendent as Athena. Photos to follow! And on Monday I'll start Tyrant IV--King of the Bosporus.
If you have a chance, take a look at the new covers which will be out next week. They certainly are different and full of action. I really rather enjoyed working with Steve Stone in Yorkshire on building the covers and trying to get the equipment into the right period. Hope that you all like them too!
That's just my title for book 3--the odds of it making it as the real title are not all that high.
But it is done--I think, although I blush to say it, that this is my best work. Eventually, you'll judge for yourself.
I think the best thing about writing is how much it resembles a craft--whether plumbing or making an aspis. The more you do, the more you find to learn. In this book I found that I had bitten off more than I could chew (the wars of the successors make a pretty grand canvas) but in the process of chewing, I learned a great deal.
Now back to proof reading.
Research is a funny thing. In University, my favorite professor said "Research is a gas--it expands to fill all available time." Too true.
Sarah, Bea, and I went to Baltimore again to see me mum, and we spent quite a bit of time across the street at the Walters, which has to be one of the best museums in North America. Just for starters, it is FREE. Given the cost of Toronto's "ROM" (a world class museum, or so I'm told) I guess a visitor to the Walters should expect inferior collections.
Not a chance. The Classical and Hellenistic collection at the Walters is world class, whether you love art or all this recreation stuff you'll find elsewhere on this site. Helmets, greaves, jewelry, statuary, and a fine selection of Greek vases from 570 BC to 330. Beautifully displayed. You are allowed to photograph anything you want, with or without flash.
Did I mention free?
I can't tell you how many items from the Walters have influenced the Tyrant books--character, action, motive--material culture has a great deal to say for itself!
And anyone visiting the forum will see that several of us are nearing completion on our aspides (the big Greek shields hoplites carry.) Wow, what a project.
Today I reached page 540 in book three, and tomorrow, unless I'm interrupted, I'll finish at the Battle of Gaza in 312 BC. This has been an exciting book to write--every item of research seems to give birth to new scenes, and whether dealing with the issues of Hellenistic religion, philosophy, contraception, or the problem of the phalanx as a fighting formation, it's a book full of writing and research challenges.
And there's hope for Marathon, too! Communication channels with the Government of Greece seem to have opened.
I'm off to visit my mother in Baltimore for a few days. For Canadians, have a Happy Thanksgiving! And a good election!
Yesterday (September 23rd) was Bea's 5th birthday. I also did a book talk at Taylor Branch of the TPL. I suspect I should have advertised that in advance on this site, as I was stunned to discover that three of the readers there had used the site! That's pretty remarkable, given that the site hasn't been advertised yet and isn't on the current book-cover.
So--to those of you who found your way here on your own--thanks! And feel free to join the discussion forums. Or even the Plataean Hoplites! And to the gentleman I met yesterday whose son is at York doing Classics--would he care to learn to be a hoplite? Would you? Goodness, how did I forget the recruiting speech? There's contact info elsewhere on the site...
Have to say that the book talk was wonderful. Not my part--I went on and on in my best style--but I've seldom had a chance to meet with so many enthusiastic readers in such a lovely building. I felt lucky to be invited.
Sometimes, being an author is great fun.
This Saturday we'll have our first official meeting. Actually, it's probably our third meeting or our fourth if you count talking about it in my living room or the twentieth if you count talking in the kitchen... Hoplologia is our umbrella organization for our 480 B.C. Plataean interpretation. Wish us luck...
Last Saturday we had more than a dozen folks in various degrees of kit trying shields and short swords and spears. So much to learn that we're not all sure where to start.
But we'll be in Trinity Bellwoods in Toronto on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. if you'd like to drop by...
And, of course, I'm still writing. I'm on page 435 now--headed for the Battle of Gaza. And the end of Book Three.
And it is Bea's birthday tomorrow...
Last weekend we drove to Fort Ticonderoga, one of the best preserved 18th century military sites that we can regularly use as reenactors, and a place frequented by our "Company of British Rangers" (the Company of Select Marksmen.)
We had a great weekend, escaped the tropical storms, and managed to let our hoplite reenacting infect our neo-classical reenacting with some wrestling and Iliad reading. And some of Venetian Cat's superb reproduction pottery...
I've done a lot of research and some fun weapons drills and some hay-bale stabbing, but now it is time to get back to writing. School starts tomorrow for senior kindergartners (I just happen to have one) and then you know summer is over.
Let me recommend (again) "Ancient Cities Brought to Life" by Jean-Claude Golvin. Mostly Roman era, his illustrations nonetheless still give a strong idea of what living cities of the ancient world looked like.
And full of energy. Seven days in the wilderness with 18th c. gear and a group of friends--we had great weather and we worked ourselves to a light state of exhaustion cutting about 2.5 miles of blow-downs from a trail with 18th c. tools--and rowing 7 miles a day, hiking, cooking, cutting massive amounts of firewood.
Now it is time to get back to work. Oh, and I now have a dory, a bunch of new javelins, some camp gear--I may yet have a hoplite kit.
Also got an excellent book on Ancient cities by a French author--I'll post it on the bibliography page. Very helpful in visualization.
Hope that you all had a good summer. I'm going to be editing books one and two for a few days, and making some kit for my hobbies, so I don't intend to go back to writing book three until September 15th.
I'll be on vacation in Prince Edward County until August 11th. There's new stuff on Plataean myths and cavalry javelins and a beautiful new illustration
of Kineas!
I was in Baltimore last week visiting my mother. I made several visits to the Walter's Gallery to look at their collection of vases--many of which illustrate costume, arms, and armour better than other vases available online.
Leaving the Walters on Friday, my head was very much in a Classical space. I was moved by how much of the Classical world we still carry with us. Downtown Baltimore (familiar to millions of viewers of The Wire) is essentially American Federalist in its architecture, which means that every building, public or private, even churches, pay homage to the Classical past. Columns and porticoes adorn many of the buildings in the downtown core--and statues, many representing scenes from Greek mythology, are on every corner. No wonder my mum grew up to study classics!
Amidst all this splendor (and Baltimore is getting a face lift, so many buildings are recently restored), the people of the city go about their business with the grim desperation of citizen of a city under siege. This is the world of The Wire. It made me wonder about the street life of Classical Athens, and it made me wonder why people put up with the conditions that the people of Baltimore, black and white, endure. There is no army at the gates.
All of this rather over-shadowed the next couple of days, when I got to visit my friend Ridgely and his family. We did some Classical horsemanship and threw javelins while mounted, all of which was great fun and improved my picture of Kineas's world considerably. Check the forum for pictures.
We survived (and even thrived) at the Revolutionary War Ft. George event, with about 150 participants. The staff at Fort George were great, and the event was a strong success. My Manning Imperial spear head arrived and I'm going to be derelict about my author's duties and shaft it right now! Apparently my aspis is all but complete...
I can hardly wait.
The book is at page 350, and I'm busy refining the plots and counter plots of the various political antagonists. Political machinations (absolutely required in a book about the wars of the Diadochi) are far more difficult to plot than military history or romance or even character, because in politics, people often do pseudo-rational things against their own best interests--a hard position to characterize. Why does Cassander, Ptolemy's ally, also seek to undermine him?
Today I finished page 310. The Twins have made it to Alexandria, where they will have most of their adolescence. Who wouldn't want to grow up in the most cosmopolitan city of the ancient world--perhaps of all time? Lankhmar, Sanctuary, Mos Eisley, Constantinople... on to Alexandria. And I got a sample Boeotian Helmet from Robert Valentine---really well done. With all the shields that Theron is building, I suspect that the hoplites of Plataea will be out in force in a month...
So--it is 316 BC in book three. I have to say that a battle with 50+ elephants on both sides fought on a salt pan with the worst dust anyone could remember (salt dust, at that) sounds pretty extreme--and I'm enjoying writing the scene. An hour and a half of Greek swordsmanship yesterday, with our first correct Peltast shields... hmm, those rope hand grips are different.
I am now on page 248.
If you go to the forum and look under "Marathon 2010" you can see our prototype Boeotian helmet--and no, it won't be in steel, it will be in Bronze...
I wrote seventeen pages today, and I'm beyond p. 225 of book three. In fact, I'm writing the Battle of Gabienne, 316 BC this week. Lots of elephants!
Dan Copeland (Theron on the forum) completed the first Aspis shell for our Classical Greek reenactment group and I saw it yesterday. Very motivational!
In addition, I'm trying to reconstruct the style of Greek swordsmanship based on vase paintings and footwork with my friend Aurora. Also very motivational.
I've been a sport fencer and "western martial artist" since I was nine, so even if the Greeks weren't dead keen on swords, I will tend to be.
Now, time to do some writing.
Well, now the site is live, after a two week long pursuit of photo permissions from the Louvre. Did you know that permission to use a twenty year old photo from the Louvre costs $300 and has to go through an agency in NYC? Do I sound bitter? No--that's just the cost of a Boeotian helmet... Seriously, it's good to have this going live. And now I'm on page 200 of book three, after a minor contretemps. Please feel free to visit the forum. Especially if you'd like to join the citizens of New Plataea and go to Marathon!
Some years ago (1982 or so) a brilliant young armourer delivered to me my first set of armour--early 15th c. white plate. (That's Robert McPherson, currently at http://www.lightlink.com/armory/armory.html and you really should check out what he does!) When I opened the bag and tried on all the bits--it all fit. Some of it didn't seem to fit, but once I put on an arming coat and swung a sword, it fit perfectly. All of this is an allegory of sorts for this website. Thanks to Rebecca and David for the site and Steve for the maps. It fits perfectly.
By the way, I'm on page 119 of book three today. Now I have to do some work.
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