Today I am pleased to introduce you to historical author, Persia Woolley, author of the Guinevere Triology, which Sourcebooks Landmark has re-issued (originally written in the 1980's). Leave a comment to win a paperback copy of Guinevere, the Legend in Autumn ! (1 winner/US & Canada only) Enjoy! SEARCHINGFOR CAMELOT IN THE DARK AGES BRITAIN
by Persia Woolley
What apleasure it is to write for the History Undressed readers!
When I setout to do a realistic, historically accurate version of Camelot, told in firstperson by Guinevere, I figured it would mean about six months of research andsix of writing. My first two books--both non-fiction--had taken that long so Ithought a novel would also. Instead I spent 11 years researching and writing theGuinevere Trilogy and loved every moment of it.
It began in1980 with a lot of reading and included four trips to Britain, all of themmanaged on a shoestring. My itinerary was a blend of where I needed to go forthe story and how far away the nearest hostel was. Whenever possible thedifferent stories are set in their legendary domains--Gawain goes into theWirral to meet his fate with the Green Man and Igraine has her life-changingencounter with Uther at Tintagel. But where stories could not be geographicallyplaced I spread them out all over Britain as Arthur and Gwen would have maderegular progresses throughout the realm, cementing alliances, checking cropsand assessing defenses.
My longesttrip lasted four weeks and extended from London up to Hadrian's Wall then slowlydown to Old Sarum. It was at that ancient chalk hillfort that a widow whowalked her dog there twice a day pointed out that in Gwen's time there wouldn'thave been a single strand of ivy allowed to grow on the steep sides of thebank-and-ditch, lest it give marauders a handhold for launching an attack. As aresult the white chalk mound would have been visible for many miles, rising up outof the plain. That description and setting was reason enough for me to move thewedding from Winchester to Sarum.
Theshortest trip came after I'd spent a week on a journalists junket betweenGlasgow and Edinburgh. We were wined and dined every night but as mycompatriots were winging back to the States I was extending my ticket foranother week, trading my professional clothes for wool pants and parka andrunning for the last bus to Carlisle in the rain!
On thosetrips my wardrobe was strictly functional (pants, shirt and sweater) as everythinghad fit in my backpack. Hostels are only open at night, so my days were spentclimbing over Roman ruins and Celtic hillforts, poking about small museums orworking my way along Hadrian's Wall. The discovery of a hermit's cave nearWarkworth Castle fit so well with Lance's spiritual nature, it was logical tomake that charming spot Joyous Gard.
The peoplewere wonderfully friendly, and I'm much indebted to the cleaning lady who talkedabout a Neolithic site near Threlkeld Knotts where people occasionally lived intothe Dark Ages. Or the bus driver who explained that what I was looking for onthe River Eden could be found down the path behind the farm we were just comingup to. He let me off with the understanding that when he came back in 45minutes he'd pick me up again if he could see me coming toward the road;otherwise I'd have to hike back to the nearest town on my own.
By the end ofthe project I had hauled or sent home roughly 1,000 books, maps, pamphlets andhandouts from museums that covered everything from flora and fauna to how tohang wild game, most of which requires a number of days to become edible byhumans. Added to that were all the books bought here in the States, often fromobscure catalogs which carried very scholarly texts on arcane subjects.
Probably themost unique publication in my bedside reading was the thesis of a studenttracing the patterns of taxation by both the Romans and the Saxons on thewagons carrying salt to the interior of the island. The student reasoned thatif the people in 650 A.D. had the same taxation hubs as those in 400 A.D. onecould surmise that the routes had been at least partially open through theintervening years.
From thereit was an easy step to having Arthur and Gwen discuss how to get the locals tokeep the roads cleared in return for the safe delivery of the salt they needed.
I sometimesjoke that I'm a frustrated architect who only writes novels because I can makea living at it. That is true as far as it goes, though the living is often asmuch feathers as fowl. But the lure of houses, barns, forts, holy places and townlayouts inevitably creeps into my work.
It's one ofthe reasons I made my Gwen a northern Celt who has to go south to marry thatking, whether she wants to or not. Not only would Arthur have picked a bridefrom among the tribes whose rebellion he'd crushed, I as the author wanted herto be an outsider so she sees everything with fresh eyes and notes it for thereader.
Coming from the north she would have grown up with wattle-and-daub round houses as well as crannogs(houses built over water) on lakes in southern Scotland. And she would have heardabout the brochs of Gawain's home turf. The deserted Roman buildings would havebeen usable and often their locations are phenomenal, such as those atRavenglass or Hardknott Pass.
Evidence ofthese structures is generally found in archaeological reports and sometimes onthe Ordinance Survey maps of Britain. Whenever possible I went to sites that werebeing developed by experimental archaeologists, such as Butser Farm inHampshire which had an example of the Celtic roundhouse. I see on the net thatit's been moved, but am sure wherever it is, there are birds still nesting inits thatch.
There wasalso the Saxon settlement of West Stowe. I well remember that gray and drippingday, and expensive cab fare--without a car one has to hire a fellow for severalhours so he will wait and bring you back to public transportation. Compared tothe ease with which one can call both places up on computers nowadays, I can'thelp feeling both primitive and antiquated! But I got to sit in thosebuildings, to watch the way the shadows fell and stare at the ceilings, theeaves, the trenches dug to drain the rain away...you just can't do that on yourcomputer!
Now, withGoogle Earth and Wikipedia and every town's tourist board touting their localattractions, it feels as if one might do the research without ever leavinghome. But nothing can replace actually standing where your characters did, bethat on the wall around Chester or the headland of Tintagel or the top of theTor at Glastonbury. To smell that wind, to squint into that sunset, to watch aflock of starlings bank and sweep across that sky is one of the great perks ofwriting historical fiction...at least for me, and I suspect every other suchnovelist.
ABOUT THE AUTHORPersia Woolley is the author of the Guinevere Trilogy: Child of the Northern Spring, Queen of the Summer Stars, and Guinevere: the Legend in Autumn, as well as How to Write and Sell Historical Fiction. She lives in Northern California.
Visit the author:
ABOUT THE BOOK
Guinevere, the Legend in Autumn by Persia Woolley (Historical Fiction)
The conclusion to a celebrated Arthurian trilogy based on more than a decade of research, Guinevere, the Legend in Autumn is a startlingly original recreation of the tale of Arthur and Guinevere, seen from the perspective of a likeable, realistic Guinevere, a Queen who deserves to become a legend.Surrounded by traitors, trapped by destiny, Britain's spirited Queen Guinevere recounts the last, dramatic years of Camelot. At King Arthur's side, she reigned over the fabled heroes of the Round Table as her heartbreaking honesty, courage, and integrity were challenged by those she loved most. Torn between duty and desire as he rescued his Queen, condemned to the stake for treason, Lancelot swept her away as she bartered her soul to save Arthur and Camelot from the furies of fate. This is Arthurian epic at its best–filled with romance, adventure, authentic Dark Ages detail, and wonderfully human people.
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar