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The value of publishers letting authors focus on writing books can't be underestimated. Charles Stross reckons that he would have to cut his rate of publishing in half if he had to act as a one-man publishing house hiring marketers and editors and printers and so on. We've known since Adam Smith (or Plato) that letting people specialize in something they are good at is beneficial.
Publishers also take on a lot of financial risk for authors with their advances. Most fiction or popular nonfiction authors need the advance from the last book to write the next one. Publishers can afford 5% of books selling much worse than expected, because 5% will sell much better than expected; an author usually can't afford to live on half their expected income for a year!
Nullis in verba
I have not checked this forum frequently since 2013, but I hope that these old posts have some value. I now have a blog on books, swords, and the curious things humans do with them.
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Quote:Like you, I've been working on a novel with Fritigern as one of the main characters, but I'm hitting from a different angle-- a pre-Arthurian one. I do feel the man got shortchanged in the histories.
This will be my fourth novel; two were "practice," the third now published. Planning a saga, Adrianople won't arrive until the 3rd in the series, then one that brings Frit's son Thiudebalth into Britain, and a final one about his son Theodoric. Don't think the angle is remotely like yours. A lot of publishing room out there. :grin:
That sounds pretty interesting. I'm taking a shot in the dark, but does Fritigern's son in your narrative have any ties to the resettlement of the Taifali after their defeat by Frigeridus in 377? It's the first connection that came to mind. That would be cool to read.
My story is fairly "Barbarocentric" in a lot of ways. I took a look at your profile and I see that central Asian studies are one of your strong points, I'll send you a PM later, I'd enjoy swapping notes with you on the Alans.
Aaron Holt
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On the subject of faddishness and general dunderheadedness in the publishing world, I wonder if there's any way to stop publishers (in the UK at least) using the formula 'of Rome' in the title of almost every new novel about Romans?
That this is the fault of publishers rather than authors is suggested in this post here from Kate Quinn, whose novel Empress of the Seven Hills was renamed Empress OF ROME in the UK. Clearly British readers would be unable to get the reference to hills... :roll:
Incidentally, I notice that Ms Quinn has indeed mentioned RAT on the Acknowledgements page of her novel! :-)
Nathan Ross
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Well...if The Eagle of the Ninth was renamed in the film version to just The Eagle to stop the US audience thinking it was about golf, you do wonder about the marketing of the Ancient World!!
Moi Watson
Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, Merlot in one hand, Cigar in the other; body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming "WOO HOO, what a ride!
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Here in the States, I've noticed that the favored approach is to let the author keep their title, but add "A Novel of Ancient Rome" somewhere on the cover in smaller print. Seems redundant in some cases but I guess I can't complain.
I read "Gods and Legions" a long time ago, I remember coming away from it unimpressed. Julian is one of my favorite emperors though. I'm very interested in reading Gore Vidal's "Julian". Has anyone read this one? What's it like?
Aaron Holt
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Quote:I'm very interested in reading Gore Vidal's "Julian". Has anyone read this one? What's it like?
It's a great book - albeit I read it about a decade ago, so my memory is a bit cloudy now. It's a long way from an action adventure sort of thing though - more about Julian himself and the world he inhabited. About half is Julian's 'own' account of his life, interspersed with passages of discussion by two rival philosophers, Libanius and Priscus.
There's a scene that sticks with me (even if I'm probably remembering it wrong) when the young Julian is taken to meet the emperor (Constantine, I think) for the first time, and we get a child's-eye view of a towering figure standing like a statue in stiff gold-embroidered robes. There's something very real and vivid about it - definitely give it a look if you're interested in the era.
Nathan Ross
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If you're looking for more books to read, it's worth check out the Historical Novel Society's updated webpages. They now give the facility to check reviews out by century (look at the links in the top right hand corner of the screen), so it's easier to browse. A lot of the recent reviews are up, but the HNS having been reviewing books since 1999, so there's loads more to be uploaded yet 
http://historicalnovelsociety.org/
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Quote: That sounds pretty interesting. I'm taking a shot in the dark, but does Fritigern's son in your narrative have any ties to the resettlement of the Taifali after their defeat by Frigeridus in 377? It's the first connection that came to mind. That would be cool to read.
My story is fairly "Barbarocentric" in a lot of ways. I took a look at your profile and I see that central Asian studies are one of your strong points, I'll send you a PM later, I'd enjoy swapping notes with you on the Alans.
Oh, yes. Fritigern's heart-trob in the 1st novel is a Taifala, and her uncle Cannibus was Frit's first instructor. So, we follow the whole sequence, from Gothia to Italy to France to Britain, where Thiudebalth commands the Equites Taifali Seniores-- the Bears (from the mirrored bears on their shields). His son, Theodoric, then takes the epithet of "Artur," the Bear, since his real nomen is rather "too Germanic" for a leader of Britons against Saxons. :roll:
Go ahead and PM me anythime. :grin:
Alan J. Campbell
member of Legio III Cyrenaica and the Uncouth Barbarians
Author of:
The Demon's Door Bolt (2011)
Forging the Blade (2012)
"It's good to be king. Even when you're dead!"
Old Yuezhi/Pazyrk proverb
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Quote:Theodoric, then takes the epithet of "Artur," the Bear, since his real nomen is rather "too Germanic" for a leader of Britons against Saxons. :roll:
Apart from my eyes, which are rolling wildly :roll: I see no problem with a Germanic name for a leader of British troops against Saxons. Seriously.
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I recall reading a novel, I thInk called ' eagles vs dragons' about either Julian or Valerian
Being ambushed and imprisoned or killed by the Parthians. In then went on about legionaries ending up in China
But it was set in the later period. Not historically accurate but a good story!
Visne partem mei capere? Comminus agamus! * Me semper rogo, Quid faceret Iulius Caesar? * Confidence is a good thing! Overconfidence is too much of a good thing.
[b]Legio XIIII GMV. (Q. Magivs)RMRS Remember Atuatuca! Vengence will be ours!
Titus Flavius Germanus
Batavian Coh I
Byron Angel
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Quote:I've had a look around the web and aside from one book - a cheesy romance novel - I haven't seen Hadrianople treated in fiction at all.
If that's a reference to Gillian Bradshaw's The Beacon at Alexandria, then it sounds a bit harsh!
cheers,
Duncan
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Quote:Apart from my eyes, which are rolling wildly :roll: I see no problem with a Germanic name for a leader of British troops against Saxons. Seriously.
Good point. Maybe I've seen too many King Arthur movies with Stellen Scarsgaard. The real point of contention, evidently, was a religious one, with the Saxons as "pagans."
Duncan makes a point: all romance novels are not "cheesy," some well written in the historical genre. I did read one, though, where the 15th century characters were feasting on turkey. 
Alan J. Campbell
member of Legio III Cyrenaica and the Uncouth Barbarians
Author of:
The Demon's Door Bolt (2011)
Forging the Blade (2012)
"It's good to be king. Even when you're dead!"
Old Yuezhi/Pazyrk proverb
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Was it definitely identified as US type turkey, or guinea fowl imported via the country Turkey? (see, eg. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkey_%28bird%29 ) So it might be OK
I've seen medieval novels where the peasants had potatoes in their stew ... Definitely wrong, no way of arguing out of that one!
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Quote:It's a great book - albeit I read it about a decade ago, so my memory is a bit cloudy now. It's a long way from an action adventure sort of thing though - more about Julian himself and the world he inhabited. About half is Julian's 'own' account of his life, interspersed with passages of discussion by two rival philosophers, Libanius and Priscus
I've written a gritty novel of the Julian invasion from the viewpoint of a new recruit... he's the dupe who ends up assassinating Julian in the midst of battle. Couldn't get a UK publisher interested, though. May try a US publisher ... its a gory and as accurate as I can possible make it 
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Quote:Nathan Ross post=313343 Wrote:It's a great book - albeit I read it about a decade ago, so my memory is a bit cloudy now. It's a long way from an action adventure sort of thing though - more about Julian himself and the world he inhabited. About half is Julian's 'own' account of his life, interspersed with passages of discussion by two rival philosophers, Libanius and Priscus
I've written a gritty novel of the Julian invasion from the viewpoint of a new recruit... he's the dupe who ends up assassinating Julian in the midst of battle. Couldn't get a UK publisher interested, though. May try a US publisher ... its a gory and as accurate as I can possible make it
I'd buy it!
Francis Hagan
The Barcarii
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