Weekly Posts

My favorite topics and links from this week about history, archaeology, and writing historical fiction. All put in one handy post for you.

Quentin Tarantino on history with a capital H and his new movie “Django Unchained.”

Suspense Magazine named SoWest: Desert Justice, the anthology of mystery stories that includes my story “A Season for Death,” one of the Best Books of 2012.

The Next Big Thing Blog Chain: Judith Starkston’s novel-in-progress, Hand Full of Fire.

Obituaries aren’t usually quite this exciting. I held my lunch partner spellbound reading this one of James Mellaart, a groundbreaking archaeologist in ancient Anatolia/Turkey.

If you are a writer or reader of mysteries and thrillers, you will want to attend the WriteNow! 2012 Desert Sleuths Conference on August 11, at the Millenium Resort in Scottsdale, AZ. The theme is “Criminal Minds: Investigating Today’s Writing Scene” and will feature a number of speakers including Dennis Palumbo, Dana Kaye, and Sean Chercover.

Celebration! I have had a story accepted for publication, “The Season for Death.” Read all about it in this blog entry.

If you’ve ever thought about the relationship between historical fantasy and historical fiction (think Tolkien vs. Forester), how HF writers cope with the strictures of following known history, why Cornwell will never write “alternate” history, how to write a great battle scene, or love either of these writers, you’ll enjoy this interview between Bernard Cornwell and George R.R. Martin.

Some moments in history stay actively in human memory. Others drift silently away until no hint remains. Two recent archaeological digs demonstrate how much we have “forgotten” about the past, one in Israel and one on the Greek island of Despotiko.

Two sets of ancient ruins—the graceful temple columns rising against the backdrop of shimmering desert sands in honor of the Mesopotamian god Bel, and a Persian mountain fortress containing a possible Zoroastrian fire altar—these disparate places, one in modern Syria and one in northern Afghanistan, reveal two sides of modern archaeology: the allure of beautiful and exotic locations that connect us to the past and the dangers archaeologists face while digging in the midst of wars and conflict.