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What biographies would you like to read?


sonic

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Really? Tell me more - I'm all ears!!

 

 

Patricians get a private forum called the Senate where they can advise the powers that be. They are also eligible for free book giveaways.

 

Long term activity and good character are the main traits, but we also like to see that our Patricians are scholarly and well-written, because we do like book reviews in exchange for the free books. So if you want to write an article or review on a Romanophile topic, e-mail it to Viggen.

 

Just don't write anything on Harry Potter or I will commit ritual suicide.

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Really? Tell me more - I'm all ears!!

 

 

Patricians get a private forum called the Senate where they can advise the powers that be. They are also eligible for free book giveaways.

 

Long term activity and good character are the main traits, but we also like to see that our Patricians are scholarly and well-written, because we do like book reviews in exchange for the free books. So if you want to write an article or review on a Romanophile topic, e-mail it to Viggen.

 

Just don't write anything on Harry Potter or I will commit ritual suicide.

 

Oh the temptation ......!! :shocking:

 

 

Thanks for the advice - I'll get on to it straight away!

 

Thanks for suggesting Aetius and Stilicho Decimus. I've got to admit that Aetius is very tempting, as my 'expertise' lies more towards the later period. Oh dear, the decision just gets harder and harder!!

Edited by sonic
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I second the call for Flavius Stilicho, he was a military genius who'd continuously saved Rome from the barbarians, most notably Alaric of the Visigoths by defeating much bigger armies almost every time.

 

I think the story of Stilicho would make a great book, he was a true Roman , a great general and the story of his death by the order of that weasel of an Emperor, Honorius, makes for an interesting and entertaining biography.

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I was recently commissioned to write a book and am hoping to finish it in the next couple of months.

 

Once it is finished, I'll - obviously! - be wanting to write another one. I am aiming to specialise in writing 'military' biographies (ie biographies of military men in the ancient world). However, I am unsure of who to write about next and was wondering if you lot had any ideas? Who would you like to see a biography on?? I'm not interested in writing yet another book about Julius C., Alexander t. G., etc, as these have all been well covered already. What I'm thinking of is an individual who may be slightly less well known but whose story could still run to between 70,- and 90,000 words. (So somebody who is only mentioned twice in Tacitus would be no good!!)

 

It need not necessarily be Roman, just somebody who was living prior to the reconquests of Justinian, as that is where my knowledge becomes fragmentary at best!

 

Any ideas folks, or do I have to use my own mind up?? (Trust me - that is not a good idea!!)

 

What a wonderful opportunity it is for me to recommend the Roman General and Emperator I personally hold as my favorite next to GJC as the subject of your next biography. This I, I think, fills the bill.

 

I don

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I was recently commissioned to write a book and am hoping to finish it in the next couple of months.

 

Once it is finished, I'll - obviously! - be wanting to write another one. I am aiming to specialise in writing 'military' biographies (ie biographies of military men in the ancient world). However, I am unsure of who to write about next and was wondering if you lot had any ideas? Who would you like to see a biography on?? I'm not interested in writing yet another book about Julius C., Alexander t. G., etc, as these have all been well covered already. What I'm thinking of is an individual who may be slightly less well known but whose story could still run to between 70,- and 90,000 words. (So somebody who is only mentioned twice in Tacitus would be no good!!)

 

It need not necessarily be Roman, just somebody who was living prior to the reconquests of Justinian, as that is where my knowledge becomes fragmentary at best!

 

Any ideas folks, or do I have to use my own mind up?? (Trust me - that is not a good idea!!)

 

What a wonderful opportunity it is for me to recommend the Roman General and Emperator I personally hold as my favorite next to GJC as the subject of your next biography. This I, I think, fills the bill.

 

I don

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How about Africanus or Macedonicus and Mummius together?

 

vtc

Edited by Vibius Tiberius Costa
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How about Africanus or Macedonicus and Mummius together?

 

vtc

 

A book with multiple lives, like Goldsworthy's 'In The Name of Rome'? Would people actually want another one of these on different individuals, or possibly a series?? If so, which individuals??

 

My editor's going to be hearing about these ideas!! :lol: I wonder which one will interest him the most? :blink:

 

Keep the ideas coming in people - the current book is slowly getting there!!

 

Sonic

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Individually would also be good. These are names that have never been used in huge books that often and i thought were pretty good.

 

I'm also writing, I have bashed out the first third of my book (no edits yet) and its currently on 45000 words.

 

vtc

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Vercingetorix. Any takers?

 

I'm not sure you could spread the information on Vercingetorix to 70,000 words, but I'll look into it and make sure one way or another! :)

 

Sonic

Quite a challenge there Sonic. Real dearth of information seeing how history is written by the victors and all that jazz. I wonder how much one could glean from the local folklore in the Auvergne area.

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Vercingetorix. Any takers?

 

I'm not sure you could spread the information on Vercingetorix to 70,000 words, but I'll look into it and make sure one way or another! :)

 

Sonic

Quite a challenge there Sonic. Real dearth of information seeing how history is written by the victors and all that jazz. I wonder how much one could glean from the local folklore in the Auvergne area.

 

The question would be not how much could be gleaned, but how reliable it would be. As we all know, King Arthur came from Cornwall (say the Cornish!), or from the midlands, or from Scotland (Arthur's seat, Edinburgh!), or possibly even from Brittany. Although it's an extreme example, the rule still holds: the Gauls were inordinately proud of their hero, so may have been prone to exaggerate or make claims that probably never existed (King Alfred and the Cakes!).

 

However, as with Arthur (but not Alfred), the oral tradition would be unsubstantiated and impossible to prove. Although in much of history we have the same problem with only one or two written sources, with the written sources it is possible to trace where the information began and to make a statement about the reliability of the author (eg Procopius, Polybius, Livy etc). With the folkloric tradition, there are no such safeguards, although the stories may in fact be true. There is simply no way to verify the facts.

 

Also, it would help if I was fluent in French. :lol:

 

However, like I said, I will look into all of the above suggestions and then liaise with my publishers to see which one they want me to do (I am not in the league of Goldsworthy et al where I tell the publishers what I want to write!! - maybe in a couple of years!! :lol: )

 

In the meantime, thanks for all the suggestions. Is that it, or are there still a couple more out there??

 

Sonic

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Vercingetorix. Any takers?

 

I'm not sure you could spread the information on Vercingetorix to 70,000 words, but I'll look into it and make sure one way or another! :lol:

 

Sonic

Quite a challenge there Sonic. Real dearth of information seeing how history is written by the victors and all that jazz. I wonder how much one could glean from the local folklore in the Auvergne area.

 

The only problem would be the reliability of the folklore. We all know that King Arthur came from Cornwall - or was it Scotland (King Arthur's Seat, Edinburgh!) - or was it Brittany? With written evidence, we can at least trace the path of the story or decide upon the reliability of the witness (eg Polybius being a friend of the Scipios, or Procopius being an eye-witness to many of the events he records), but with folklore there is no such guideline and, although the story may in fact be true, there is no way of testing its reliability.

 

Also, I can't speak fluent French!! :lol:

 

I'll go through the list to see what's viable and then ask the publishers what they want me to do. Unfortunately, I am not (yet!) in the league of Goldsworthy et al where I tell the publisher what I want to write: all I can do is make suggestions backed by evidence that the topic may sell - hence my asking the question in the first place!!

 

Thanks for all the suggestions. Are there any more or is that the lot now?

 

Sonic

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