Featured Interview With J.P. REEDMAN
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born in Victoria, B.C., Canada, but have lived in England for over 20 years. I live in a little ancient town, its church once part of a great abbey, near to the ancient monument of Stonehenge. The rivers flows through an ancient landscape with finds stretching back to 10,00 B.C., and there are bronze ages burial mounds virtually in my back yard. We also have a ‘missing Queen of England’, Eleanor of Provence, wife of Henry III, buried somewhere in the town, probably under the old folks’ home that used to be a priory.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I can’t remember a time when I did not read! My mother and sister both believed reading was very important and got me books from an early age. I immediately gravitated to history, and loved the tale of Cleopatra. I was writing stories by age five and one of the first was about that dramatic Egyptian Queen. I discovered fantasy when I was 11, and wrote a story over 100 pages at 12. I wrtote fantasy for many years and was widely published in the small presses in the 1980’s and early 90’s. I still write fantasy but I have recently moved more into historical fantasy and straight historicals.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
Tolkien is my all-time favourite author. I also like Alan Garner, Susan Cooper, Robert Holdstock, Parke Godwin, Mary Stewart, Rosemary Sutcliff, Sharon Penman, Rosemary Hawley Jarman. I read a lot of non-fiction too, mainly on the late medieval period (Wars of the Roses) and prehistoric Britain. The archaeologist Aubrey Burl, stone circle specialist, who is also a brilliant writer who never makes prehistory dry, ignited my passion for neolithic and bronze age Britain.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest book is SACRED KING, a historical fantasy about Richard III, England’s most maligned King. As I was studying Richard in the wake of his finding in 2012, I noticed some heavy mythological motifs seemingly mingled with the history–the scapegoat, taking away the sins of the people; the sacrifice that must shed his blood so the Land could be renewed. It all seemed to work, in a very Golden Bough kind of way! It didn’t take too long to write; this one really just flowed. About 6-7 months.
I’ve also written several short story collections on Richard; he fascinates me; and I’m working on a full-length ‘straight’ historical novel on him…but with a few twists!
My first books were both set in the era of Stonehenge. They are STONE LORD and MOON LORD, and work on the premise that the Arthurian tales are older thanvthe Dark Ages–that they are rooted in legends as old as the bronze age. They’ve been quite successful and are sold at the Stonehenge Visitors Centre as well as the usual places online.
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