Featured Interview With Tony Riches
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I am a full time writer living by the sea with my wife in Pembrokeshire in Wales, UK, one of the most unspoilt areas of the UK. In my spare time I enjoy sea kayaking and sailing on the River Cleddau.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I used to write regularly for magazines and started writing non-fiction books before tacking my first novel in 2012. It’s called ‘Queen Sacrifice’ and was inspired by the idea of bringing a real chess game to life, with the whole of Wales as the ‘chessboard’ and thirty-two characters, kings and queens, bishops, knights and pawns, each with an interesting back-story. (I actually had to invent a few wives and female relatives, as there are of course only two female roles on a chess board.)
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I enjoy reading all genres and particularly historical fiction. One of my favourite authors is Anne O’Brien. I really admire the way she makes me think harder about our history and evokes a real sense of time and place. It was Anne who sparked my interest in the fifteenth century, so I always look out for her new books.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
My Latest novel is another historical fiction called ‘The Secret Diary of Eleanor Cobham’. This is the first book to be written about the life of Eleanor Cobham, so I felt a great responsibility to make sure it was as factually correct as possible. My wife and I visited Beaumaris Castle on the Isle of Anglesey and stood in the chapel where she would have prayed over five hundred years ago. I also went to a lot of trouble to understand what life was like in fifteenth century England and Wales, including what they ate and what it would have been like to be imprisoned in castles.
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