The history of writing reveals some of the most profound ideas and values we humans ponder. The Hittite world that inspires my fiction used the cuneiform writing system–as did every other Near Eastern empire in the Bronze Age. Until a great shift into a variety of scripts came about. The question is why.
Understandably, contemporary historians often bemoan the lack of women’s voices from the past amidst the male-centered records of events. Fortunately, the clay tablets containing letters from Assyrian women (about 1860 BCE) provide a refreshing exception. They are full of business savvy, a range of concerns for the well-being of their households and, unlike the male business correspondence of this place and time, strong emotions.
