Ancient Women at the Fore & Finding My Series Arc

I have lots to share this week about my fiction that focuses on ancient women.

Guest Post on Finding my Arc

M.K. Tod, a historical fiction author friend, invited me to guest post on her highly regarded blog, A Writer of History. I wrote about “Finding the Arc for a Historical Series.” You might not realize, but I first intended to write historical mysteries with the ancient woman who is my series’ main character as a sleuth, and then something unexpected happened. That ancient woman is still at the center of my fiction and she takes on murderers, but not quite as I had envisioned it. If you’re intrigued, read my post.

(By the way, M.K. Tod’s most recent novel, That Was Then [affiliate link], is a contemporary thriller that is very much of our current political moment. Like my fiction, it focuses on women in the sometimes poisonous stew of patriarchy but in the context of today, and it’s really good.)

Chatting about Ancient Women at the Fore and through History

When I launched Flights of Treason in May, I recorded a number of podcasts about my fiction and what drew me to writing fiction with ancient women at the fore. Ray Evan’s interview with me on his podcast, “Pen to Profit”, was thoughtful and entertaining. For our conversation, you can listen on Apple Podcast or go to his Podbean Website for Episode 40.

He listed the Key Takeaways from our conversation:

Mysterious Hittites: Discover the fascinating world of the Hittites, their culture, laws, and the peculiar obsessions with curses that shaped their worldview.

Character Depth: Judith reveals how she develops deep, multifaceted characters that resonate with historical authenticity and human complexity.

Fantasy Elements: Learn about the creative liberties and imaginative leaps taken to blend historical facts with magical elements, creating an immersive reading experience.

Research Importance: Insight into the rigorous research process behind historical fiction, from deciphering ancient texts to field explorations.

Women in History: A discussion on the portrayal of powerful women in historical contexts, challenging modern perceptions of past gender roles.

Video Clips, the cycles of history & ancient women’s rights compared to today

To my delight, Ray also created some short video clips from the interview. I offer two (sequential) 1 minute clips here: