Richard III novelists collaborate on
charity anthology...
An international group of authors
who have all been inspired by England’s last Plantagenet King, Richard III, are working together to
raise funds in support of Scoliosis
Association UK through sales of a collection of their work.
Grant Me the Carving of My Name is an
anthology of 15 short stories by a dozen authors from the UK, Ireland, the USA
and Australia. It takes its title (with her permission) from a poem by poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy which was read by Benedict Cumberbatch at the
king’s reburial in Leicester in 2015.
The collection also features a Foreword by acclaimed historical
novelist Philippa Gregory, author of
The White Queen, which was dramatized
by the BBC in 2013 and featured a rare positive portrayal of King Richard, by
Aneurin Barnard (Dunkirk, War and Peace).
‘This collection has come about – as so many
good things do – from a dream and a joke…’
Philippa
Gregory
When editor Alex Marchant and Wendy Johnson, a key member of the Looking for Richard Project responsible
for rediscovering the king’s grave, joked about getting together to publish
short stories they had written about this most controversial king. The
enthusiasm of the other authors approached led to the dream becoming a reality.
The
collected stories offer an alternative view of this often-maligned king and
range from glimpses of his childhood and domestic life, through battles and
rebellions, to explorations of the afterlife and his historical reputation. By
turns elegiac,
mystical, brutal, light-hearted, uplifting, there’s something for everyone within these pages.
The
charity
King
Richard himself suffered from scoliosis
– a lateral curvature of the spine that would have become increasingly
disabling and painful as he aged, and was only revealed during examination of
his skeleton after his grave was excavated in 2012. Scoliosis Association UK (SAUK) supports children and adults with
the same condition throughout the UK today and was the obvious charity to
support with proceeds from this book.
The editor and authors
Alex Marchant is author of two books telling the
story of the real King Richard III through the eyes of a young page in his
service. While aimed at children aged 10+,
The Order of the White Boar and The King’s Man have also
been enjoyed by adults They have been called ‘a wonderful work of historical
fiction’ by the Richard III Society, and recently received a Discovered Diamond award from the
Discovering Diamonds review website.
The Order of the White Boar is largely set
in and around Middleham Castle in Wensleydale,
King Richard’s primary home in the north of England, and also York, not far from where Alex now
lives.
Two
other contributors, Wendy Johnson
and Marla Skidmore, also live close
by in North Yorkshire, with Jennifer C.
Wilson based not far away in Tyneside, meaning the core of the authors are
northern-based – as was King Richard for much of his life before he became
king. In fact, he referred to a return to York
as a ‘homecoming’ in letters, and on his royal progress following his
coronation, he wended his way back up through the country to the city, where
his rapturous reception was such that he immediately decided to invest his
young son, Edward, as Prince of Wales in the Minster. No wonder, then, that Richard is often seen as England’s
only ‘northern’ king.
The contributors
Narrelle M. Harris • Wendy Johnson • Riikka Katajisto • Susan Kokomo Lamb • Joanne R. Larner • Matthew Lewis • Alex Marchant (editor) • Máire Martello A playwright based in Manhattan • Frances Quinn • J. P. Reedman •
Grant Me the Carving of My Name can be
pre-ordered as an ebook and will be available as a paperback also from 24th
November 2018 through Amazon at mybook.to/GrantMetheCarving
and via editor Alex Marchant and contributors.
It will be launched online at:
and Alex will also be selling and
signing copies and chatting about life as an author at The Kitchen café-bar, Haworth Road, Cross Roads, Keighley from 3
p.m. on Thursday 6th December and at Harrogate
Library on Wednesday 12th December from 1.30 p.m.
For more
information, please contact Alex at:
Many thanks for sharing, Mary Anne. Your assistance for this worthwhile cause is really much appreciated! Alex
ReplyDeleteMy pleasure, Alex. I have ordered my copy. As some of my readers will know, one of my protagonists from The Du Lac Chronicles has Scoliosis. I was inspired by my two dearest friends who both have this condition. I think it is admirable what you and your fellow writers have done, and I am more than happy to support your book both now and in the future.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great combination - fabulous stories raising money for a very worthwhile cause! Wishing you lots of sales.
ReplyDeleteSuch a good charity. I am happy to support it. I have picked up a copy.
ReplyDeleteI have ordered my copy as well.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with your new book, and for a very worthwhile cause as well.
ReplyDelete