How to Launch ‘The Great Novel’… Or Not?
At the age of 40, having tried what many might call a curious variety of occupations – as an repertory actor, a suited adman and a muddy dairy farmer – I became a ‘published author’. I was gobsmacked! A novel
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I’ve often thought of myself as a time-traveller, writing for those who enjoy as I do an escape from one period to another; from the challenges and uncertainties of our own time, to those of earlier and different generations. All my stories are partially set in the Sussex downlands where I farmed for many years. But I’ve also sent my characters across the world – from the Andes to the Alps. From Crusade sieges in medieval Palestine to the salons of Georgian Paris. From the hardships of a penal colony in New South Wales to the comeback performance of a famous actress in nineteen-sixties London.
I’m attracted to original plots driven by social outsiders; heroes I can identify with, heroines I can grow to love. If in the books I read I seek to be informed, amused and even moved to tears, the same applies and more so to the books I write. I’m fascinated by the unusual. I look for situations that will animate and stretch my characters, and I’m hoping will surprise my readers.
So, if like me you’re interested in time-travel, if my novels sound to you your kind of read – then it’s true to say they have been written very much with you in mind, and I really hope you’ll like them.
With my best wishes,
New from Richard Masefield
Three Seasons of Sadie
The final playful episode in Richard Masefield’s quintet of Sussex novels and a sequel to his bestselling Chalkhill Blue, Three Seasons of Sadie is a genuinely funny rite of passage story set in the provincial theatre of the nineteen-sixties.
From my blog
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The White Cross
In this new edition, The White Cross shines a fresh light on the age-old link between religious faith and armed aggression. Movingly, it traces a young couple’s search for love and understanding in the brutal time of the Third Crusade.
Painted LADY
Painted LADY moves from the routines of a well-run brothel to the pleasure grounds of nineteenth century Europe, in a romping adventure that introduces an unforgettable new heroine to historical fiction.