The Earl of Mercia's Father and its (very long) book journey

The Earl of Mercia’s Father, or Ealdorman as it was originally known, has had quite the book journey and I thought I’d share some of those details.

Ealdorman began life back in about 2011 when I was researching for my MA using the local university library. It didn’t have a massive Saxon section, and so I slowly worked my way through the more biographical titles. I am interested in the people and their lives, but also in the wider political events. I read all and sundry, in no particular order, and really, with no intention of doing more than learning a bit more about the era. I read about Lady Elfrida, England’s first crowned queen, I read about King Edward the Confessor, I read about the Godwines, Cnut, Æthelred (I think you’re getting the idea), and I read a book about the Earls of Mercia. And I did some more research and wrote some essays and then one day I thought, ‘wait a mo, that would be a good story.’ And so, the first Earls of Mercia story began life, the intention to offer an alternative narrative to the one often presented of the last century of Saxon England, through the eyes of the Earls of Mercia as opposed to Earl Godwine and his family.

From my research, I’d discovered Ealdorman Leofwine, an often shadowy character but one who is documented from 994 to about 1022 as one of King Æthelred II’s ealdormen (we didn’t have earls until King Cnut conquered England). But I’ve told this story many times; my intention here is to write about that book.

It began life in 2011, but ground to a halt sometime that year, about 30,000 words in because I was a bit stuck. I wanted to take my character to Shetland, but kept confusing Orkney and Shetland. That sounds like a stupid reason to stop writing, but stop I did. And for quite a long time. Not until May 2013 did I resume my story, and only after a trip to Orkney, which, once and for all, ensured I knew the difference between Orkney and Shetland (I have since visited Orkney many, many times although I've not quite made it to Shetland yet. My geographical knowledge of my own country has also massively increased - my A Level geography teacher would not be quite so horrified that I don't know where the Cotswolds is any more).

The Broch of Gurness, Mainland, Orkney

The Broch of Gurness, Mainland, Orkney - the spark that allowed me to finish my first historical fiction novel. It's a beautiful, beautiful place, wiith the islandof Rousay opposite, known as the Egypt of the North. It is 'stuffed' with archaeology. (It was a super windy day).

I hurried to finish the book, filled with enthusiasm for the project once more. I played the old ‘find an agent game’ to no avail, and decided to indie publish myself, as I’d been doing with my fantasy books. And so that should have been it. Ealdorman was out in the world.

But that wasn’t it. In fact, that was far from it. I held the rights for some years, continued writing the series, and one day, signed a publishing contract with much excitement, for books 1 and 2. Suffice it to say, it was not my best decision. So, fast forward a few years, and it was mine once more, and I could republish it – with a new title and a new cover. But that wasn’t all.

In the ‘lost years’ (as I’ll term them), I’d continued writing, this series, another series, probably another series, a few side stories, etc, etc. And so, the original book, Ealdorman, was no longer, in my mind at least, ‘fit for purpose.’ Being indie, knowing that one day I’d hopefully get my rights back, I both wrote out the first two books in the series (for people reading all of my series and after a chronologically sound narrative between series) and also massively edited, amended and rewrote the book as I could publish it in paperback. The one that’s now published is not at all the book I first wrote between 2011 and 2013. Some elements remain, and certainly Ealdorman Leofwine is still my half-blind hero, but much else has changed. It’s more exciting now. I’ve dealt with some of the ‘nerd’ elements to it, but Leofwine is still Leofwine. He is an honourable man, very much in the guise of William Marshall as portrayed by Elizabeth Chadwick, but he is also quick-witted, fiercely loyal, and a shock to some readers more used to my later, far more violent books, a bit of a lover too.

This, then, is something that many writers never get to do. If Ealdorman had remained as it was, if I’d given up due to a lack of success, if I’d not written more books, if I’d not lost my rights for a few years, if I’d traditionally published it, the book that is The Earl of Mercia’s Father in its current guise wouldn’t exist. And despite it’s problems – it’s not been possible to write them all out – I’m very proud of all that this book represents, not just for me as a writer, but for the journey the book has been on, from handwritten notes, to a finished draft, to a rewritten draft, through another rewrite to what it is today. It’s been a journey and a half, and now, at last, I finally feel that The Earl of Mercia's Father (a title I would never have conceived of until having written about the earl of Mercia in subsequent titles) has the cover it deserves.

You can find out more about the entire series on my Earls of Mercia page on my blog, or click here to visit the details page on my website.