THE WHITE HAWK is now on sale at Amazon in print and Kindle versions. Click on the link below to purchase.
http://www.amazon.com/The-White-Hawk-ebook/dp/B00ACO75VG/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1355777158&sr=1-1&keywords=The+White+Hawk+Pilling
Meet David and check out his latest, set during the Wars of the Roses.
My name is David Pilling, I am 33 years old and currently work as a
freelance writer/proofreader in the wilds of West Wales in the UK
Having spent much of my life exploring
ruined castles and abbeys, I decided to translate my love of history onto the
written page and started work on my first novel, “Folville’s Law”. It was
published by Musa Publishing in November 2011. Since then I have written a host
of mini-sequels, co-written two Tolkien-esque fantasy novels (also published by
Musa) and self-published two more historicals via Amazon.
My fiction is inspired by my love of historical and science fiction and authors such as George McDonald Fraser, George R.R.Martin and Bernard Cornwell.
My fiction is inspired by my love of historical and science fiction and authors such as George McDonald Fraser, George R.R.Martin and Bernard Cornwell.
If you have 2 hours free time tonight,
what would you rather do? Why?
This is going to sound quite sad, but I
would like to spend it writing, editing and researching my next book, a sequel
to Book One of “The White Hawk”!
What kind of books do you love to read?
Why?
At the moment I have got into a groove of
reading the ‘classics’ – Dickens, George Eliot, Jane Austen etc. I also love PG
Wodehouse for his dry, very ‘English’ humour and the aforementioned authors of
historical and fantasy fiction. I keep meaning to read something more
scientific – I am interested in space travel – but never get round to it!
What type of music do you enjoy
relaxing to?
Classical music: Mozart, Chopin, Corelli,
symphonies or concertos, as well as bluesy/rootsy music. I love The Rolling
Stones, Led Zeppelin and The Black Crowes – bands of that type.
What is your stress buster?
I know a couple of good meditation
techniques. Failing that, a mug of herbal tea and contemplative stare out of
the window!
What is your favorite food? What food
do you seek when you==re sad, sort of a comfort food?
I’m a ‘meat and potatoes’ sort of person.
I love big, hearty meals, steak & chips and that sort of thing. Having said
that, I don’t really go in for comfort eating.
Describe yourself in one word.
Complex.
If a fairy grants you one wish and one
wish only, what would it be? Why?
Health and long life – is that two wishes?
– for me and my loved ones.
What=s your biggest regret in life?
Not studying harder at University and
getting a better final degree result.
What is the most adventurous thing you=ve ever done?
Teaching English in the Czech Republic
What makes you
happy/sad/disappointed/frustrated/hopeful/angry? (Pick one)
Many things make me angry, mostly related
to the basic injustice of the system we all live under. I try not to think
about it (more herbal tea and staring required…). I find it disappointing when
people who should know better underestimate me.
How would readers find out more about
you?
They are welcome to visit my joint website
at: http://www.boltonandpilling.com/
Or visit my blog at:
Your writingYY
When did you write your first book? How
long did it take you to write it?
I started writing “Folville’s Law” about
eighteen months ago. It took me five or six months to complete.
Did you encounter any obstacles in
writing? What are they? How did you overcome them?
The research was the hardest thing – it is
set in early 14th century England
How did you feel when you receive your
first contract? What did you do?
A bit surprised, but in a good way. The
contract arrived quite quickly, when I had expected months of hard slogging to
attract one.
Any writing peeves, things you wish you
could improve on, things you do with exceptional talent?
It would be nice to have a better eye for
spotting typos, and I am always working on my ability to describe background
details.
What kind of books do you love/hate to
write? Why?
I
love (evidently) writing historical and fantasy fiction: basically, I love to
interpret the past and create new worlds.
What do you think about editing?
It’s absolutely essential and extremely
annoying!
Where and when do you write? Tell us
about your favorite work place and time. Any special reason?
I write at my laptop in my ‘office’ i.e.
my bedroom, looking out over the fields (and cows). This is pretty much my
favourite place to work. It’s peaceful and private, and I am surrounded by my
reference books.
How do you write? Do your characters
come to you first or the plot or the world of the story? How do you go on from
there? Maybe you can give us an example with one of your books.
I usually start by selecting a time
period, usually a part of medieval Europe between the 11th- 15th
centuries. I’m often inspired by what I happen to be reading or watching at the
time. The recent James Bond hype gave me the idea of writing an espionage novel
set in medieval England – hence “Nowhere Was There Peace”, my next book due to
be published. The recent discovery of Richard III’s potential remains under a
carpark in Leicestershire led to renewed interest in The Wars of the Roses, and
gave me the seed of the idea for “The White Hawk”. I like to construct a plot
laid ‘on top’ of the sequence of historical events, with fictional events used
to plug gaps in knowledge. At the same time, I try to avoid having historical
characters do and say things they wouldn’t have.
What books can you recommend to
aspiring writers to improve on style, character development, plot, structure,
dialogue, etc?
Anything by George MacDonald Fraser,
basically. The man was a genius, even if some of the views expressed via his
central character, Harry Flashman, are old-fashioned in the extreme.
What is your must-have book for writing?
I don’t really have one. If I’m stuck for
a bit of inspiration or a lesson on how to turn a phrase I usually dip into the
Flashman novels.
What is your advice to aspiring
writers?
Write from the soul, never give up, work
extremely hard, become a perfectionist, don’t get into arguments, learn to take
advice and criticism, ignore the cynics and naysayers.
Your booksYY
What genre(s) do you write? Why do you
write the stories that you write?
Historical and fantasy, with the
occasional impulse to ‘do’ science fiction.
Among those that you=ve written, which is your favorite book
and why?
My first historical, “Folville’s Law”, is
my favourite. Not because it’s necessarily the best-written, but people always
cherish their first time…
Where do you get your ideas? Do you jot
them down in a notebook, in case you forgot?
From my
encyclopedic (nerdy) knowledge of history allied with my imagination. I do
initially jot down ideas in a notebook just in case I forgot them!
Which book is the closest to your
heart? Why?
“The Once and Future King”, TH White’s
masterful recreation of Arthurian legend. No other writer before or since (in
my opinion) has come close to re-telling that particular story with such depths
of pathos, empathy and wit. It was also the first full-length novel or series
of novels I ever read.
Which of your books feature your
family/friends, etc? What characters are modeled after them? Why?
None. I avoid modeling characters on
people I know, though I did borrow my friend and co-writer Martin Bolton ’s surname for my latest book!
Which of your heroes/heroines is most
similar to you? Why?
James Bolton, a chaplain in “The White
Hawk”, has certain similarities to me. He is savagely flawed and has to fight
to overcome those flaws and do the right thing to help others in need.
Who is your strongest/sexiest/most
lovable/hottest hero/heroine? Why?
Dame Elizabeth Bolton, the matriarch of
the Bolton clan in my new novel, “The White
Hawk”, is a very tough, single-minded character. She has to be, to protect her
family and safeguard their interests in a time of violence and lawlessness.
Have you ever wanted to write your book
in one direction but your characters are moving it in another direction? What
did you do in such a situation?
I often find that characters soon develop
a mind of their own! Generally I let them get on with it, and allow things to
‘flow’, so to speak.
Tell us more about your latest release The
White Hawk, Book One: Revenge, published by Amazon.
Book One of The White Hawk is the first
of my series of novels set during The Wars of the Roses. This period, with its murderous dynastic
feuding between the rival Houses of York and Lancaster, is perhaps the most
fascinating of the entire medieval period in England
Apart
from the savage doings of aristocrats, the wars affected people on the lower
rungs of society. One minor gentry family in particular, the Pastons of
Norfolk, suffered greatly in their attempts to survive and thrive in the feral
environment of the late 15th century. They left an invaluable chronicle in
their archive of family correspondence, the famous Paston Letters.
The
letters provide us with a snapshot of the trials endured by middle-ranking
families like the Pastons, and of the measures they took to defend their
property from greedy neighbours. One such extract is a frantic plea from the
matriarch of the clan, Margaret Paston, begging her son John to return from London
"I
greet you well, letting you know that your brother and his fellowship stand in
great jeopardy at Caister... Daubney and Berney are dead and others badly hurt,
and gunpowder and arrows are lacking. The place is badly broken down by the
guns of the other party, so that unless they have hasty help, they are likely
to lose both their lives and the place, which will be the greatest rebuke to
you that ever came to any gentleman. For every man in this country marvels
greatly that you suffer them to be for so long in great jeopardy without help
or other remedy..."
The
Paston Letters, together with my general fascination for the era, were the
inspiration for The White Hawk. Planned as a series of three novels, TWH will
follow the fortunes of a fictional Staffordshire family, the Boltons, from the
beginning to the very end of The Wars of the Roses. Unquenchably loyal to the
House of Lancaster, their loyalty will have dire consequences for them as law
and order breaks down and the kingdom slides into civil war. The ‘white hawk’
of the title is the sigil of the Boltons, and will fly over many a
blood-stained battlefield.
In
the following excerpt, one of the protagonists is introduced to his first taste
of real combat at the Battle of Northampton:
“The Lancastrians still had their archers, and the unseasonal rain had
turned the ground between the two armies into a quagmire. Geoffrey lost a shoe
in the soft, sucking mud, and cursed as he was forced to hobble onward with one
naked foot.
Then the skies darkened, and the man beside him squealed and went down with
an arrow protruding from the eye-piece of his sallet. Geoffrey lowered his head
and stumbled on, gagging at the stench of excrement and split gut that filled
his nostrils as more arrows strafed Fauconberg’s division, cutting men down and
breaking up their carefully ordered ranks.
Geoffrey was breathing hard, his limbs seized with weariness as he laboured
through the mud. His heart rattled like a drum. The Yorkists were being
murdered by the arrows, and still had to cross a deep ditch, defended by a wall
of stakes and thousands of determined, well-fed and rested Lancastrian
infantry. They would surely be repelled, panic would set in, and men would
start to run. Then the Lancastrian knights would mount their destriers, and the
real killing would begin as they pursued their beaten foes across miles of open
ground.
Geoffrey’s courage and desire for vengeance shriveled inside him. He
desperately wanted to turn and run, but the press of men forced him on, towards
the bristling line of stakes. He glanced ahead, and saw that March’s division
had stormed right up to the barricades on the right flank of the Lancastrian
position. These were defended by men wearing badges displaying a black ragged
staff. He recognised the livery as that of Lord Grey of Ruthin, a powerful
Welsh Marcher lord.
He expected March’s advance to grind to a halt as his men came up against
the stakes and Grey’s well-armed infantry, but then something extraordinary
happened. The men wearing the badge of the ragged staff laid down their weapons
and stood aside, allowing the Yorkists to pass through their lines. Some even
stooped to help their supposed enemies over the ditch.
Lord Grey had turned traitor. Geoffrey had no idea why or how it had been
arranged, being too unimportant to be made privy to such deals, but his heart
sang at the result. That one act of treachery would surely reverse the tide of
battle. The Lancastrians were doomed, trapped like rats inside their improvised
fortress. More to the point, Geoffrey’s chances of survival had just improved
dramatically…”
Any new projects, work in progress?
My next book, “Nowhere Was There Peace”, a
tale set in 13th century England
