A Shameless Plug (Patricia Potter)

My new book comes out next week, and this is a shameless plug.

"Beloved Warrior" is the third in my 16th Century Scottish series, all of which evolve around James IV, the conflict between the Scottish clans, the Battle of Flodden Field which killed the best of the Stuarts, and its tragic aftermath.

I tried to stay as true to the times and history as possible, and it was indeed rich historic times. James had married Margaret, sister to Henry the Eighth of England, and to all accounts it was very happy marriage, albeit all too short. James was the Scottish king who brought together the clans, in part by force and in part by his own charm. He recognized the need to stop the quarreling and the raiding if Scotland was to be free of the English, and he was considered very enlightened for the times. Justice, music and literature all flourished during his reign.

But at the behest of France, an ally, James led his troops against England in a terrible defeat at Flodden Field. He took with him the best of the nobles in Scotland. More than ten thousand Scots died, among them himself, his illegitimate son, the Chancellor of Scotland, the Bishop of the Isles, and the dean of Glasgow Cathedral. Fourteen lords of Parliament, nine earls and a number of lairds also died. It was a battle that deeply wounded Scotland and made its union with England inevitable.

After the death of James IV, Scotland was left in the hands of James’ widow and a wee child king while different factions (pro-English and pro French) fought for influence. It was a Stuart curse that the kings died young and left their kingdoms with only a babe to inherit the crown.

The series of "Beloved" books feature three Maclean brothers and their hundred-year-old feud with the Campbells. Rory, the sea captain, is called home to fight the Campbells in the first book ("Beloved Imposter"); Lachlan the would-be priest becomes an unlikely warrior in "Beloved Stranger," and Patrick, the true warrior, returns home in "Beloved Warrior," the book that comes out this week. All of the stories are entwined in the very messy politics and shifting alliances of the time.

Like most of my books, the series was inspired by a true event. The Campbells and Macleans were allies in Scotland until a Maclean married a Campbell and decided to kill her in when she proved childless. He chained her to a rock in the sea, thinking she would drown and he could claim a tragic accident. But some fishermen rescued her, and the attempt started a very nasty feud which lasted a century or more.

Ah, no author’s fertile mind could make up anything as grand as that for a tale.

I once said on this blog that given the opportunity to have any talent, or occupation, I would choose being an orchestra conductor.

But in reality, I would be happy doing any number of things, and one that ranks at the top of my list is teaching history. I had a very bad history teacher in high school. He was a coach and had little interest in academic subjects. The entire United States history course was memorizing the dates that states came into the union. Get those right, and you got an A.

But I was bit by the bug, anyway, and minored in American history in college. I had a great professor named Dr. Pancake. He had a devoted cadre of students that followed him from course to course – Jacksonian democracy, Jeffersonian Democracy, the Diplomatic History of the United States until 1890 and the Diplomatic History after 1890. His final exams usually consisted of one question: in Jefferson Democracy, it was Explain Jeffersonian Democracy. He didn’t care about dates. He cared about the impact of history on people, and people on history.

I loved his enthusiasm and love for history, and the way he infected his students with it. He brought all those centuries-dead characters to life. This is how, I always thought, that history should be taught.

My historicals are my attempt at making history come alive for my readers. I'm lucky enough to be able to indulge my two great passions at once: history and writing.

The research was pure joy, especially finding a book that was published in the early 1500's. It was crucial to the story, and I wanted an actual book published at the time. I went through any number of websites to find the right one. Finally, I found "The Thrissill and the Rois," the tale of the marriage of James IV and Margaret Tudor. Perfect. You could probably hear the cry of delight echoing two counties away.

Discovering the life of the border reivers ("Beloved Stranger") was just as much fun. Fascinating stuff. The border reivers – Scot and English – warred with each other, then played together. They raided one another and protected one another. They were just as likely to turn against their own country as their neighbors across the border.

And then I came to Patrick’s story, the last in the series. Back to the history books. He’d been away from home for many years. I had to give him a reason. What wars were going on at the time (There was always a war someplace)? Well, the French were fighting the Spanish. That would do. He was fighting for the French – an ally of Scotland --and was captured by the Spanish. He ended up on a slave galley.

Okay. Now I had to learn more about slave galleys of the time. Both the French and Spanish used them. I found a book written by a French Huguenot who was imprisoned upon one. Some terrific details.

And finally I finished the series as proposed. The three brothers were reconciled, and the Macleans were at peace, finally, with the Campbells.

And what about The Spaniard, a character who unexpectedly popped up in Beloved Warrior? He became more and more fascinating, and started to demand a book of his own. "Beloved Rogue," perhaps?

But now I anxiously await the publication of "Beloved Warrior" next week. And, as always, I'm a nervous wreck. I desperately want everyone to love my babies as much as I do, to fall in love with my hero and immerse themselves in the intrigues of Sixteenth Century Scotland.

All the worries are there. Will it fascinate the reader as the history did me? Will it survive a truly bland cover? Are historicals really dying in this market? I'll be going into manic mode, calling Ingrams hourly to check on sales. I cautiously visit Amazon and read posted reviews.

So bear with this nervous Nellie for the next few weeks. It one of the common afflictions of writers everywhere on the eve of publication.