Dan Jones on writing historical fiction
Historian Dan Jones, whose debut historical novel vividly brings to life a medieval military campaign, discusses the challenges of writing historical fiction
After making his name as a medieval historian, Dan Jones has turned his hand to historical fiction. His debut novel, Essex Dogs, follows ten hardened mercenaries through the 1346 Crecy campaign. In this episode, Dan speaks to Rhiannon Davies about the secrets of writing great battle scenes, the challenges of relying on medieval sources, and how a dinner with Game of Thrones author George RR Martin inspired him to pick up the pen.
Dan Jones is the author of Essex Dogs (Head of Zeus, 2022)
Authors
A former BBC History Magazine section editor, Rhiannon has long been fascinated by history and continues to write for HistoryExtra.com. She has appeared on the award-winning HistoryExtra podcast, interviewing experts on a variety of subjects, from Lucy Worsley discussing Agatha Christie to Sir Ranulph Fiennes on the perils of polar exploration
JUMP into SPRING! Get your first 6 issues for £9.99
+ FREE HistoryExtra membership (special offers) - worth £34.99!