David's HNF Blog
My HNF blog includes author interviews, subsequent edition releases, any other nautical literature news, etc.
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- By: David Hayes
Historic Naval Fiction is pleased to have obtained an Interview with Lee Henschel Jr. author of the first book in a new series, The Sailing Master.
What can you tell us about your book The Sailing Master without spoiling the plot for readers?
I meant for this story to resonate with a great range of readers . . . a story for lovers of sea novels, particularly for those who love the golden age of sail. But, just as importantly, if not more so, I wanted to to create a main character who readers care about, who see themselves in the character, or to learn how life is for someone very different than them.
Well, The Sailing Master certainly provides a great plenty of the naming of things on a sailing ship, of descriptions of the sea and the weather, the sounds and the smells, the feel of HMS Eleanor as she rolls on a big sea. Foreign ports.
And we also follow the thoughts and feelings of the narrator, Owen Harriet . . . his first day aboard Eleanor, how it was the first time he went aloft, the endless procession of characters. Making friends. Loosing them.
The story is a coming of age for the narrator, Owen, spoken in his own charming (I hope) vocabulary and cadence. I hope to have created a main character who people will love . . . someone whose voice they hear.
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- By: David Hayes
The inaugural Weymouth Leviathan, a Maritime Literary Festival held in Weymouth, Dorset, UK, will take place next year over two days, 12 & 13 March.
There are many speakers appearing on a wide range of nautical subjects and among them are a number of Naval Fiction authors including Antoine Vanner (on Hazard in Nautical Fiction: Facets of Fear and Courage), J. D. Davies (on Samuel Pepys and Charles II’s Navy), Julian Stockwin (on The Real Jack Tar) and Richard Woodman (on The Making of a Sea Officer in Fact and Fiction).
For those who like the non-fiction works on the subject the speakers also include David Childs (on the Mary Rose) and James Davey (on the post Trafalgar war at sea)
Further information can be found on the festival website weymouthleviathan.org.uk
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- By: David Hayes
Historic Naval Fiction is pleased to have obtained an Interview with Chris Fasolino whose new novel, Men of Promise, was released in August 2015.
What can you tell us about your book Men of Promise without spoiling the plot for readers?
Men of Promise is about a voyage of exploration to the South China Sea. The idea for the book really came from my realization that voyages of exploration, an exciting part of maritime history, have not received as much attention in fiction as naval warfare has. I think that a novel, and hopefully a series, focused on exploration will bring something new to the seafaring genre while staying true to its swashbuckling spirit. And the South China Sea, with its fabled dangers of pirates, typhoons, and coral reefs-- all of which are important in Men of Promise-- is an exciting setting for a nautical adventure.
The character of the hero, Captain Bowman West, is also an important part of the novel. As the story begins, West is a Royal Navy captain recovering from nearly fatal wound. He loves the ocean, but is weary of warfare; so, with the help of an old friend in the Admiralty, he determines that his next voyage will be one of discovery. West has a sense of curiousity that makes him appreciative of the exotic places that he visits, and he has the ability to use his wits, as well as his courage, in dealing with the dangers of the journey.
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- By: David Hayes
There have been two recent releases in The Merriman Chronicles by Roger Burnage which are now available for kindle download worldwide.
In the year 1801 and Captain James Merriman aboard his ship Lord Stevenage is despatched to South America along with a small flotilla. A passenger by the name of George Humphries - part of the extensive network of English spies and agents controlled by a department of the Treasury – has orders for Merriman to seek out intelligence about England's enemies, particularly France and Spain.
Merriman and crew are also to try and find one Don Carlos Galiano whom he had narrowly missed capturing in the West Indies several years previously. Galiano is known to be behind smuggling and privateer activities in south Atlantic waters and is rumoured to be in Montevideo.
There are battles with a French frigate and a Spanish one with an assortment of privateers - little more than pirates - who prey on shipping of any nation in the south Atlantic.
But another secret purpose behind this voyage is to recover important documents and treasure from a wrecked Indiaman in Brazil, the location of which is unknown apart from some very incoherent details from the sole surviving crew member.
Can Merriman be successful in all that with the French, Spanish and even the native population is against him?
