1310. Method of curing bad Tub Butter-start the tubs of butter in a large quantity of hot water, which soon melts the butter/ skim it off as clean as possible, and work it over again and again in a churn, with the addition of fine sugar, the butter will be sweet and good.
Meet Robert S. Phillips
I met Robert through a an international writer’s group that originates here in Bellingham. He has just published his first novel, a historical fiction work. Robert S. Phillips is an avid reader and history buff. Born in Vancouver, BC, Robert has lived in many places in Canada and the U.S., only returning to the Pacific Northwest in the last decade. Home is Bellingham, WA. He is proud of his three grown children and one ten-year-old grandson. I’ll let him speak.
Why Do I Write Historical Fiction? It’s the story, isn’t it?! A story blossoms in one’s mind and needs to be told. For some writers, the seed might come from a life experience, a piece of music, a play, or a show. For me, it comes from history. I grew up in a family where the past was frequently discussed as we gathered for dinner. “In what the three battles of the Hundred Years’ War did the English trounce the French?” my father would ask, and my siblings and I were expected to know Crecy, Poitiers, and … I leave the third one as an exercise for the reader.
My novels center on the Roman Empire. It was a period that has fascinated me since childhood. I would always dress up as a pirate or a centurion for Halloween. As an adult, I have enjoyed such TV productions as “I, Claudius” and “Rome,” and I have listened to all 179 episodes of Mike Duncan’s “History of Rome” podcast. But, as inspirations for stories, it’s the almost-forgotten characters that seize my imagination. There’s Galla Placidia, the Roman Emperor’s half-sister, who was captured by the Visigoths when they sacked Rome in 410 CE and married Ataulf, King of the Goths. Was she forced? Or did they fall in love? There’s also Flavius Aetius, sometimes called “The Last of the Romans,” who effectively ruled the Western Roman Empire for twenty years and saved it from the devastating invasions of Attila the Hun.
Elodia’s Knife
The idea for my first novel, Elodia’s Knife, came when I pictured a young Visigothic family, along with thousands of others in their tribe, fleeing across central Asia (now Ukraine) trying to stay ahead of the ruthless Huns. In 376 CE, they sought refuge by crossing the Danube River into the Roman Empire, only to be exploited by corrupt Roman officials. These refugees were so hungry they sold their children into slavery in exchange for dogs. The furious Visigoths revolted, destroyed a massive Roman army, and killed the Emperor. The young family asked me to tell their tale.
Even as I was writing their story, their daughter, Matilde, was poking me, saying she also wanted to be heard. I wondered what of interest could happen to a young barbarian girl. Surely, the pattern of her life was fixed: grow up, marry a warrior, have some kids, and, with some luck, watch them grow and thrive before growing old oneself and dying. But Matilde claimed she had seen much more. She watched a Goth named Gainas launch a coup to control the Eastern Empire. Matilde witnessed the barbarian hordes thunder across the frozen Rhine River into Gaul in 406 CE and was in Rome when Alaric sacked it in 410 CE. History has forgotten, and she wants it known, that she was the mother of Theodoric I, King of the Visigoths, ruler of Aquitaine. In fact, Matilde has had so much to tell that I’ve had to split her story into two volumes. Matilde’s General and Matilde’s Empress will be published later this year (2024.)
Just when I think I’m done with The Visigoth Saga, I hear a voice telling me, “There’s More!” Indeed, the Visigoths ruled Spain until the 8th century, so there are more four centuries of untold stories. As long as there are forgotten voices that demand a hearing, I’ll be busy writing their stories.
What one reader has to say about Elodia’s Knife:
“Author Robert S. Phillips delivers a fully-rounded work of historical drama that
has everything readers could want. I really enjoyed the narrative, dialogue, and
sense of emotion imbued in the central character, who is a tough woman in
tough times, with plenty of vulnerability but also a deep resolve and a knack for
survival. I would highly recommend ELODIA’S KNIFE to fans of ancient historical
fiction everywhere.” ~ K.C.Finn for Readers’ Favorite
