Do you despair at 'dull' history? I certainly do and it inspired me to bring history to life and make it accessible to the general public through my books.
Once a senior manager in industry and a school teacher, I now write historical fiction focusing on Elizabethan history home and abroad and want to get across that history can be more relevant to our own lives, rather than just dates and names in texts books to be learned by rote.
I was forced to drop History at school even though it was one of my best subjects. Instead, I chose to continue studying the subject at home under my own initiative and if it hadn't been for that I doubt i would ever have been a successful author.
I have just finished writing the third book of the Glassmaker series, Blood- Red Goblet which will be available in April, 2011. The books are about a Murano glass-maker who becomes involved in the plots against Queen Elizabeth I and it is based on a real glassmaker, whose life was somewhat more mundane than my hero.
We need to encourage people of all ages to see the exciting side of history. It's our history that makes us who we are. It's a shame that a large percentage of the population have little understanding of it. Not long ago, the BNP tried to high-jack Winston Churchill and his exploits, showing little appreciation of Churchill's stand against fascism in all its forms. Yet, in a recent survey, a large number of children didn't know who Churchill was, or what he meant to us as a nation! These are not dry facts, they're part of our heritage.
In an attempt to change this, I have written historical fiction which is both accurate and accessible. I have also made the books easy to read, so that adults of all generations can enjoy the experience. It is my aim that by appealing to all ages, history will not only be a thrilling hobby but also become a popular subject to study.
It is the hope of myself and many other historians that authors, media personnel and schools will all embark on a mission to make history more accessible and restore our heritage back into the future of the United Kingdom.
More information about the Elizabethan era and the Glassmaker Series can be found at Petan Publishing, www.petanpublishing.co.uk or on my blog http://pmcooke.co.uk
