Well folks, this is it.
The Lay of Leofwin project I briefly posted about over the last few months, has taken a life of its own and been transformed into a book. An actual, published book!
That is the primary reason behind my long absence from this blog.
Without going into too much “behind-the-scenes” detail, the writing process for what would eventually become known as “Hæstingas: A retelling of the valiant fall of England in verse” started almost 3 years ago, with a very rough idea of where I wanted the story to lead to.
Fast-track to today, that story combines three subjects dear to me: fantasy stories, poetry, and the Anglo-Saxon period. Plus, I won’t deny the huge influence Tolkien’s works have had on this too 😀
The synopsis of the book is as follows:
Dragons, mythical beasts, mighty warriors and perilous forests. This is England in 1066. The Anglo-Saxon king, Harold, is bound north to repel a strong force of Norsemen — unaware of the approaching threat upon the southern shores of his kingdom. Among his army of thousands, from noble thegns to battle-hardened housecarls and staunch fyrdmen, is the ambitious, loyal and proud Leofwin. Eager to defend his brother’s kingdom and carve his name in the annals of history, he battles in earnest against famed warriors, ravenous wolves and wicked sorcerers. However, his ambitions soon come to naught when his beloved wife’s life is in danger. His whole world and home are approaching an inevitable downfall.
I’m extremely proud of this work and really hope you get the chance of reading it.
And perhaps, this short trailer might convince you to do so:
Hæstingas is available now on Amazon and Amazon UK in paperback & ebook formats.
A Tolkienist's Perspective 
Many congratulations 😀😁🙃😳😃😵🤓!
Mazel tov!
Well done!
Congrats, James!!
Congratulations on the publication James! Very exciting 😀
Oooooh I knew about “The Lay of Leofin” posts, but didn’t not think that the work would be published so soon!
Ordered.
Also looking forward to you potentially tackling a similar project or two in the future. After all, Tolkien envisioned ‘Three Great Tales of Middle-earth’ 😉
Speaking of The Great Tales…..courtesy of Tolkiengateway:
The Atanatárion refers to three Great Tales recorded by the Númenóreans that concern heroes of the Edain of the First Age.
The Three Great Tales of Middle-earth
These tales, preserved in Gondor, were:
– Narn Beren ion Barahir (“Tale of Beren son of Barahir”) or Narn e-Dinúviel (“Tale of the Nightingale”)
– Narn i Chîn Húrin (“Tale of the Children of Húrin”) or Narn e-‘Rach Morgoth (“Tale of the Curse of Morgoth”)
– Narn en El (“Tale of the Star”) or Narn e-Dant Gondolin ar Orthad en El (“Tale of The Fall of Gondolin and the Rise of the Star”)
The latter two comprise the wider matter Narn e-mbar Hador (“Tale of the House of Hador”). (Morgoth’s Ring, Part Five: “Myths Transformed”)
Etymology
The title means (Legendarium) of the Fathers of Men and is the genitive of Atanatári. The Sindarin title is Nern in Edenedair/Adanath.
Inspiration
“It seems unquestionable, from my father’s own words, that if he could achieve final and finished narratives on the scale he desired, he saw three ‘Great Tales’ of the Elder Days (Beren and Lúthien, the Children of Húrin, and the Fall of Gondolin) as works sufficiently complete in themselves as not to demand knowledge of the great body of legend known as The Silmarillion.”
― Christopher Tolkien,
From the Preface of Beren and Luthien
Wow! Congratulations! That’s awesome!
Thanks!