Anthony
asked
S.D. Sykes:
You must do a lot of research before writing one of your Somershill Manor books. Which, by the way, I absolutely love! How do you go about researching the times? What sources do you use? Thank you.
S.D. Sykes
Hi Anthony. Thank you for this question, and I'm so pleased that you have enjoyed the Somershill books. I have two main ways of approaching my research before writing. Firstly, I'm lucky enough to live in rural Kent, where there are many buildings that have survived from the 14th century - such as Penshurst Place, Ightham Mote, Scotney Castle and Bodiam Castle to name a few. I make an effort to visit and spend time in as many of these places as possible, just to soak up the atmosphere and imagine how life must have been 650 years ago.
In terms of desk research, I have relied heavily on the following primary sources, all of which date from around the period I'm writing in:
The Luttrell Psalter - a 14th Century prayer book with incredible illustrations of everyday life from the 1340s.
The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer
Piers Plowman by William Langland
The Travels of Sir John Mandeville
The Book of Margery Kempe
My secondary sources have included the following books - all of which I can thoroughly recommend if you are interested to find out more.
The Black Death by John Hatcher
The Scourging Angel by Benedict Gummer
The Time Traveller’s Guide to Medieval England by Ian Mortimer
Other than that, it is trips to many museums, the British Library and reading PHD papers from students with a specific interest in medieval history.
In terms of desk research, I have relied heavily on the following primary sources, all of which date from around the period I'm writing in:
The Luttrell Psalter - a 14th Century prayer book with incredible illustrations of everyday life from the 1340s.
The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer
Piers Plowman by William Langland
The Travels of Sir John Mandeville
The Book of Margery Kempe
My secondary sources have included the following books - all of which I can thoroughly recommend if you are interested to find out more.
The Black Death by John Hatcher
The Scourging Angel by Benedict Gummer
The Time Traveller’s Guide to Medieval England by Ian Mortimer
Other than that, it is trips to many museums, the British Library and reading PHD papers from students with a specific interest in medieval history.
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