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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 17h

#WritersCoffeeClub 4/10: How isolated are your characters in your current WIP? My hero is "emotionally isolated", having been re-acquired by the Papal agency he deserted from during the plague. He is now serving out an oath of loyalty unto death to the new head of the agency. #writing #histfic 1/2

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 2nd Oct ~ Do you have plans for your next work yet? I do. My current trilogy is set firmly in the 14th century. I have plans to take the story forward into the Italian Renaissance of the 15th century and possibly beyond. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

#WordWeavers 02 Other than novels, what types of writing do you do, such as poetry, screen plays, etc? For the last few years I have deliberately sidelined my other #writing to focus on novels. The last thing I need is more distractions. I still maintain a blog (just), but nothing else. #histfic

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub – 1st Oct. What are you hoping to achieve this month? It would be good to get to 30k words on volume 3. We'll see. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 30th Sep ~ Where did this month's writing take you? Into the Great St Bernard Pass, 2.5km up in the Alps. Pilgrims to Rome or the Holy Land would cross during the summer. But bad weather could make it a deadly journey. Many died. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 29. Talk about something with your work this month you're really proud of. Vol 3 of my trilogy follows two timelines, the hero and his wife. Hero must follow orders. Wife must do what she believes is right. 1 of 2 #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 28 Sep Could you work without the internet? What would change? I would have to spend months in libraries doing research on medieval and renaissance history. Internet search engines have made it possible for me to #write #histfic from home. #writingcommunity #books #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 27/9: How much time passes between sitting down to write and actually writing? Not long if I'm #writing new material for a work in progress. If the ideas weren't there I wouldn't have sat down. Much longer if I'm editing. #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub September 24th Do you write primarily for yourself or for a reader? I write for myself, but I like to think I'm a demanding audience. I hope that readers will like what I write, and I test that hope regularly with beta readers. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 23. What "little thing" really helps you write? 1. The fantasy of one day being a published author. 2. The joy of seeing ideas turn into a manuscript. 3. The little voice in my head at 4am suggesting dialogue edits. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

#writersCoffeeClub 21. What can a reader know to be true about you from your work? That I regard libraries as precious, sacred places. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub Sept. 19: Are you more comfortable writing to a structure or freeform? #Writing without structure is a form of gambling I just don't have time for if I want to get books written. #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub ~ Do you try to have a regular writing goal? Why or why not? My #writing is cumulative. I write the best I can, even for a first draft. Even if it's only a few words each day. I don't write stuff I'll have to delete later just for the sake of daily word count #histfic #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub Sept. 16: Is there a topic you could really use an expert’s help with? What is it? Right now I'm researching #holocaust survivors. Their experience is as close to "it was the end of the world" as most of us are likely to see. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub Sep13 What do you need to do before you sit down to write? I need to think myself into the fictional world I am writing about. Sometimes I need to research a particular detail before I write about it. Today it was 14th century heretical sects. #writing #histfic #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub Sept. 10: What's something you believe about writing which can't really be proven? Muses are real and make a vital contribution to the creative process. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub Sep 5 Do you track word count? How/why? I use MS Word for my manuscripts. It provides a constantly updated word count. It is useful as a basic progress tracker, but I realised long ago that it tells me nothing about how much work remains to be done. #writing #histfic #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub: How does what you read influence what you write? I think it's the other way round. What I write influences what I read. I no longer read science fiction, partly because I'm #writing #histfic. I read comp titles and favourite #histfic authors. #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 2. How do you think where you live affects your creative work? A Roman road near where I live features in vol 2 of the trilogy, but otherwise there's not much overlap between real and fictional geography. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 1st Sep ~ What are your writing goals for this month? Another few thousand words of Vol 3 and (maybe) start querying Vols 1 and 2. The #writing is much more enjoyable than the querying. #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 31/8: How did this month go for you, writing-wise? Not bad. I'm nearly 20k words into vol 3 of the trilogy. I've written both the beginning and the ending. Now I just have to fill out the middle. #writing #histfic #booksky #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 30/8: What has your writing taught you this month? To be patient and trust the muse. My main plot has to be tied to historical reality. The research takes time, but almost always points the way forward. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky #booksky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub ~ Share some of the last things you looked up for what you’re working on now. King Charles IV's of Bohemia's 1354 campaign to secure his coronation as Emperor in 1355. He was concerned not to repeat the mistakes of his grandfather and father #histfic #research #writesky #writing

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 23/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 23rd Aug ~ If no one read what you write, would you still choose to write? Yes. As an unpublished writer, very few people read my work. But #writing is one of the joys of my life and I would write even if no-one read it. #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 22/8: Have you ever used a sensitivity reader? No. #Writing medieval #histfic seems to lend a useful distance to any sensitive issues. #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 19 Aug How do you write characters with expertise outside your own? It is challenging. A skill like Japanese minimalist Sumi-e painting, suggesting the detailed reality with just a few lines. Most readers don't want an instruction manual. #writing #histfic #booksky #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 18 Aug What are your limits for writing outside your lived experience? I'm #writing #histfic, by definition outside my lived experience. I use imagination instead of memory to create and move through the world I write about. So in answer to the question - I haven't yet found them

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub Aug. 15: What’s something you recently learned about your own work? I have to know the ending (at least in outline) before I write the start. After that I don't have to write the story sequentially. I write the main events, then the minor events and last of all I write dialogue.

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 14/8: How often do you reread what you’ve written after it’s "done"? Not full rereads, but even though I'm currently writing volume 3, I'm still revising and editing vols 1 & 2. Improvements keep suggesting themselves. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub Aug: 12: What’s the last museum you went to? Did it inspire you? The British Museum, to see the Elgin Marbles / Parthenon Sculptures while they are still in the UK. As with so many ancient artefacts, one is left with the impression that much of the original meaning is lost to us

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 10th Aug 2026. Do you reuse characters? The current trilogy has some characters appearing in more than one volume, but that's because their stories interact with the hero's. Otherwise, no. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

#writersCoffeeClub Aug 9: What's a subject you'd like to write about, but haven't? The big name families of the Italian renaissance, such as the Medici, the Borgias and the Sforza, and how they fought over the Papacy. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 7th August 2026 What subcultures exist in your work? I #write #medieval #histfic, so in broad terms, characters either work, pray or fight, with the knightly warriors being the ruling class. However, by the 14th century there was already a growing merchant class with lots of 💰

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

#PennedPossibilities 1091: When not in person, how do people communicate? Literate 14th century people sent letters, delivered by couriers, travelling merchants, pilgrims sailors or some combination of the above. Naturally the Church had the fastest couriers. #writing #histfic #writesky #books

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 06 August: What sort of collectives appear in your work? The Order of Santiago, one of the Church's military orders in the 14th century. And The Entity, the Papal security and intelligence service, responsible for protecting the Church's earthly wealth. #writing #histfic #books

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub ,4th Aug. Do you consider yourself a writer, an author, an artist, something else? Why? I'm a writer and a published journalist. When I'm agented and get a book published by a trad publisher, I'll be able to call myself an author. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 2/8: What’s the most challenging thing you've ever written? The most challenging thing is my current WIP. Volume 3 of my trilogy. Less than 10k words into what will probably be a 90k manuscript. That's a mountain to climb, but I did it with the first two, so I can do it again.

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 1st Aug ~ What are your goals for the month, writing-wise? An outline of the major story arcs of volume 3 of my trilogy. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 31st July ~ End of the month roundup: What will you do differently next month? I think I'll just keep on #writing. It seems to be working so far. If I can summon up the courage I may start querying in September. #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 7/30. _End of the month roundup_ : How well did this month go for you? It has gone well. I've made a start on Vol 3 of the Cruz Espada trilogy and the plot outline is coming together. That said, I'm still editing Vols 1 and 2, a task with no end in sight. #writing #histfic

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub July 29: Is there something you want to write, but don't think you yet have the skill? Yes. The script for the wildly successful multi-season historical TV costume drama that the Cruz Espada trilogy is destined to become. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

WritersCoffeeClub 28th July ~ What's something about your own work which needs some polish? The easy answer is "everything". The more thoughtful one is the ability to evoke a scene so effectively that the reader unconsciously sees and feels it. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 27th July ~ What's a writerly growing pain you're experiencing right now? The realisation that editing and polishing doesn't have an end point. It can apparently go on forever. #writing #histfic #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 26/7: Do you have other works waiting in the wings? How many? Too many to count. I will have to leave my current hero behind, but as I follow the story forward I'm already imagining plots which intersect with the big names of the renaissance. #writing #histfic #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 25/7: What are your techniques for getting out of having written yourself into a corner? As a 'planner' I am usually able to avoid this problem. More often, I will be looking for the best plot device to move the story to where I want to go. #writing #histfic #writesky #booksky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 18/07/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 18/7: Talk about how a work progressed from its initial inspiration. How different was it in the end? The Cruz Espada trilogy began as an experiment. I took a character concept from a Ray Bradbury short story published in 1948, and placed it in a plague-riddled medieval nunnery.

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 18/07/2026

I'm still editing and revising volumes 1 & 2, but vol 3 of the Cruz Espada trilogy is now properly a work in progress. It is set in the post-plague world of the early 1350's, as a new Pope goes to war. Our hero, having gone AWOL during the plague, is back and lucky to escape execution as a deserter.

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub 15/7: Do you read a lot outside of your comfort zone? A difficult question to answer. I don't read #books I don't like, but as I write #histfic, I have to read a lot of research material, some of which can be heavy going. #writing #writingcommunity #writesky

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Howard Aiken 📚 @howard-aiken.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

#WritersCoffeeClub July 7: How actively do you seek out criticism or critique for a WIP or a finished work? I ask members of an online writers group for feedback on an almost weekly basis. Some are also beta readers. When you get lots of opinions, the important themes emerge. #writing #histfic

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