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Blog postThis September’s post focuses on a Christian missionary who was born in the month of September –– a man who is no less imposing than many of the Vikings he sought to convert during his life. His name is Ansgar and he is often thought of as the first Christian missionary to the North.
The first Christian missionary to the Viking world Christianity did not come quickly to the early Scandinavians. While the majority of western Europe had already accepted the Christian faith, the Vikings pr -
Blog postThere has long been a debate about whether Olaf Tryggvason was at the Battle of Maldon, a battle believed to have taken place on Aug 11 in AD 991. This post will take a closer look at that question and hopefully shine a bit more light on that subject.
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Blog postIn the late 900s, the future king of Norway, Olaf Tryggvason, is driven from his home by the treachery of his half-cousin, who rules the land. His flight takes him across the world of the Vikings, placing him in some of the most colorful events and places of that time. The second part of Olaf’s story is told in my latest novel Sigurd’s Swords, which finds Olaf in the historical kingdom of Kievan Rus’, or, in the Old Norse tongue, Gardariki, serving his maternal uncle as a household warrior.
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Blog postI am thrilled to announce that my fifth novel and the second in the Olaf Saga series of books, is now available to order on Amazon in print and eBook formats. The novel, Sigurd’s Swords, tells the story of the future king of Norway, Olaf Tryggvason, and his time living and fighting in the war-torn kingdom of the Rus (what is today part of Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine).
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Blog postI am thrilled to announce today that my fifth novel and the second in the Olaf Saga series of books, will release on June 28th on Amazon in print and eBook formats. The novel, Sigurd’s Swords, tells the story of the future king of Norway, Olaf Tryggvason, and his time living and fighting in the war-torn kingdom of the Rus (what is today Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine).
Pre-order the eBook today.
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Blog postMy upcoming novel, Sigurd’s Swords, takes place in the kingdom of the Rus’, known to early Scandinavians as Gardariki, or the “realm of towns.” I was extremely excited to dive into this new world of the past, though it did not come without its challenges. As with most research into the Viking Age, one must rely on sources written years and sometimes centuries after the events occur. Such was the case with Olaf Tryggvason and his time in Gardariki.
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Blog postWe all know mistletoe as the twig we hang in doorways and thresholds during the Christmas or Yuletide season and under which we kiss. But why? Where did this tradition come from and why is this parasitic and poisonous plant at the center of it?
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Blog postDuring previous Octobers, I have written about Viking creatures and things that go bump in the night. This October, I decided to investigate a simple question: did the early Scandinavians (who I will call Vikings for simplicity) celebrate Halloween? This blog post unveils what I found.
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Blog postIn my latest Viking Age novels, I introduce a female character named Turid who yearns to fight alongside men in battle. To me, it seems natural that during the Viking Age, there might be women who wanted to fight. And given some of the freedoms that Scandinavian women enjoyed during that time, it did not seem like such a far-fetched idea, until I began to do more research....
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Blog postMuch has been written about Viking ships. How they were constructed. Their various sizes and names. So rather than ply similar seas, this post takes a closer look at the resources, economics, and “person-power” it took to get just a single Viking ship into the water.
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Blog postThe Gatewatch, by Canadian author Joshua Gillingham, is the story of Torin Ten-Trees and his band of companions, who are bound for the fort that guards the “civilized” world from the “wilds” where the trolls live. Some young men and women, like Torin and his friends, dream of taking their rightful place on the walls of the fort (called Gatewatch) and defending it from the trolls.
But in the case of Torin and his friends, their plans go awry.
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Blog postForged by Iron begins the thrilling saga of one of the most legendary kings of the Viking Age, Olaf Tryggvason.
In AD 960, the fabric that has held Norway together is tearing. The sons of Erik Bloodaxe have returned and are systematically ki
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Blog postIn my latest novel, I have the pleasure of bringing my readers into the world and life of Olaf Tryggvason, of the most legendary and enigmatic kings of the Viking Age. He is described as a leader of men, “exceeding fair and tall to look upon and of mighty stature and of great strength. And in prowess in sports, so it is told, was he the best of all the Norsemen.” But he is also seen as vicious and cruel to those who oppose his will. His life covers a lot of ground (literally) and is filled wi
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Blog postYou may have noticed my recent social posts in which I quote various stanzas from a poem. The poem is called "The Saga of King Olaf" and it was written by poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. It was included in Longfellow's book Tales of a Wayside Inn, which was published on November 23rd, 1863 (coincidentally the first day of the Battle of Chattanooga in the Civil War) Based almost entirely on Olaf Tryggvason's saga in Heimskringla, the poem is the longest part of Longfellow'
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Blog postWith COVID-19 spreading globally, it made me wonder about diseases during the Viking Age and whether early Scandinavians (who I will call the Vikings) ever dealt with a pandemic. As it turns out, they did.
You could say this about many periods in history, but the Viking Age was not an easy time to live. Scandinavian winters, food shortages, dirty living conditions near animals and rodents, raids and fighting, and a lack of hygiene (when compared to today) created conditions that combi -
Blog postFrom the bestselling author of Hakon’s Saga comes Forged by Iron, the first in a series of thrilling books about Olaf Tryggvason, one of the most legendary and enigmatic kings of the Viking Age.
Norway, AD 960. The fabric that has held the N
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Blog postIn the year AD 933 or 934, a battle was fought in a place called Mollebakken, not far from modern day Tønsberg (or Tunsberg as it was historically known). The poet and historian Snorri Sturlason describes the lead-up to the battle this way in his masterwork, Heimskringla:
“King Eirik took all the revenues (A.D. 934), which the king had in the middle of the country, the next winter after King Harald's decease. But Olaf took all the revenues eastward in Viken, and their brother Si -
Blog postGunnhild, Mother of Kings. Source: Heimskringla
In today's post, we are taking a deeper dive into a character I personally find fascinating: Gunnhild (aka Gunnhild, Mother of Kings, or in Old Norse, Gunnhildr). A woman who appears in the sag
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Blog postI have been traveling through Italy these past several weeks, looking for signs of my favorite topic: Vikings. Besides Sicily, remnants of the Viking Age in this country are sparse. There is one spot, however, where myth and history combine to tell an interesting story. The place is called Luni, and it’s been said that Bjorn Ironside and Hastein attacked it, thinking it was Rome. So, of course, I had to visit.
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Blog postThere has been plenty of research and writing about the Viking Age, when it began and why it began. In this post, I wanted to take a step farther back, to what may have led to the Viking Age, and just pose some questions to think about.
The story begins in the summer of A.D. 536. In that year, a volcano erupted, leading Byzantine historian Procopius to write: “The sun gave forth its light without brightness, and it seemed exceedingly like the sun in eclipse, for the beams it shed -
Blog postAs a thank you to readers, I am kicking off the "God's Hammer #GivingTuesday Giveaway". Five (5) ebook copies of God's Hammer are up for grabs! To find out more details, head to the signup page.
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Blog postThis morning, I learned that God's Hammer took first place in the AuthorDB cover contest. So to everyone who voted, THANK YOU! I also wanted to give a special shout out to the artists who created such a compelling cover: David Brzozowski at BlueSpark Studios for the cover design, and Reza Afshar and Dominik Mayer for the concept art. This obviously would not have happened without their artistry.
If you'd like to order your own copy, head to: http://mybook.to/GodsHammer
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Blog postFor the past several weeks, I've been collecting and publishing a list of articles on Vikings, Anglo-Saxons, medieval European history, important new discoveries from the medieval world, and a host of other topics that I find interesting.
The stories come from various websites that I read throughout the week. To simplify the process for you, I have collected them in one spot and now plan to publish them weekly here.
Here's a look at the latest "Medieval History". If yo -
Blog postIn ancient Scandinavia, so much of life depended on the weather, nature, and the favor of the gods. The forests, the mountains, the seas, disease, nightmares – they all possessed the power to change one’s life for better or worse in the blink of an eye. Some were beyond man’s control. Others were frightening and inexplicable. And so man devised creatures to explain their existence and/or his fear of them.
With Halloween just around the corner, I wanted to share 10 creatures that may ha -
Blog postToday and tomorrow (Oct 23 and 24), the ebook version of God's Hammer will be on sale for $.99. If you love historical fiction, Vikings and/or medieval history, this is your chance to pick up an Amazon bestseller. Grab your copy now.
God's Hammer (Hakon's Saga) (Volume 1) By Eric Schumacher God's Hammer tells the story of Hakon Haraldsson and his brutal fight for the High Seat of Vik
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Blog postFrom today (Oct 12) until Oct 22, 2017, you can enter to win a free, signed print copy of my bestselling historical fiction novel, God’s Hammer, on Goodreads! The giveaway is open to anyone in the US, UK, and Canada. For more details or to enter, head here - http://bit.ly/2yAz4km - or click on the image below.
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Blog postOne of the cornerstones of a good story is the characters that populate it. Readers want to feel connected to the characters so that they can share their triumphs and their struggles. They want to care what happens to them. But to build that emotional connection between character and reader, the characters must feel “real”. They must be believable, which means they must act believably.
So, how does a writer create believable characters if the characters lived decades ago, centuries ago -
Blog postA blogger recently asked me about the role of faith in my novels. It's an interesting question, and one I wanted to give some attention to here.
To answer the question simply and directly, faith plays a major role in my novels, not because I am particularly religious, but because in the Viking Age, religion, faith and life were entwined.
The period after th
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Blog postThis morning marks a special day in the life of God's Hammer, the first book in Hakon's Saga. It's been 12 years since it was first published. It has had two separate publishers and I've also self-published the book for a while. But today, under the stewardship of my publisher Creativia, God's Hammer has reached the #1 spot (or bestseller status) on Amazon.com in Historical Fiction. For everyone who has purchased God's Hammer, ranked it, left a review or simply mentioned it to a friend, THANK
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Blog postI'm excited to let you know that Raven's Feast, the sequel to God's Hammer and the second book in Hakon's Saga, has launched and is available in print and ebook formats. Amazon is the best place to get your copy, though other retailers will be carrying the print version soon.
Raven’s Feast is the true story of Hakon Haraldsson and his quest to win and keep the High Seat of Viking A
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Blog postWings of the Storm (Sigurd) By Giles Kristian I just finished Wings of the Storm by Giles Kristian, the third book in the Rise of Sigurd series, and what an entertaining yarn it was! The novel follows Sigurd in his quest to avenge the death of his family. It is a quest littered with twists and turns, adventure and battle, and one that kept me engaged from page one.
Mr. Kristian does a wonderful job of balancing cha
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Blog postToday we've finalized the cover art for book two of Hakon's saga. The book is called Raven's Feast and the cover art is below:
Final cover art for Raven's Feast
There are a few people I'd like to thank for helping me put this together. Artist Reza Afshar created the warrior on the top half of the cover, while Do
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Blog postIt's been awhile since I've last written, though I'm happy to say that my absence is due to great news: God's Hammer and its sequel, Raven's Feast, have both found a publishing home at Creativia Publishing! Creativia 's timeline for publishing was quite fast, so I've been focused on getting the titles ready and have fallen short on blogging.
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Blog postWinter's Fire (Sigurd) By Giles Kristian Winter's Fire by Giles Kristian is the second novel in the Sigurd series. Sigurd is still on his path to avenge the death of this family, and with his band of hardened hirdmen, comes a step closer in this novel.
As with the first book in the series, God of Vengeance, the writing has a lyrical style that paints a clear picture of the environment, the people and the culture of
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Blog postThat is the central question that Hakon Haraldsson must answer in GOD'S HAMMER. It is not an atypical question for the Dark Ages. There are countless stories of warlords and kings dying in their pursuit of the throne, or dying to protect it. Yet Hakon’s story stuck a chord with me because Hakon was not the typical Viking leader.
According to Heimskringla (Snorre Sturlason’s “The Lives of the Norse Kings”), Hakon Haraldsson was born around 920 A.D in the west of modern day Norway, -
Blog postPersonally, I think one of the most difficult judgment calls in writing historical fiction is the handling of names and place names, especially when dealing with time periods where written resources are scarce. Scandinavia during the Viking Age is one of those times.
Old Norse and Old English are challenging languages for the modern reader. As a writer, I want to be as true to those ancient names as possible.
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Blog postA number of people have asked me over the years why I chose Hakon Haraldsson (or "Hakon the Good" as the sagas call him) as the protagonist in the GOD'S HAMMER series (yes - it'll be a series. I promise). While we don't know all of the facts of Hakon's life, we do know that even if marginally true, Hakon's story takes many of the norms of Viking literature and turns them on their head. In many ways, Hakon is the anti-Viking, yet a memorable hero nonetheless. And that's precisely what d
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Blog postGiles Kristian's novel, God of Vengeance, is a gripping tale that had me hooked from the first page. The story centers on Sigurd, a young warrior whose family is betrayed and killed by their own king. Left with a few loyal friends and a bag of hack silver, Sigurd must find a way to gather a war band capable of taking on his powerful enemies and avenge his family. In other words, he must achieve the seemingly impossible.
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Blog postWelcome! At long last, I have created an author website. I've designed this site and this blog not only to share information about my writing, but also to share my thoughts about other writing and historical topics that strike my fancy. I hope you enjoy what you find here. I will endeavor to keep it fresh!
To learn a little more about me, I urge you to re
Titles By Eric Schumacher
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