Your Questions

I m Renate from Hannover ,....my question is,do you know Widukind 8th century, the dutch of the pagan saxons,who made war for 20 years against ,king Karl the great and whose father in law was the king of Denmark?was there any contact of the anglosaxons with their relatives,who still prayed to Wodan? greeting,Renate

Mr Cornwell. Perhaps you could point me in the right direction. I am researching my ancestor, Pvt James Angell of the 3rd Battalion 95th rifles. He was at Waterloo, and I gather formed part of the eventual charge after the immortals had been routed. Sir James Kincaid's book deals with the 1st Battalion at Le Hay Saint. Do any of the other books by Harris, Costello, Leach et al, deal with the 3rd Battalion ? I presume you based your Richard Sharpe story on the Kincaid books, but I wondered if you had checked out the others as well. Best Regards Len Williams

Hi Bernard, I have all but finished Azincourt and I am really enjoying it. Just a few questions relating to it. You don't seem to overly indulge the character's feelings in this or in many of your books (Uhtred apart perhaps). For example and not to give away the story but when Michael Hook gets into a spot of bother you don't allow Nick to express his feelings too much. It's like you don't allow him to dwell on it too much but force him to get on with it. Is this because of pacing or just your style or at that time and place feelings were a luxury??

Also I think you don't use sentences with the "as" construct too much. For example something like- "How are you today?" he said, as he began slicing the bread. I'm just wondering is it a case that it's simply not in your writing style to use it or is it perceived that such a sentence construct is considered weak English? Regards Willie

Dear Mr Cornwell, I am currently living in Honiara, Solomon Islands in service of the Australian Government. Given the lack of the usual social outlets in Honiara, I am now around two-thirds through the Sharpe's series and enjoying the read immensely. I have also recently finished Azincourt which I found to be equally enthralling. (I am a former Army officer and history of student so your books have enabled me to re-visit the adventures of my past!) I must confess however that I am now thinking that your most valued piece is your advice on writing included on the website. I am about to finish the first unit of a Masters in Communication (Professional Writing) and have been champing at the bit to actually start researching and writing a novel, unfortunately I cannot do both at once. I have a few ideas in mind already for a novel, although self doubt has yet not permitted me to start along that path. Do you have any advice on the merits or otherwise of post graduate qualifications for an aspiring novelist? I know I will never be the most technically proficient writer, so maybe I should save the cash and just crack on with the book? I understand your first books to have been completed whilst working as a correspondent? How did you manage to dedicate yourself to writing after a day at work? Thank you for the hours of enjoyment you have provided, I look forward to my next foray into Sharpe's world via 'Sharpe's Honour'! Kind regards, Paul Henry

Mr. Cornwell, in the book Sharpe's Triumph Major Stokes of the armoury claims his name is Horace. Then in Sharpe's Fortress he introduces himself as John. Is his name Horace John Stokes? Or did I miss some information in the book? Thank you.

Jordan

I too am a rabid fan of yours. On occasion, though, I disagree with some of your opinions. One in particular concerns the usefulness of longbowmen in Napoleonic times. By 1800 metallurgy had improved to the point where arrow-proof armour, especially at long distances was available. Roman legions were constantly effective against archers(Carrhae was an exception. Crassus basically had his legions stand in place waiting for the Parthians to run out of arrows. They didn't.) The legions were protected by their large plywood shields. Archers are highly vulnerable to charges where their opponents have an opportunity to charge them. At Crecy, Azincourt and Poitiers etc the French literally got bogged down in mud. Three times running. Something about them trying the same old way and we showed them out in the same old way. I believe archers would have been good in a surprise or harassing role, but wouldn't have held their own in a line of battle. Thanks, and do love your books

Don Conrad

Dear Mr Cornwell, Like everybody else that contacts you, I am a huge fan of all of your books and enjoy your writing style. How many hours a day do you write and do you follow a pattern during each book? Not plot - I mean; 'It's June, I'll write 400 pages by November. Shove it in a drawer for a month. Then edit, revise and submit by February - kind of pattern? Do you finish a book with a larger manuscript and then whittle down? Or do you create a stick figure and then add flesh? Thank you for your time and again, for the wonderful people, places and events you plant in our minds. Kindest Regards Alan.

Dear Mr Cornwell - having read and much enjoyed many of your novels (the only ones i have not finished reading to date are the Sharpe series, although i love the character and have watched the films many times over) its obvious we share the same respect for the role of the Longbowmen in the battle line. My question is - since the french obviously recognised the threat of the yew bow, why didn't they begin training young peasants as longbowmen? the fighting between England France went on for centuries, so why did they continue to rely on crossbowmen instead? Best Wishes, Matthew Williams

I am a big fan of the Sharpe series and will soon be travelling to Spain for a couple of weeks. I was hoping that you might be able to tell me some good sights to visit that are in the series, such as Badajoz, Salamanca, etc. Thanks

Ben Fuller

I am a History student coming to my final year of A-level study. I have been a fan of your books since I was 13 and they helped shape my style of writing. I wish to go on and study military history and later take a career in it. I was going to take War Studies at Salford University, but first I would like to know if the War Studies degree is well respected amoungst Historians and also if you would recommend any course. I really want to turn my intense passion for this subject into a "job" (I use the quotation marks to distinguish it from most jobs which are dull.) Thank you for you time, Sean Winters.