Your Questions

Having gotten my family hooked on your Sharpe novels . . . my daughter and I were discussing who Sharpe's father might be. You'd said on this website before that one day you'd reveal who fathered Sharpe. So . . . our wager is that it might be a then 17 year old Richard Wellesley, the Duke's eldest brother. Are we CLOSE? D Holliday, Maryland

Mr. Cornwell Thank you so much for such riveting books. It is hard to establish a favourite, but I must say the Arthur Books are right up there as a favourite as are the Saxon stories. I find myself googling all the historic sites and literally spending hours reading further information. What's the chance of a visit to Australia, the antipodes, for a book signing or two :) Keep up the great work Cheers Andrew

Dear Mr Cornwell. I am a senior in high school. I need to write a research paper about a career and I chose writing. I was wondering if you could answer some questions.

1.how do you start researching a novel 2.what role do publishers play in writing 3.how long have you been an author 4. advantages, disadvantages of being an author.

Please respond. I look forward to the next chapter in the Saxon chronicles.
Matthew LaRoche

Dear Mr. Cornwell, I have recently become a big fan of yours, and am now starting the Sharpe series. Is it best to read them in order written, or in the chronological order you have posted on the web? Thanks in advance, for your time in reading and replying, Joe Doyle NY and Virginia, USA P.S.: Your Arthur Series and Sword Song Series are some of the most entertaining books I have ever read, and I've passed them on to my sons. I am of Irish, and way back, Norse descent.
Joe Doyle

Mr Cornwell, firstly, I have to thank you for the wonderful books that have given me so much pleasure over the years. Although I dearly love Sharpe, my absolute favourites are the Saxon stories. Like you, I am from 'South Essex', Caninga, to be precise, and I can remember sitting on the sea wall as an army-mad boy and trying to plan an assault up the slopes to 'Beamfleot'. As a result, and perhaps unsurprisingly, Sword Song ranks among my favourite stories. I also like to write, but have only managed a short story about WWII. The main reason for my laziness in writing is my love of reading! That leads me nicely to my questions: Do you like to read? Which author(s) do you prefer and what subjects provide you with your reading pleasure? Again, Thanks. Mark

do you plan to write any other Starbuck Chronicle novels? I would like to know what happened to Nate did he survive? was he captured? if so did he become a galvanized yankee and go west to fight the indians? what did he do at Gettysburg? Cold Harbor? Sherman's March? Just want to know. Thomas Gray

Hello there started reading your Sharpe novels a year and a bit ago. I read them all and got kind of sad getting to the end of the series after realising there was no more to read so on the rebound I met Starbuck thinking they weren't going to be as good as the Sharpe series. One word...Brilliant. You've given me an interest in the American civil war. After Starbuck I went to the Warlord chronicles which I'm currently reading. I was wanting your advice on which series of books by you I should read next?

I also want to know if or when you start the Starbuck series again will you be going through the whole civil war and if so will you be writing about the battle of the crater?

And who is your favourite author and who inspired you to write? Sorry for the long story, I think you're a brilliant author. Best regards, Nathan

I have read all of your books, most of them more than once(Sharpe/warlord/grail)very hard to put down once you start to read them. Will we ever see the warlord chronicles on film either on tv or in the cinema?
Glynn Incledon

Mr. Cornwell, Greetings from a huge fan. I have read, and just finished rereading, all of the Saxon Stories through 'Sword Song' (I have read countless others of your books, but won't go in to those here; suffice it to say that I've not been disappointed by any of your works). As an aspiring author, I do have a question about your preparation for such a series. I notice, especially in the Saxon Stories, that you reference many a scenario in an earlier work that comes to fruition in a later work. That being said, do you have the plot line written out, or mapped out, before you sit down to write a series? As an aspiring author of historical fiction (don't worry, I won't submit my manuscripts for your review, though I must admit that the thought of your endorsement on one of my yet to published works is something I dream of as I write), do you know where the entire series is headed before you sit down to write book 1? I do realize that history dictates some of your story, but, specifically, did you know Uhtred's life story before you began writing 'The Last Kingdom'? I look forward to a great many more novels in the Saxon Stories series as I believe it is your best work to date, though not to detract from your previous output. Dare I say, Uhtred is your best character, nay, the best fictional character ever written; the turmoil, personal beliefs and inward struggle of a man raised and loved by those he fights is astounding and, in an odd way, quite relatable. Thank you for a wonderful series and, please, in the name of all that is holy, continue to write the Saxon Stories for years to come. I eagerly await the next volume! Sincerely, Billy Stewart Chesapeake, VA, USA

To Bernard: Hello again, I've been watch historical flicks like kingdom of heaven and it's open my eyes to a lot of things maybe in the realm of sword & sorcery. I was wondering if you're going to write something fantasy-like? Or you might think somebody geeky has already told you the same thing Sign, Avi P.S I really like the Starbuck thing. I wish I could make something into a comic maybe. Avi Gutierrez

Dear Mr. Cornwell, our hero, Richard Sharpe has fought all over eastern Europa such as in India but do you think he may come, on day, in America ? In 1813, there was the Battle of the Châteauguay and it should be fun if, under your pen, Sharpe engage battle with the American troops. All your books are a pleasure to read. Regards, Serge Dupuis