ANIMATED EDITION: Amazon Women Warriors, Scythian Women, and the Music of Ancient Languages—SOUND ON!
Plus a creative writing prompt at the end.
I don’t usually start with news about me and AKMARAL, but this month has been a big one, starting with a great review in Publishers Weekly timed perfectly for Valentine’s Day. (It’s lovely to be loved.) A week later, I found out that I won a grant from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. I've been applying on and off for years, but never got anything but a kind rejection. And this grant is especially thrilling because it's for AKMARAL.
I’ve always wondered if the reason I was overlooked was because I write historical fiction. Most “genre fiction”—mysteries, thrillers, sci-fi, fantasy, romance, and yes, historical fiction—is looked down upon by the literary establishment. And the big literary awards rarely go to these categories. But recently many well-respected authors have turned their craft toward historical fiction. Lauren Groff’s Matrix, The Fraud by Zadie Smith, and one of my favorites, Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell, are great examples. In fact, three of the five novels nominated for the 2023 National Book Award were historical; and Trust by Hernan Diaz won the Pulitzer Prize. While I can only dream of such lofty recognition, perhaps this new respect for a genre that demands so much, including intense, meticulous research, is one reason why this grant finally came my way. Thank you!
Cover re-reveal and a little fun animation.
Here’s an animated version of AKMARAL accompanied by some wonderful quotes. Pre-order, please! It really makes a difference.
Now, on to the good stuff.
Did the Amazons really exist?
Animation based on THE AMAZONS by Adrienne Mayor on TED-Ed
This great short video gives an accurate and entertaining overview of who the Amazons really were and how they are connected to the Scythians. The research to back it up is thanks to Adrienne Mayor, scholar and author of The Amazons: Lives and Legends of Warrior Women Across the Ancient World. And, thanks to my author-friends Marina Budhos and Marc Aronson, I’ve been lucky to connect directly with her about AKMARAL. As far as the animation, it’s wildly fun, though I’m not entirely sure about those inconveniently abundant thighs.
Heavy Metal Scythian Women
Heavy Metal is definitely not my thing, but even if you’re not into the music, the animation and narrative of this music video by the band Sanhedrin is fabulous. The story is based on various references to Amazons from Greek mythology. And hey, in this one, you don’t have to have disproportionate physical attributes to be a powerful woman. Fantastic!
Join me on my book tour! Register in advance for any of my upcoming events, including the official book launch on May 9 in Millburn, NJ, co-hosted by The Writers Circle and the Millburn Public Library.
The Music of Ancient Languages
which is also the Creative Writing Prompt this month
My husband and I were just comparing the different pronunciations that we grew up with. He hails from Texas and I from Massachusetts, and though he dropped his accent (He prefers to call it “regionalisms.”) decades ago at acting school, there are still a few things he says with a minimal twang. Meanwhile, I wouldn’t be caught saying “ant” when discussing my mother’s sisters if you paid me. And our sons who grew up in suburban New Jersey picked up a slang in high school that is completely different from some of my students who live only minutes away.
Language is like music. It is unique to each culture, each community, each social group. Each language has its own rhythm and tone. And over time, language evolves, not just by revising the dictionary every year, but with new pronunciations, grammar, contractions, syntax, and more.
In this video and several others found in this article from My Modern Met, the sounds of ancient languages are reconstructed by AI, including AI-generated speakers wearing the traditional garb of each ancient culture. (I was thrilled to see Proto-Indo-European included, which is the language root of the Scythians, and so many more, including English!)
Watch and listen. Then pick the language that sounds most intriguing to you. Sink back and try to imagine what they might be saying. It doesn’t matter if you actually have the translation in front of you. (Some of the videos do, but I say ignore them.) What matters is the tone and effect of the words washing over you. Try to write down whatever they “say.” Then respond as you would in a conversation. As an added challenge, you might even take a quick dive to research a little about the culture they came from and the life that they might have lived.
You can also try this exercise by listening to world music—which is definitely “my jam,” as my boys would say. I don’t always look up the meaning of the lyrics. I prefer to feel the meaning through the music and sound. One of my favorites is this gorgeous song from the late Kenyan musician Ayub Ogada called Kothbiro:
Note that the video recitations reflect how the words were most likely pronounced. If I had a time machine, trust me, I’d love to go back and make a comparison. (That’s a good prompt, too: Imagine going back in time as an AI researcher trying to find out how accurate our technology really is!)
If you’re curious to learn more about language’s ancient roots and researchers’ attempts to reconstruct them, check out this great article.
AKMARAL will be out in just over two months!
Thank you, everyone, for your support. And to my paid subscribers, you are ANGELS!
Forthcoming from Regal House Publishing - May 7, 2024
AKMARAL: a nomad woman warrior on the ancient Asian steppes must make peace with making war
”A crackling novel focused on the lives of ancient Central Asian women warriors… Lindbergh brings her protagonist’s ancient world to life with compassionate depictions of Akmaral’s love interests and frank portrayals of the savagery around her… Admirers of Laura Shepperson’s Phaedra will be riveted.”—Publishers Weekly
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