Victoria Williamson describes her process and inspiration behind writing UK children’s books about Anglo-Saxon history, alongside the team at Twinkl Originals.
In this latest interview, avid readers can catch up with Victoria Williamson. An author and former elementary school teacher based in the UK, she’s published a range of books, including middle-grade titles with Twinkl Originals.
Through Iron Eyes is her latest historical story for Twinkl. Today, she caught up with us, sharing the inspiration behind her new book. Set around 616-617 AD, it covers the Anglo-Saxon era.
“I hope these books encourage readers to find out more about their own local history, and even to try writing stories based on some of their local legends and famous figures!”
Who are you, and what do you do?
Williamson: “My name’s Victoria, and I write Key Stage 2 books (ages 7-11) for Twinkl Originals.
“When I’m not writing Twinkl books, I spend my time writing books for other publishers, and visiting schools, libraries and literary festivals to talk about books, so my whole world revolves around stories!”
What was your motivation behind your latest book, Through Iron Eyes?
Williamson: “This book intends to help readers understand a little bit more about life in England during the Anglo-Saxon period. I’m very interested in archaeology. I try to go on archaeological digs as often as possible.”
Pictured: Victoria Williamson at an archaeological dig site at Sutton Hoo.
“While I was in the early stages of researching this book, the BBC Time Team were digging at Sutton Hoo in Suffolk. I realised that since the Sutton Hoo helmet was one of the most famous historical items from the Anglo-Saxon period, it would be a great object to include in our Twinkl story.”
“Historians still aren’t one hundred percent sure who was buried at Sutton Hoo. Many think the most likely candidate is King Rædwald. He probably owned the Sutton Hoo helmet that was buried at the site.”
“This was why I chose to write a story about King Rædwald and his son Eorpwald. I wanted to weave in as much real history as I could with the made-up parts of the story.”
Do you have a favourite character in the book?
Williamson: “I think Eorpwald is my favourite character because he’s the one who learns the most and changes the most throughout the book, and he’s therefore got the most interesting character arc.”
“I like characters that start out being a bit frightened and unsure of themselves, but who develop courage and confidence through their experiences. I think this is more realistic than characters who are brave and self-assured right from chapter one.”
“I don’t think I would have been very brave if I‘d been told I had to join an army and march off to battle when I was Eorpwald’s age!”
What do you think it is about this book that helps it stand out?
Williamson: “There are a number of things about Through Iron Eyes which help this book stand out. The first is its connection to Sutton Hoo, which has been in the news a lot recently due to the archaeological digs there.”
“The amazing Sutton Hoo helmet and sword have really captured people’s imaginations. Having the helmet play a central role in this story makes it unique.”
What inspired you to write?
Williamson: “Books were a huge part of my childhood.”
“Some of my earliest memories involved my parents taking me and my brothers to the local library, which felt to me like a magical place full of doorways to exciting new worlds.”
Pictured: Handwritten stories and childhood drawings by Victoria Williamson.
“My mother read to us constantly. She read picture books like Ivor the Engine and The Velveteen Rabbit to us when we were small. As we got older, she read adventure series like The Secret Seven. We later moved on to more grown-up stories like Watership Down, The Hobbit, and even The Lord of the Rings.”
“My father did something equally important to encourage us to read. That was to read voraciously himself. He’d talk to us about books regularly. We learned from him that fiction was not just something to entertain children. Reading was a serious business that could be a lifelong pleasure.”
“It was that childhood immersion in the world of books and the culture of reading that laid the foundations for my own career as an author – I think most authors would also say their love of writing was triggered first and foremost by a love of reading.”
Is there a genre you prefer when writing?
Williamson: “Growing up, I read books in all sorts of genres – mystery and adventure stories like The Three Investigators series, fantasy stories like The Chronicles of Narnia, stories about magic like The Worst Witch, science fiction stories like The Tripods trilogy, and contemporary-issue stories like Jaqueline Wilson’s books.”
“This meant that when I got older, I liked to write lots of different types of books too. I’ve written everything from science fiction to ghost stories. I like being able to make up my own worlds for fantasy stories, and it’s fun to imagine what the future would be like for science fiction stories.”
“If I had to pick a favourite genre, though, it would be historical fiction. I love how exploring the past helps us to learn more about ourselves as human beings. The genre also helps us to understand important events taking place in the present by connecting them to events from long ago.”
Were all the Anglo-Saxon names confusing at times?
Williamson: “Yes! I found myself getting Rædwald and Rægenhere mixed up. When I went back to check my first draft, I found a number of places where I’d written ‘Edwin’ instead of ‘Eorpwald’!”
“Luckily Twinkl has a team of great editors. Rachel and Sally did a great job of tidying up those mistakes!”
What’s the overall message of the book?
Williamson: “There are some important themes in this book, including the importance of friendship and loyalty, and the need to be brave in the face of difficult circumstances.”
“Other themes readers can explore are sibling rivalry, how keeping secrets can cause problems, and the fact that even though life doesn’t always turn out quite the way we hope or expect, we should try to stay positive and keep doing our best.”
“Because it’s based on real historical events, this isn’t a book with a ‘happy ever after’ ending. Hopefully readers will see that Eorpwald still has reasons to keep trying to make life better for himself and the people of his village despite events not turning out the way he hoped.”
What are two books you’d recommend, including one from your own bookshelf?
Williamson: “This is the second historical fiction book I’ve written with the Twinkl team – the first one was The Tudor Poison Plot. It’s all about two children in the 1530s turning detective to work out who tried to poison King Henry VIII. That was a lot of fun to write.”
“I got to research information from the Tudor period like the fact that urine was used to wash and bleach clothes, and that the punishment for trying to poison a king was being boiled alive!”
“I’ve written historical fiction for other publishers too. My novel The Whistlers in the Dark is set in Roman Scotland at the Antonine Wall.”
“I like to blend folklore (and a bit of magic) into my historical novels. This book is one for fans of the Roman period, as well as for readers who want to find out more about village life in the late Scottish Iron Age.”
“Local history played a big part in inspiring me. As a child, our town’s museum put on special activity days to teach children about Iron-Age crafts like spinning and weaving. There were school projects about the Antonine Wall which ran through our town as well.”
“In later years, I was lucky enough to be able to visit some of the fascinating stone circles in Scotland, including the ones on Orkney and on the Isle of Arran.”
Pictured: Author, Victoria Williamson exploring a stone circle in Scotland.
“These captured my imagination. A stone circle plays a big part in the story of The Whistlers in the Dark.”
“I hope these books encourage readers to find out more about their own local history, and even to try writing stories based on some of their local legends and famous figures!”
About Through Iron Eyes by Victoria Williamson
Prince Eorpwald struggles with the weight of his family’s expectations. Being the youngest son of King Raedwald of Rendlesham, he is supposed to be brave and noble. In truth, he would rather be playing with his friend, Mattie, than learning how to use a sword.
One day, Eorpwald enters the king’s quarters and is compelled to try on the magnificent Woden helmet – a remarkable piece of metalwork made for his father. He sees a vision of what is to come.
Panicked by the prophecy, Eorpwald desperately tries to warn his father before it’s too late.
Will he be able to change the future he’s seen through iron eyes?
Written by Victoria Williamson, and the Twinkl Originals Team. You can learn more about Victoria Williamson by visiting her author page and you can visit the Twinkl Originals by checking out their e-books.
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