Maktoub: That which is already written
Is the future written in the stars? Is there truth in fate, maktoub, destiny?
Author: Hannah
Another award for Song of the Nile!
I’m so delighted to have won this Pinnacle Book Achievement Award.
A visual tour of my novels
From Egypt to Greece, Spain to Italy, I feature so many beautiful settings in my novels.
Tea at the Ritz: A timeless tradition
If you visit London, don’t miss a spot of afternoon tea at the Ritz…
The date tree of Egypt: ‘Bread of the desert’
The date tree of Egypt is an essential staple for the nomads of the desert.
Poetry Week: ‘Travel’ by Robert Louis Stevenson
A call to travel, and to experience cultures: ‘I should like to rise and go…’
Song of the Nile’s first award!
I’m thrilled that Song of the Nile has won the Romance category in the 2021 American Fiction Awards!
Poetry Week: Love poems of Ancient Egypt
Welcome to Poetry Week on my blog! Here’s an article on passionate poems from the ancient civilisation of Egypt.
Tomb robbing in Ancient Egypt
Egyptian artefact smuggling is a theme in my novel Song of the Nile, and of course it originates in the age-old crime of tomb robbing.
Taking inspiration from historic nurses
In Song of the Nile, my heroine, Aida, is a nurse who has been deeply touched by the stories of great nurses of previous wars.
On men reading books by women
Research has shown that men are less keen to read books by women. Why? And is this a helpful attitude?
5 triumphs of Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was a great civilisation, and we have the Ancient Egyptians to thank for many advances that are foundation stones of our modern world.
Recipe: Dolma/mahshy
One of my favourite Middle Eastern recipes is dolma, which is very popular in Egypt.
Abu Simbel, monument to the pharaoh Rameses II
In writing articles about my homeland, Egypt, how could I miss out the stunning temples of Abu Simbel at Aswan?
Ancient Egyptian scribes
To be a scribe in Ancient Egypt was to live a life of knowledge, respect and wealth…
Unrest in Egypt: Sewing the seeds for revolution
My novel Song of the Nile is set in 1940s Egypt, after the World War. This was a time of escapism and making hay while the sun shone. But a revolution was looming…
10 Ancient Egyptian inventions we use today
A civilisation of great advances, the legacy of the Ancient Egyptians is evident in many aspects of our lives today.
Will absence make the heart grow fonder?
In Song of the Nile, the hero and heroine have a past. Once friends, they were torn apart by a betrayal several years before. So, will absence have made the heart grow fonder – or harder?
Ibn Tulun Mosque, Cairo
The Mosque of Ibn Tulun is an iconic and famous building in Cairo – one of the oldest and best-preserved mosques in Egypt.
Akhenaten and Nefertiti
Akhenaten was a pharaoh with a vision: to shake up the Ancient Egyptian religion so that there was only one god. He and his queen Nefertiti are among the most famous royal Egyptians.
Never too late to pursue a dream? On literary late bloomers
In our modern world it seems to me that there is a great and powerful need to hurry. If you have a dream, there is no time to waste, we are told: go out there right now and seize hold of your dream! But this is not the only path to a dream; and neither, perhaps, is it the best one.
The story of Isis and Osiris
Osiris and Isis were very important deities in Ancient Egyptian religion, and their story has endured to this day.
Girl meets boy: writing the pivotal first meeting in a love story
‘The first meeting of a hero and heroine in a novel: will it be dramatic, or tender, or dreamy, or antagonistic? Whatever the scenario, one ingredient will be key: chemistry…’
Hatshepsut: The female king of Egypt
The second female pharaoh of Egypt, Hatshepsut of the 18th Dynasty was a formidable woman who ruled the country not as a queen, but as a king.
Ancient Egyptian festivals
Festivals were an important part of life in Ancient Egypt, and there were plenty of them!
Anthony and Cleopatra: an enduring love story
In a series of blog articles, I am exploring the great love stories of Ancient Egypt. First, Anthony and Cleopatra: passionate, dramatic, epic, it is one of the most enduring stories of all time.
How art inspires my writing
‘For as long as I can remember, art has fired up my imagination. I remember gazing at paintings on the wall in my childhood home for ages, dreaming up stories that would play out in the worlds inside the picture frames. When I wrote my first book, it was natural for me to turn to art for inspiration…’
Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs
Hieroglyphs – pictures to represent letters, sounds, objects and ideas – are one of the most enduring legacies of Ancient Egypt.
Ancient Egyptian art
When you think of Ancient Egypt, no doubt you think of its distinctive art: embellishments in tombs and temples, beautiful statues, pottery and papyrus.
Love in the pandemic: falling in love, staying in love
Throughout the pandemic, I have had love on my mind. Love for my family, of course, but also romantic love, about which I write in my novels. Time and again I’ve questioned: how is this difficult time affecting romance?