I’m Deb Houdek Rule, an author of science fiction, fantasy, and non-fiction history. I also am a publisher at Variations on a Theme publishing.
About Tudorland:
Tudorland is the land of the Tudors of England in all its various incarnations, historical, theoretical, and fictional.
I first entered Tudorland at the age of eleven, when the movie Anne of the Thousand Days finally made it to our rural Minnesota town. This movie changed my world by opening up my realm of knowledge to this astounding view of the past and the people in it. I was thrilled, enchanted, excited and – yes – bitter.
Why was I bitter? I was bitter that no one had seen fit to let me know this glorious view of history existed. Why had it been hidden? Oh, we had “history” taught in our school, though I use even the word “taught” loosely. As I entered seventh grade world history class, I found a horrific approach to teaching that involved meticulously copying down a formal outline of events as read out by the ‘teacher’. Everyone who thinks history a dull and tedious recitation of dates and events must have had something similar inflicted upon them. Had that been my only view of history I may never have known what truly exists in the brilliant world of the past.
Fortunately, Anne of the Thousand Days rescued me from that bleak and gray view of history and let me step into Tudorland. To be sure, the realm of the Tudors is no longer my only historical interest. I am a U.S. Civil War researcher with published research credentials and documentary appearances. I’m also keenly interested in the Norse Viking era in Norway and Iceland. All eras of history hold an interest, as all eras intertwine and affect each other, but my first love has always been the era of the Tudors.
Since seeing that beloved movie so long ago, I have gathered all the books and movies I could upon the subject of the Tudors and their era. I have not done original scholarship on the era as there are too many others already doing so, but I do keep up with the current research and revelations. You will find book reviews and recommendations on this site, plus movie and television program reviews. Having traveled to many of the Tudor sites, I will also share my impressions, insights, and photographs. For my own writing, I have stepped into the fictional realm of Tudorland.
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