Griffin Brady writes about Poland’s seventeenth-century Winged Hussars.
Do you listen to music while you write or edit? If so, what’s on your writing playlist?
Absolutely. I’ve always found music to be an invaluable tool when I need to focus, going back to the days of school homework. Utter quiet causes my mind to meander!
My Spotify playlist contains 3600 songs (263 hours) that span a wide range of music. The one common thread is that everything is instrumental; I find lyrics distract me.
I pick tunes that evoke different emotions, and what I listen to depends upon what I’m writing. For instance, if I’m in the midst of a battle scene, I might have the soundtrack from “Pirates of the Caribbean,” or “Gladiator” playing in the background. “Sky World” by Two Steps from Hell is another favorite for armed conflict. For something with an old-world sound and heart-tugging melodies, I might switch to “In the Heart of the Sea” or “The Last of the Mohicans” or “Romeo and Juliet.” David Lanz and Paul Speer have some especially moving pieces on their “Desert Vision” album as well.
Besides movie soundtracks, I listen to New Age, Celtic, and lots and lots of Jazz—some smooth and some funky. These tracks are great for everyday music to have on in the background. Favorite artists include Chris Standring, Fattburger, Gregg Karukas, Brian Culbertson, Skinny Hightower, and so, so many more.
I’m always on the hunt for new tunes to add. Lately, I’ve discovered Green Noise when I need a melodious tune. The Green Noise playlist is made up of different tracks of rain and running water. Very soothing and extremely helpful for concentration.
What period of history do you wish you knew more about?
I would love to hop in a time machine and travel back to central Europe in the 10th century, especially in Poland when it was made up of tribes. I’d love to be there for its unification as one state in the early 11th century. I’ve read accounts here and there that spark my curiosity, but it’s hard to find a wealth of written records that give that look into the everyman’s daily life.
One area of interest that especially captivates my interest is the Varangian Guard, which existed from the 10th through the 14th centuries. Like the Polish Winged Hussars, I’m drawn to this elite fighting force that sprang from the area and became an important part of the Byzantine army. How fascinating it would have been to be a soldier or connected to one that lived in that world. Imagine witnessing the intrigues of the time through his eyes!
Do you collect anything? If so, what, why, and for how long?
I collect Irish Belleek, which is a fine, lustrous porcelain from Fermanagh County in Ireland. Though it’s still being manufactured today, I favor the pieces from the late 19th century through the early 20th century because of the type of clay they used back then to produce the pottery.
I’ve been collecting since the late1970s, and though I’ve never counted them, my bulging Belleek cabinet currently holds hundreds of pieces. Yikes!
My husband and I plan to travel to Ireland in the coming years. I’m anxious to learn about my lineage in Enniskillin (also in Fermanagh County), and we’ll definitely visit Belleek Pottery, Ltd.
Do you have another artistic outlet in addition to your writing? Do you sew? Paint? Draw? Knit? Dance? Garden?
I do. I enjoy quilting (and am finishing up a King-sized one for my youngest son now) and gardening. I also dabble in various crafts and interior decorating. There’s something about putting together colors—whether it’s for home interiors or fabrics for a quilt—that fills my well in a huge way. I used to knit, crochet, embroider, and cross-stitch, but my hands complain a bit too much these days if I try to do that fine work.
What brings you great joy as a writer?
What brings me the greatest joy is hearing a reader say they were able to leave their world behind for a while and get lost in the tale. I love knowing that once in a while, I can transport someone to a different place. I had one reader share with me that she was going through chemotherapy, and that reading my books during her treatments helped her get through them. Her words brought tears to my eyes, and I’ve treasured them since. What an honor it is to be able to come into people’s worlds and whisk them off to a different place and time.
Griffin Brady is an award-winning historical fiction author with a passion for 17th-century Poland. Specializing in the vivid history of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, her works explore the era’s rich tapestry of political maneuvering, military exploits, and cultural clashes set against the backdrop of the era’s most iconic cavalry force, the Winged Hussars.
Her debut novel, The Heart of a Hussar, was a finalist for the 2021 Chaucer Early Historical Fiction Award, while her third novel, The Hussar’s Duty, captured first place in the 2023 version of this prestigious award.
Born in Japan to a Pan Am executive with an acute case of wanderlust, she grew up in Vietnam and Singapore. Her father’s passion for travel took the family on many adventures around the globe and gave her a firsthand view of other cultures that she appreciates to this day.
The proud mother of three grown sons, she now lives in Colorado with her husband, where she enjoys gardening, quilting, and ice hockey. She is also an award-winning bestselling romance author who writes under the pen name G.K. Brady.
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Award-winning author Rebecca D’Harlingue writes about seventeenth-century women forging a different path. Her debut novel, The Lines Between Us, won an Independent Press Award and a CIBA Chaucer Award. Her second novel, The Map Colorist, won a Literary Titan Award and a Firebird Book Award.
Last of the Mohicans is an all time favorite and constantly on while I write <3 mayhaps Spotify is a safer mode of music than you tube 😉