Hello and welcome! I’m Roman. Writing and ancient history have been two of my favorite hobbies since childhood. I remember when I received a textbook in second grade that had a picture of King Tut on the cover. I became drawn to it and quickly checked out as many books about Ancient Egypt as I could find. It’s a passion that has yet to settle down. Most of my writing has some kind of ancient inspiration, and my current work-in-progress is a novel set in the ancient world.
My fourth grade teacher, Mrs. Zimmer, was among my first editors and the journal she gave me to record my childhood stories remains one of my most prized possessions. I have a multitude of old (mostly unfinished) projects floating around my apartment and I love flipping through them for inspiration. Many of them contributed in some way to my first book, The Island of Echoes. Writing it was a 16 year journey, but I enjoyed every minute of it.
This site is a collection of interesting historical tidbits I find in my research, short stories, and reflections.
In between projects
My husband Shawn is a travel blogger and we love exploring new places together. We’re always in the middle of planning our next adventure. We live with a wonderful, affectionate, and often trouble-making ball of energy, our cat Io. When I’m not on the computer or outside, my kindle, tv, and Nespresso machine get pretty heavy use. Painting also finds its way into my schedule from time to time. I’m a supporter of animal rights, human rights, and environmentalism.
5 random facts… just because
- I still don’t know how to swim (though Shawn is trying to change that)
- I was born in Poland
- I enjoy cooking and usually make all my meals from scratch
- I never walk out of my apartment without chapstick
- Roman Gitlarz, you ask? That was my name before marriage. My old paintings are signed with it and my book was originally published under it. Don’t get confused, we are one and the same.