Forged over 2000 years ago, when Rome was still a republic, a simple gold ring was inscribed with the name and symbol of Fortuna, capricious goddess of fate. From the seven hills of Ancient Rome to the streets of modern day New York, the ring passes from hand to hand, through the centuries, shaping destinies and unveiling secrets.
When my writers’ meetup (once a month over Zoom, bring the beverage of your choice) decided to put together an anthology there were two things that were important: the stories should be linked in some way, and the project should benefit a charity that promoted reading.
The Reading Agency is our ideal partner in this, a charity that promotes reading for pleasure at all stages of life. I mostly take reading for granted and can’t imagine a life in which I don’t read every day.
But as I went through The Reading Agency’s website, I realised that there is so much more to reading. Just consider the following:
Proven power of reading
19% of readers say that reading stops them from feeling lonely. This is backed up by a study analysing social connectedness which found that reading books significantly reduces feelings of loneliness for people aged 18-64.
Participation in shared reading groups is linked to enhanced relaxation, calmness, concentration, quality of life, confidence and self-esteem, as well as feelings of shared community and common purpose.
Higher literacy skills are associated with a range of positive societal benefits, including having a stronger sense of belonging to society and being more likely to trust others.
Studies have found that reading for pleasure enhances empathy, understanding of the self, and the ability to understand one’s own and others’ identities.
The Reading Agency
As for the link between the stories, we always knew it would be historical, as most of us are writers of historical fiction. I can’t remember which of us came up with the idea of the ring (it was me), nor who thought of the brilliant idea that the ring should have a representation of the goddess Fortuna (not me), but it worked from the start. Alistair Forrest and I had an arm wrestle over which of us would write the first story, and the ten writers committed quickly.
I collected the stories and checked that the ring’s internal history was consistent with what we had written. We knew a talented and kind-hearted illustrator, Ian Bristow, and he immediately volunteered his time and artistry. Group member Robert Bordas not only contributed a story but volunteered to do the formatting.
The Reading Agency wrote our foreword, and book blogger Lynsey Adams has very kindly organized a blog tour for us. The result is that, as a project, The Ring has cost nothing to produce. After Amazon takes its cut, everything we make will go to The Reading Agency.
Just as the project was nearing the end, I came across this announcement from the Museum of History and Archaeology in Constanta, Romania, which I follow on Facebook. This year, February’s “Find of the month” was a small gold ring with an engraving of the goddess Fortuna…I decided that this was a good omen!
Has it taken a lot of work? Yes. But if people buy the book and think about what The Reading Agency does for us all, it will be worth it.
Fiona Forsyth
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