Welcome to Jay Penner's Popular Blog!

Explore ancient sites as he imagines standing at the exact locations of famous events.

This companion reading of the harrowing mystery tells the story with maps

How many Roman emperors were there? Interesting tidbits and graphs in this informative post

Examining the realism behind the scene of Queen Cleopatra’s spectacular entry to Rome in the 1963 film

A view of Cleopatra VII Philopater's unfair portrayal by using time as a key indicator

Chronology and Timeline of Ancient Egypt | Famous Pharaohs and their Rules

How I felt about HBO's Rome and some of its depictions, including that of Cleopatra

The staggering human cost behind conquests of men like Caesar and Alexander, challenging perceptions of glory

Is there a document with the famous Cleopatra's signature? We'll discuss it

ChatGPT says I wrote the Gabriel Proxy. I never did and there is no such book

Where is Cleopatra's tomb? Look at historical sources on Cleopatra’s last resting place along with maps

What happened to the army sent to Siwa in 524 B.C. by Cambyses? Herodotus says it was lost in a sandstorm, but where?

What did ancient Greek and Roman biographers say about emperor Chandragupta Maurya? I look at actual sources

A delightful letter from an Assyrian princess to her sister-in-law, inquiring about her homework.

How long did the Trojan war take? Facts from history on major events!

Come read about my first novel writing attempt

The Netflix controversy: Cleopatra VII Philopator's ethnic origins through the lens of ancient sources

An amusing litany of royal complaints from the Kassite king Burnaburias to Pharaoh of Egypt Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV).

Did extraterrestrial powers help Pyramid builders and are our forefathers dumb

Few novels are set in Mauryan India; come on an adventure like never before.

What was it like for Spartacus? A realistic view of the Spartacus Rebellion--The third Servile War

Understand the different POVs (Points-of-View) in writing

The story of how demon king was vanquished by a clever god; from Indian mythology

How the two conqueror's names entered the lexicon

Read the story of the Atlantis Papyrus' cover.

The process of writing novels using a coding tool like VS code. Benefits and challenges

My readers love being able to virtually visit locations of the novels and get a sense of the world

In this opinion, I state my view that discipline wins over inspiration when it comes to writing

The suggested reader order and recommendation FAQ for my books

Read about my workflow to write novels and publish using Publishquickly script to convert to Word for publishing