Philosopher, Prophetess, Peacemaker: The Story of Diotima

In addition to working on Mila, I've found another heroine that history has ignored. Diotima was a student of Socrates in the Golden Age of Athens. Not only did she delay a plague for ten years, she inspired Plato's theories on love. History cannot decide if she was real or fictional, but I decided for myself that Diotima is real, and deserves to have her story told. Enjoy my pitch below. Editors, it will come your way soon.

I’m excited to present my Adult Historical Fantasy, THE GIFT OF DIOTIMA, complete at 96,000 words, an exploration of the legend of the prophetess Diotima, a student of Socrates in the Golden Age of Athens. In this suspenseful tale, the feminist retelling of Greek history in Ithaca by Claire North meets haunting narration and emotion of Circe by Madeline Miller.

Diotima is three things: prophetess, peacemaker, prisoner.

Born into the cage created for her mother, Diotima serves Pericles and the Council, sharing visions the gods send her to the great Athenian General, allowing him to maintain peace—and rule—over the Delian League. Heavy with the knowledge the gods impart, focused on the wisdom the great philosophers teach her, Diotima navigates the complex democratic arena within the four walls of a palace she is not allowed to leave. When the Spartans come to invade, she sees a thin path to peace between their nations, one that involves inviting King Pleistoanax and his Spartan guard to Athens to treat for peace.

But when the enemy arrives, the interest of the Spartan General Teris brings warmth into the cold life her captors created for her. Having worked tirelessly to understand what she knows, Teris shows her how to feel—and freedom might just feel good enough to convince her to change the course of history forever.