Back to blogging (and thinking big)

Hi there — and welcome (back) to my blog.

If you’ve followed me for a while, you might remember that I used to blog regularly. The topics ranged widely: sometimes about the Ancient Near East, sometimes about something completely different that happened to spark my interest. It was fun and informal, but I’ll admit it never quite found a steady rhythm. I eventually drifted away from it, especially as other writing projects started taking over.

Fast-forward a few years, and I’ve written two books in Dutch about the ancient world — Het wereldrijk van het Tweestromenland and Alle wegen leiden naar Babel — and I’m currently working on a third. That third book is a bit different: for the first time, I’m combining historical reconstruction with fictional elements. It’s set in Babylon, in the tense final months before Cyrus the Great conquered the city, and it’s my way of trying to imagine what it must have felt like to live in a time of political collapse, religious uncertainty, and imperial propaganda. So far, it’s been one of the most rewarding (and challenging) projects I’ve worked on.

But while writing books has brought me a lot, it has also made one thing very clear: writing is lonely. It’s slow, it’s solitary, and by the time a book comes out, I’m often already neck-deep in the next idea. I miss the immediacy of dialogue — the joy of sharing questions, doubts, discoveries, and curiosities as they come up. I miss having a place to explore half-formed thoughts, and to hear what others think in return.

That’s why I’ve decided to return to blogging. But this time, with a clearer sense of what I want to use it for.

What I’ve been working on

Besides the book, I recently wrote a research proposal for a PhD project at the VU Amsterdam, titled International Relations in the Near East during the Neo-Assyrian Period (c. 1000–609 BCE). In it, I argue that to truly understand the rise and fall of the Neo-Assyrian Empire — the first “true empire” in world history — we need to look beyond Assyria itself. Most studies treat Assyria as the only real actor on the stage, with its neighbours playing minor, reactive roles. But what if we took those neighbours seriously?

Using a theoretical framework called realist constructivism (from the field of International Relations), I proposed to systematically analyse the complex, shifting relationships between Assyria and the many polities surrounding it: Egypt, Urartu, Babylonia, Elam, Phrygia, Levantine city-states, tribal coalitions, and client kingdoms like Judah and Tyre. These weren’t just background noise. They were rivals, partners, thorns in the side. They had their own perceptions, ambitions, and strategies. And those dynamics, I believe, hold the key to explaining why Assyria rose, how it expanded, and why it eventually collapsed.

The proposal was rejected, which is never fun, but not uncommon. More importantly, it forced me to ask myself: what kind of work do I really want to do? And for whom?

A bridge between two worlds

That question kept leading me to the same answer: I want to write for both academics and a broader audience. I want to share historical insights that aren’t locked behind jargon or paywalls. I want to build bridges between disciplines, between past and present, and between the ivory tower and the curious reader.

Blogging, I’ve realized, is one of the best tools I have for that.

So here’s the plan: I’ll use this space to share updates on my research and writing, short essays on ancient history (especially the Assyrian and Babylonian worlds), and thoughts about storytelling and historical method. I’ll also write about what it means to be working in this strange space between academic scholarship and public engagement — and about the (sometimes awkward) joys of trying to do both.

Why in English?

Most of my books and earlier blogs were in Dutch, and most of my current audience is Dutch as well. So why switch to English?

Because I’m thinking big.

One of my long-term goals is to reach an international readership. Not just for my books, but for my broader ideas about history, power, identity, and how we tell stories about the past. And I want international readers who stumble upon this blog — whether they’re looking for information on Assyrian diplomacy or Babylonian priesthood — to be able to read what they find. Writing in English opens that door.

What you can expect

This won’t be a tightly scheduled newsletter. I won’t post every Monday at 11am. But I will try to write regularly: short, readable posts that invite conversation. If you’re interested in:

• the history of the ancient Near East (with a human lens)
• how empires rise and fall
• how historians reconstruct the past
• or what it’s like to straddle the line between academic research and public storytelling

…then you’re in the right place.

And if you just enjoy thoughtful historical writing, I hope you’ll feel welcome here too — whether you know me personally, have read one of my books, or just landed here by accident.

Thanks for reading. Let’s see where this goes.

Cheers,
Daan