Most often, the questions that I get from readers and writers are about my process of writing historical fiction. Why did I choose the time periods that I did for the story? How did I do the research for four different timelines? Now, fully immersed in the research for my third historical fantasy novel, I’ve… Read more »
Full disclosure: the impetus for this article came from my own research about medicine. I was having fun because I was finally getting to use Bald’s eyesalve in my story – though I’m not so sure the character was enjoying it quite as much as I was. Bald’s eyesalve (from a 10th-century medical text) is… Read more »
Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Nathan Makaryk. Nathan is the author of Nottingham, which deconstructs the mythology of Robin Hood in a realistic historical context. Nathan is a playwright, theater-owner, director, stage combat choreographer, and comedian living in Southern California. Nottingham was based on his critically-acclaimed original play The Legend of Robin Hood…. Read more »
Hello, readers! I’m so excited to share with you my interview with Finola Austin, an historical fiction author who just published her debut novel in early August 2020. Finola and I connected at the Writer’s Digest Conference in 2018 and I’ve eagerly cheered her querying and publishing successes. Finola has some fantastic tips for writers,… Read more »
During an interview for the promotion for my most recent book, it dawned on me we have never actually discussed, in this column, the relationships between “pure” historical fiction and the adjacencies that might be either sub-genres or just tangentially related. The interviewer asked how historical fantasy differs from historical fiction – and answering that… Read more »
It’s probably fair to say that the number of us actually living our 2020 plan is vanishingly small. It was to have been my year of geographical expansion – a self-organized book tour to signings and festivals around the country. What’s happened instead is a geographical contraction to the four walls of my house and… Read more »
Over the past ten years, historical fiction has become more relevant to readers. As authors, we want to write fiction that helps readers understand their own lives, here and now. Perhaps we also would like to offer readers a visit to another time, a visit that can show how the past has shaped our present… Read more »
Hey there word nerds! Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Pamela Taylor. Pamela brings her love of history to the art of storytelling. An avid reader of historical fact and fiction, she finds the past offers rich sources for character, ambiance, and plot that allow readers to escape into a world totally unlike their… Read more »
Mark your calendars for August 6th. That’s when Alison Weir’s newest historical fiction novel – Katheryn Howard: The Tainted Queen – will be available in bookshops and online. Better still, preorder it now and you’ll be among the first to have it. Though some describe Weir’s non-fiction as “popular” history (she even uses the term… Read more »
What our characters eat depends on when and where they lived, their position in society, and, to some extent, what they were doing. So getting the food details right is one way we can fully immerse readers in our story. In the space of this article, I can’t begin to cover global evolution of foodstuffs… Read more »
