Four Historical Fiction Writing Hacks

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 »

Cozy to Cold-Blooded: Crime Authors Caught Up in Real Crimes

Recently in this column, I discussed real authors featured as fictional sleuths. But I discovered that real authors are sometimes real sleuths as well. Some seek to fight injustice and others become swept up in a mystery or crime. Some find the answers, some don’t, and some are the mystery rather than the sleuth. But… Read more »

Creating Authentic Details: Medicine

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 »

Identifying Themes in Our Poems

When people learn that I’m a poet, two questions usually come up. If someone hasn’t read my work before, they might ask, “What are your poems about?” On the other hand, if someone is familiar with my poetry or has read a particular piece, they sometimes want to know, “Why did you write that poem?”… Read more »