Expert: James Edward Kelley - 1/23/2012

Question
I have a few questions regarding the genre Historical Fiction:
1. How would you define historical fiction? What is it,and what is it not?
2. Are there rules about dealing with or changing historical events, and what type of balance should there be between the historical facts and fiction?
3. With what things can an author take artistic liberty?
4. Do people remeber history better when told with stories? If so, why?
5. What is the importance of historical fiction in our society today?
6. Do you have any sugestions or tips for a beginning historical fiction author?
Thank you for your help.

Answer
Hi, Katelynnd.

Historical fiction is a fictional story that takes place in real surroundings during a real era of history.  Tolstoy's "War and Peace" falls under the category of historical fiction because it takes place in Russia during the Napoleonic Wars, yet the main characters and their actions and interactions that take place during the novel are fictional.  Historical fiction is not a 100% retelling of actual events taking place during a particular time period.  The actual historical events in the novel(s) you want to write must not be altered.  It is good to create a novel of historical fiction with the fictional characters in mind first interacting with the historical realities surrounding them in a fictional way without altering the actual historical realities of the era being dealt with.  The author of historical fiction can take liberty with the made up characters themselves but not with the historically real characters and events they interact with and in respectively.  I believe that people do remember history better when told in a story format.  That is why a lot of historical textbooks are written in a narrative style rather than just a list of events, dates and other data.  Also, taken from the example of the greatest teacher who ever lived, Jesus always taught in parables.  The lessons he taught his followers were always couched in stories.  On the Eastern side of things, the Baghavad-gita is actually a narrative poem that teaches the tenets of certain Eastern Philosophies.  You will find that relgions have their own texts which are usually full of moral lessons couched in morality tales.  History itself is better learned through a narrative format, yes.  Historical fiction is vital in our society, today.  It is a way people can learn the lessons that our global past has to tell us.  I wish more people would read historical fiction (and read in general)for this very reason.  A lot of the messes that are created by us humans in the present are caused by lack of insight into the examples of events and people in the past.  History only repeats itself when the people involved forget the history that came before them.  One tip I have for beginning historical fiction authors is to start work on a novel that has to do with something near and dear to their hearts.  It's always good to start writing something that means a lot to you.  You will be spending a lot of time writing so you should start by delving into something that means something to you.  Something that you won't get tired of easily.  Let's say, you are into architecture.  You might want to write a historical novel about the building of St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City.  The St. Patrick's Cathedral is considered a wonder of the architectural world so its construction might be something that piques your interest.

I hope this helps.  If you have any questions that will clarify things, please do ask and I will get back to you ASAP.  Sorry for the delay of my answer to your current question.  I'll try to be quicker in my future responses if I can.

James