Writing Historical Fiction Books You Can Dig

If you dig history, have I got a genre for you! Try writing historical fiction books. Not only will you have the luxury of learning about the past, you'll be able to share parts of that in your novel in a way that won't bore your readers to tears! (Unlike many history texts.)

What makes this genre different? The past, of course. And within that past - oh what choices you have!


Cave Man or Renaissance Man?

The first thing you'll need to decide if you're writing historical fiction books is what era you want to use as your setting.

Yup, history's going to dictate a lot of the setting. (Isn't that convenient!) You can add details to make it your own particular place, but if you're writing about history, you do have to stick to a few rules of the epoch.

So, do cave men (or women) excite you? All that hair? All those hunting stories? All those extinct critters to hunt?

No? How about a medieval tale? It can be dark (it was called the dark ages, after all), or you can be unique and make it light. Or even funny.

Want a little more en-light-enment? How about the Renaissance?

Actually, one of my favorite things to do when I write historical fiction is to research lesser-known cultures; the Incas and Aztecs, for instance. Now there's a culture that would make great stories because I'm totally unfamiliar with it.

U.S. history fascinates me, too (being a U.S. citizen and inundated with U.S. history in school). Now that I'm past school age, I've found many more interesting things out about our past by reading historical fiction.

The 1800s is one of my favorite eras. Did you know that people in "polite society" never mentioned the word "leg"? They said "limb" instead. Those are the kinds of facts that will lend authenticity to your novel, so be sure to dig deep.


Fictional Archeology

When digging for facts, feel free to read what others have written about the era you're using for your novel. Other historical fiction books may make great inspiration for your own novels. Just don't plagiarize (steal other's words). It's not nice, and you will get caught eventually.

Use history books, fiction writing books aimed at the era you're depicting, the internet or your grandmother's recollections to find facts and ideas. A distant relative of mine wrote about being captured twice by Native American tribes in Michigan. I've read his account several times to get the ideas rolling for a book about the area and the time period.

Dig deep, when you go looking for authentic details. If you don't, the history-patrol will catch you in a gaff. And believe me, there's always someone out there who knows more (or better, so they think) than you do. So research carefully, too.


Real History

As with any other genre, part of the point is to make us think this place you're creating is real. Like realistic fiction, though, you better change some of the details so you don't accidentally accuse a famous historic figure of improprieties that may not have occurred.

But, you argue, historical fiction books are real, because they're set in history! Not necessarily. If your details are sloppy (your heroine of that 1850s saga referred to her legs as legs!!), your readers will have the same jolt back into reality that makes them stop reading.

No, the characters aren't real (most of them), even if the place is - or was. But they have to seem like they belong. So, unless your heroine above is a brash woman, she'll say "limbs" not legs.

As for using historical people, do so with care. Yes, it's great to have such background to populate your novel, but don't turn those historical figures into something they weren't. Keep their parts to a minimum. Unless you're writing their biography. In which case, that's not fiction.

No matter what era you choose for writing your historical fiction books, have fun with it. Isn't that why you write novels?