Voice in historical fiction

Historical fiction needs an authentic voice For the readers, it’s connecting with a main character that arrests their interest when thrown into an unfamiliar time. For instance, apart from historians, who can imagine life as a soldier in Russia’s wars, the distances and climate and how their families fared without[…]

Read More »

Believability depends on accuracy

Why careful research is vital I’m writing my 12th book, but the one I’ve felt most attached to is Book 3 of my historical trilogy set in 1937-1951, A Relative Invasion. I called Book 3 “Impact” – indicating the dramatic outcome of the two main characters’ lives to date. Whereas[…]

Read More »

On writing a trilogy.

Advice for writers typically suggests that a series works best for indies. Does it make sense for the first three in the series to form a trilogy? Not always… A trilogy suggests an entity like the three-movement sonata in music, or the triptych in art. The form must be complete,[…]

Read More »
Tags:

In Writing: hidden undercurrent

  Writers’ undercurrents: in the novel you’ve just read — or in your own writing? Sometimes it’s only after finishing a novel that you become aware of its undercurrent.  For instance, in Dead Water (Simon Ings) the fast paced plot involves the protagonist in a deadly international chase after an evil[…]

Read More »
Tags: