Would you say that Irving Stone's "The Agony and the Ecstasy" is a good use of fiction in a historical setting? How about Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood," which he deemed a "Non-Fiction Novel."
I think this pretty much sums it all up. As historical novelists, I think we have a responsibility to remain true to history, but not necessarily accurate. Poetic license is to be expected fiction, but the degree with which you extend that license can also depend on the type of historical novel that you're writing.But novelists are not history teachers.
I have an idea for a novel project this summer, but it will require me to create a fictional lord with a fictional estate beside a fictional market town. Would I then be able to make this parish part of a larger factual county? And have the real king from the time with his real political problems? And use real social and cultural problems to inflict on my main character?
Thanks in advance for advice.
I have an idea for a novel project this summer, but it will require me to create a fictional lord with a fictional estate beside a fictional market town. Would I then be able to make this parish part of a larger factual county? And have the real king from the time with his real political problems? And use real social and cultural problems to inflict on my main character?
Thanks in advance for advice.
I have an idea for a novel project this summer, but it will require me to create a fictional lord with a fictional estate beside a fictional market town. Would I then be able to make this parish part of a larger factual county? And have the real king from the time with his real political problems? And use real social and cultural problems to inflict on my main character?
Thanks in advance for advice.
I have an idea for a novel project this summer, but it will require me to create a fictional lord with a fictional estate beside a fictional market town. Would I then be able to make this parish part of a larger factual county? And have the real king from the time with his real political problems? And use real social and cultural problems to inflict on my main character?
Thanks in advance for advice.
This is a historical novelist's bread and butter - finding gaps in the historical record to exploit and fill, as Ishtar'sgate said. It just happens that some periods and events have more gaps than others, allowing the author more scope to get creative
For some historical novelists, this is true, but I wouldn't say that all historical novelists do this. The novels that I write are not about trying to exploit a gap in the historical records or finding a historical event or character that hasn't been tackled in writing yet. They're about using the complexity and fascination of a specific historical time with the social and psychological ambiance of the time to create a story.