Getting Started with Historical Fiction

From research to the page with bestselling historical novelist Emma Darwin

Art by Mariam Chagelishvili

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Heya, welcome to The Forever Workshop. First time? Read this. Back again? Here’s what we’ve got for you today:

A workshop for:

Historical fiction writers who want to find richer story material in their research.

Your instructor:

Emma Darwin - Sunday Times bestselling historical novelist and author of This Itch of Writing

Takeaways:

• A practical guide to unearthing nuggets of inspiration from your research

• A sharper eye for the unexpected details you can develop into scenes

• Ways to develop characters from historical figures without losing your own voice

• How to know when you’ve found something worth following — and when to let it go

• A new habit of noticing you can apply to books, museums, podcasts, and beyond

By the end of this workshop you'll be better equipped to discover the rich seams of material that can be mined from research — and ready to dig into history for new story ideas!

Where to Start with Historical Fiction

We historical fictioneers talk endlessly about doing research to get specific things in our stories right. But when you open a history book or set out to explore a historical site, there’s so much more to be found and worked with, not just for your current story but for future projects. What’s more, because you didn’t find such material in the obvious places, it can bring a real originality and energy to your storytelling.

Whether you have lots of delicious historical sources and material but don’t know what to do with them, you’re on the hunt for new inspiration for your next story, or you don’t feel confident about digging into a history book, this is the workshop for you.

We’ll start by seeing just how many useful, inspiring nuggets we can find in a short extract from a non-fiction history book. We’ll then explore the different ways these nuggets could be useful to a writer, and you’ll then try your hand at growing some of your own writing from what you’ve found.