In an article for Writer’s Digest, Janie Chang asked six writers of historical fiction for their tips on research and storytelling. Some of their advice includes:
I tend to research off and on for about six months, reading widely to obtain an overview of the historical period, then digging deeper to understand specific lives and moments. There’s always more research along the way because it’s impossible to know in advance what other details the story demands. Was Chanel No. 5 available in 1918? During which year was the Shanghai Hospital for Women and Children established? – Erika Robuck
I look at a historical event, and I ask ‘What were the women doing?’ Because the answer is almost always ‘More than you think!’ Women’s deeds are rarely front and center in the historical record, but they’re there—you just have to go hunting around the edges, in the nooks and crannies. – Kate Quinn
Even when you have a solid outline for your novel, be flexible. It’s practically guaranteed that some unexpected tidbit will shove your plot sideways—usually for the better. This happened with my third novel, which is set in 1937, when dozens of Chinese universities evacuated their campuses to get away from invading Japanese forces. It was a story I’d been wanting to write because the evacuation of Chinese universities was an event almost unknown to Western readers. But while skimming memoirs by the alumni of a university, I came across a totally matter-of-fact mention about how those students walked 1,000 miles while transporting a priceless library of ancient books. My original synopsis went out the window as I investigated this sizable tidbit, altering plot and themes, not to mention the novel’s title, which became The Library of Legends. – Janie Chang
