Writing the Historical Romance Part 3

Historical writers tend to love history and are often lured off the research track by fascinating historical tidbits. Frequently, the lure isn’t germane to the story being written. Which is why I find writing some type of outline or synopsis a great help once I’ve gained a feel for the historical period. This does not have to be a polished, submission level outline/synopsis. This is for your eyes only and can be as sloppy as you want.

Probably the most important first step is establishing a time line. Why read about what happened in 1858 when your story takes place in 1812? Listing the basic elements of your story is another important step. In my November 19, 2019 blog I write about the essential story ingredients such as character, motivation, conflict, goals, etc. You can be as thorough here as you want. This is for your eyes only and can be as vague or detailed as you like. It’s easy to expand a word with a question mark into a sentence which eventually becomes a paragraph

and then morphs into a scene.

Having established the basics will help keep you on track as you continue to research, while also hopefully writing the actual story.

Remember when I said the bibliography at the back of every nonfiction history book is your most valuable resource?

I said that because the bibliography opens the door to the specific. In order to write the general overview of the period, the author pulls together information from many sources and lists them in the bibliography. Scan the bibliography of every resource you use, because nuggets of historical gold are found there.

Let’s return to Stealing Destiny. My initial research gave me a good idea of what was happening in the years preceding and following 1866. Now I needed to begin not only researching specific details but also writing a first draft.

The story centers around a horse so I decided to move the story to Tennessee where horse breeding is important. Since I wanted my heroine to travel to New York after the war to retrieve her horse, I knew she had to be a resourceful person and decided to make her a Confederate spy. I wanted my hero to have a reason to be separated from his unit when he commandeered the horse, and decided to make him a mapmaker for the Union army.

Now I’m moving into specific areas of research: horse breeding in Tennessee, spying during the Civil War, cartography, Tennessee during the war, and life in central New York state. I’ve found it useful to read autobiographies or biographies of people who lived during the period. My research for this novel netted me a biography of Stonewall Jackson’s cartographer and gave me an intimate look at the life of a mapmaker during a war.

At this early point in writing, I try to maintain a good balance between research and writing. While you research, always keep writing. Be aware it is easy to get bogged down in research. If you hit a snag in a scene and need more detailed information such as what type of hat your heroine is wearing, mark the place with asterisks and a note to look it up later, and then write around it. Computers make it easy to go back and add additional information.

Writing the Historical Romance: Part 2

Inspiration for a historical story can be triggered by a multitude of sources. Be it a sentence in a book, a personal experience, a dream, a podcast–the list is endless for source material. Today’s writer of historical can tap into a wide variety of autobiographies and biographies, historical nonfiction, and print or online magazines. Period films, movies, and documentaries are another favorite source. You never know what nugget of information will become the trigger for a story.

If you enjoy history, inspiration never runs dry.

The idea for my first published book, Stealing Destiny (aka Tennessee Waltz) came from an item I ran across while reading about the Civil War. A Yankee officer had commandeered a horse from a woman in Virginia. After the war he wrote to her that the horse survived the war and was doing well. I thought the woman in Virginia, one of the most fought over states in the war, needed that horse more than he did. I decided to send my heroine after her horse.

With a time period, three characters (and yes, the horse was a central character), and motivation, I began my research. I prefer to go from the general to the specific. I like to get a general feel for the time period before zooming in on specific details. To obtain an overview, I like to read a general history that spans at least twenty years of my target time period. Ten or so years before the story begins as well as ten or more years after it ends. College textbooks are an excellent source because I can’t think of any historical period that some college professor hasn’t written about.

For example, my first two novels are set in post war 1866. I found Reconstruction: America’s Unfinished Revolution 1863 to 1877 an excellent source for this time period. Written by the prize winning author Eric Foner, Ph.D., who specializes in writing books about the Civil War and Reconstruction.

General history books about different time periods are available in the history collections of most public libraries. Other sources for getting a general feel for a time period are the popular “everyday in the life of” type books. I used the Writer’s Digest Books, Everyday Life During the Civil War by Michael J. Varhola as well as Everyday Life in the 1800s by Mark McCutcheon to help flesh out the story. Keep in mind the bibliography at the back of every nonfiction history book is a valuable resource as you narrow your focus.

Don’t forget to check out the children’s section of the library. Books written for younger readers offer a good spring board into unfamiliar topics. I also love the Eyewitness Visual Dictionary series published by Kindersley Publishing. From Dinosaurs to Climate Change, these books offer easy to read but detailed coverage of over 100 topics. Ships and Sailing provided me with valuable information about steamboats for Stealing Destiny.

The Internet is a wonderful source for today’s historical researcher, but use it with caution. Its greatest drawback is the frequent lack of a bibliography which makes validating the information difficult. History buff turned web site manager doesn’t always equal historical accuracy. Plus, there’s always the problem of a site disappearing into cyberspace. Treat the Internet as yet another resource, not the only one.

This initial research helps anchor me in the time period and gives me fodder for bringing the story to life. It also triggers ideas for scenes in the story. To avoid being overwhelmed with scene possibilities and to keep my research organized, I like to use an outline or narrative synopsis.

Before you faint at the idea of writing an outline or narrative synopsis at this point (sloppy is fine because it’s for your eyes only), think of it as a tool to help focus your research. Rather than going off on unnecessary historical tangents, an outline helps you concentrate your research on the historical facts you need to write this particular story.

In the next blog, we’ll look at how to focus your research while balancing your story writing with research.

P.S. By the way, you might enjoy my August 2020 blog, Title Control: Coming up with a Title for Your Story in which I share how traditional publishers sometimes ignore story content and assign a title willy nilly. As happened to me when the publisher came up with the title for my first book Tennessee Waltz.

Writing the Historical Romance: Part 1

“Never write a historical novel as your first book.” I read this piece of writing advice in my first how-to-write fiction book. Youth and an undergraduate degree in history made me discard the advice. I spent the next two years writing a 900 page tome about Roman Britain set in 60 A. D.

Gladiator it was not. 

By the time, I wrote “The End,” the advice made sense. A novice historical romance writer is giving herself two difficult new skills to master: the craft of writing and the creation of a different time period. 

The beginning writer of a contemporary story worries only about learning the craft of writing, because she can draw upon a store of shared contemporary images when she creates her setting. For example, the word “McDonald’s” puts the reader in a fast-food restaurant replete with smells. 

Life isn’t as simple for the writer of historical novels. You don’t have this store of contemporary images and if your story is set before 1827, you can’t use the word restaurant. 

How do I know this? I  checked my trusty Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary, an excellent source for when a word first entered our vocabulary. English Through the Ages by William Brohaugh is another useful addition to your library if you want to know if your 16th century hero can say “sandwich”. 

Still anxious to tackle your first historical romance? Of course, you are. If you weren’t passionate about writing and history, you wouldn’t be reading this essay. But before we delve into researching the historical romance, here are some general guidelines to keep in mind. 

 

Whether your story is about Viking warriors or Regency rogues, you must enter that world in order to bring your reader into it. The world you create must be historically accurate because your readers know their history. Make too many historical mistakes in your writing and you will lose readers. 

On the other hand, too much history can cost you readers, too. Romance may come second in the category description of historical romance, but the romance should always come first. Remember, your story is about the relationship between the hero and heroine. The history provides the context in which your hero and heroine develop their relationship.  

Another challenge for the historical romance writer is to keep characters true to their time while offering the reader a strong and independent heroine. Today’s writers of historical romance walk a fine line between historical accuracy and heroines that appeal 

to modern readers. This challenge can be turned into an asset if you use the social mores of the past as added conflict for the characters, especially the heroine. Good research will keep both your reader and heroine rooted in the time period no matter how sassy your heroine is. 

I feel very fortunate that Jo Beverly, one of Regency’s most famous authors, helped me figure out a key plot element for my Regency Butterfly Bride. Jo was famous for her attention to historical detail and I was ecstatic when she volunteered to help me figure out how my heroine could legally end her marriage. We worked through various scenarios until we hit upon one that stayed true to the historical period.

A good story plus good research is the key to a good historical romance, but where do you start?  

 

A Story of Flashbacks

Flashbacks are events that happened before your primary story began. You insert them in the scene in such a way as to flesh out the story, being careful not to slow the pace of the story, lose the reader’s interest, or create confusion. 

I recently read a novel set in World War II Paris. The book chronicles the lives of two women during the Nazi occupation of Paris. It is told almost completely in flashbacks. I guess they’re flashbacks since there’s no real timeline.

The story begins in 1943, but the subsequent chapters bounce between 1939 and 1945 (when the Allies free Paris from Nazi rule). Not only does the story bounce around in time, it bounces between the two heroines. 

Does this type of story telling slow the flow of the story? Does it lose reader’s interest? Does it create confusion.

Honestly, I’d have to say yes to all three. 

Still, many readers enjoyed the story and it has received good reviews. Some readers didn’t stick with it and voiced their dislike of the structure.

Here’s the real question. Did writing the story with a bouncing timeline make the story better? 

I don’t think so.

While each chapter heading set the date and location, there was always momentary confusion as I tried to orient myself to the year, the point of view character, and the setting. Once I accomplished that, I could usually fit the opening paragraphs into the context of the overall story. 

I realize some authors like to turn story telling on its head and try new gimmicks. And yes, I think a novel filled with flashbacks is a gimmick. The story lacked the basic structure of a story: a beginning, a middle, and an end.

Story telling is an ancient art form refined through countless centuries and countless stories. It originated eons before there was pen and paper. Early storytellers did exactly that, they told stories to their family, friends, and visitors. A good storyteller learns how to keep the audience interested. 

Through trial and error, storytellers unknowingly shaped stories around the way the human brain processes information. For example, one strong component of storytelling is its reliance on the participation of the audience, or in this case, the reader. Brain research has revealed that humans get quite caught up in stories. Most readers try and guess what comes next. And a good story uses twists and turns to keep the reader guessing. Listening to or reading well-written stories also enhance our critical thinking skills.

The Paris occupation story isn’t told in the accepted story format and it makes it difficult for the reader to participate in the story. We know this isn’t an alternate history story and we know the Nazis will be defeated at the end. As written, we don’t get a chance to anticipate how the heroines will react to the various events or guess what might happen next because the next chapter might well be set two years earlier than the one you just read.

You may wonder why I finished this book. I admit, I wasn’t sure I was going to read all of it. What kept me going was the author’s historical research. She did a fine job of putting the reader in occupied Paris. As a history buff I enjoyed that aspect of her novel. So, I guess I connected with her story via the setting. On the other hand, the lack of story structure makes me wary of reading any other book by her.

Print Dictionary: A Useful Addition to a Writer’s Library

Sometimes, we don’t know the exact word we want so we look it up online. While online dictionaries are a great resource, I’ve noticed they sometimes offer the briefest of definitions. Not so long ago, I was reading a book that used the word recognizance when the writer meant reconnaissance. I’m not sure if the writer didn’t know the meaning of the two words, or if an editor changed it and the author didn’t notice the change, or if they were both unaware. 

Recognizance and reconnaissance both stem from a French word “reconoissance" which means recognition, but they have completely different meanings. Recognizance has to do with the court system. When someone is arrested, a judge may are may not set a bond. If no bond is set, the person is released on his or her own recognizance. Basically, the judge has decided you are trustworthy and will appear in court when called. There will be a penalty if you don't keep your word and appear in court, but the judge believes you will. This word dates back to the 14th century so it's been around a long time.

The word reconnaissance, on the other hand, doesn't show up in the English vocabulary until 1810. This is the time frame of the Napoleonic wars which makes sense because
reconnaissance originally referred to a military survey to gain information about the enemy. It can also mean gathering information.

Reign in or Rein in?

I’ve frequently seen “reign in” used to when the writer meant “rein in.” The verb “reign” means to hold royal office, be a monarch, or maybe hold as much power as a monarch. A character cannot “reign in his emotions.” You would in essence be saying, “George held royal office in his emotions.”

The correct word phrase is “rein in” his temper because a rein is one of the leather straps attached to a horse’s bridle and used by the rider to control the horse. To stop a horse, the rider pulls on the reins, thus “reining in” the horse. If you want your character to hide or control his emotions, you would write, “George reined in his emotions.”

Why a Print Dictionary?

It never hurts to research the meaning of a word in a reliable print dictionary, especially if you're unsure of the correct usage. A reliable dictionary will give you extensive background on a word, when it entered the English language, examples of how it is used, and all the various meanings of a word. The English language is highly adaptable and there are words used every day that didn’t exist 20 years ago. Or they had a completely different meaning.

The only cure I know for expanding your vocabulary is to read, read, read! Need I say, all kinds of stories? Just be sure they are well-written. Embrace the English language, or whatever language you use when writing your stories.