It occurred to me as I was
writing this post, and thinking about what graphic I could include, that a very
appropriate illustration would be one typically assigned to fairy tales: Once
upon a time . . .
That’s what we try to do.
Write realistically about a very long time ago. Separating mystery from
history. Usually that means picking a major person, event, and/or era to
capture with our words. But there are alternatives to the major-person pick.
A very successful historical
fiction strategy is to pick a minor or secondary character who was around a
great person or an historic event, or better still, both! Then expand that
story by creating a what-might-have been story as historically accurately as
possible.
America’s First Daughter by Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie is one example.
Thomas Jefferson’s daughter is known about but not known by most of us. Perfect
for showing Jefferson and creating a fascinating peek into his world from
someone close to him. Based on thousands of letters, they recreated the
Jeffersonian world.
Another example is Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker (Jennifer
Chiaverini), an actual personage that we know something about, who shares her
thoughts about the President, his wife, and their marriage. This black woman
wrote about Mrs. Lincoln but she was ridiculed and marginalized and discounted.
Chiaverini took that tidbit and spun her engrossing tale.
Dava Sobol had little to
work with when she researched and created Galileo’s
Daughter. She used 124 surviving letters from Sister Maria Celeste, a
cloistered nun and the oldest of Galileo’s three illegitimate children, to her
father. Galileo had enormous respect for her and described her as “a woman of
excellent mind, singular goodness, and tenderly attached to me.”
See how taking a small role
person connected to a larger life or event can give new life to biographical
treatment of a well-known person? These different points of view can illuminate
in ways that direct biography cannot.
Now imagine the tale you
could spin by taking the point of view of the first Native American that
Columbus encountered when he landed in what is now the Bahamas. How astonishing
to see the large ships and people dressed so differently. Enemies? Friends? The
conversations in the villages must have been fascinating.
Or you might take the point
of view of Juan de la Cosa, Columbus’s cartographer. He would have a lot of
insight into Columbus’s motivations, understandings of the natives, and actions
he took. Juan kept a diary. What if there were a secret, lost one you wrote
about.
Imagine how those stories
could be very different.
When you find yourself
intrigued by a person or an event in history. Look around that world and latch
onto a small character that you could create a book around. Being “into” the
era or person already will give you a leg up when you create that world from a
different perspective.
Facebook:
Historical Fiction authors, looking for a unique take on a person, era, or
event you are intrigued by? Check out an idea from Caroline Adams-Author. http://bit.ly/2Fyp6iv
Twitter:
#HistoricalFiction #writers, looking for a unique take on a person, era, or
event you are intrigued by? Check out an idea from @CarolineAdams_9 http://bit.ly/2Fyp6iv
