Sprinkled throughout Myfanwy Cook‘s book, Historical Fiction Writing, are numerous examples of useful resources for writers. Many relate to British history, however, every country has similar resources available online.
www.britishmuseum.org If you can’t personally visit, the British Museum offers a treasure trove of online information.
www.castlesgardensireland.com Dedicated to houses, castles and gardens of Ireland.
www.scotland.com/castles All sorts of information on Scottish castles.
www.heritagecanada.org Information and photos about heritage homes and buildings across Canada
Weapons and warfare: a series of sites providing information on warfare across the ages. www.royalarmouries.org; www.nares.org.uk; www.histrenact.co.uk; www.eventplan.co.uk; www.thesealedknot.org.uk; www.nps.gov/spar; www.aaftankmuseum.com; www.tankmuseum.org
www.vikingeskibsmuseet.dk Information on viking long boats and maritime archaeology.
www.royalnavalmuseum.org Dedicated to the history of Britain’s Royal Navy including search facilities for ship records and photos.
www.lategreatliners.com Transatlantic passenger ships of the 20th century.
www.aafs.org American Academy of Forensic Sciences – AAFS represents physicians, attorneys, dentists, toxicologists, psychiatrists, engineers and educators, in the application of science to the law
www.sportsidioms.com Contains over 275 idioms derived from terms used in the sports and games played in the United States.
www.archive.org The Internet Archive offers permanent access for researchers, historians, scholars, people with disabilities, and the general public to historical collections that exist in digital format
www.fashionmuseum.co.uk The Fashion Museum holds a world-class collection of contemporary and historic dress. Many photos available on their site.
www.nrm.org.uk National Railway Museum site
www.swindon.gov.uk/steam Museum of the Great Western Railway
www.talyllyn.co.uk The Talyllyn Railway is a historic narrow-gauge steam railway, set in the beautiful Mid-Wales countryside.
www.penhaligons.com The site of Penhalgions, a London perfumer established in 1870. Every fragrance is described in detail providing writers with useful ways to describe scents.
www.historicalnovelsociety.org The Historical Novel Society’s website contains over 5000 book reviews and many feature articles related to historical fiction.
www.npg.org.uk Britain’s national portrait gallery. An incredible collection of portraits available online to use for researching people, costumes, fashion and accessories. Gallery mission: to promote through the medium of portraits the appreciation and understanding of the men and women who have made and are making British history and culture. For example, here’s a collection of paintings of Elizabeth I along with extensive explanation.
As mentioned in my first post on Historical Fiction Writing: A Practical Guide and Toolkit, Myfanwy Cook’s book has lots of advice to offer writers of this genre.
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M.K. Tod writes historical fiction and blogs about all aspects of the genre at A Writer of History. Her latest novel, LIES TOLD IN SILENCE is set in WWI France and is available in paperback from Amazon and in e-book formats from Amazon, Nook, Kobo, Google Play and iTunes. Her debut novel, UNRAVELLED: Two wars. Two affairs. One marriage. is available in paperback from Amazon (US, Canada and elsewhere), and in e-book formats from Amazon, Nook, Kobo, Google Play and on iTunes.
Mary can be contacted on Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads.
