About A Writer of History
A Writer of History began in 2012 with the question: Why do people read historical fiction? Over the years it has evolved into a wide-ranging source of information and insights into the reading and writing of historical fiction. Along the way and to my surprise and delight, it has earned several awards.
Here you will find insights from top authors, reader survey results, an analysis of successful historical fiction, a series on what I call the seven elements of historical fiction, research tips and techniques, musings on being a writer, and thoughts on the books I read.
The content has been enriched through the contributions of the many authors, bloggers and readers who have guest-posted or added their thoughts through interviews.
About the Reader Surveys
Beyond writing fiction, I’ve conducted four reader surveys and a special survey on WWI reading. These surveys have attracted more than 5,000 participants from around the world. Survey insights seem to have created great interest amongst writers and readers along with ideas on how to shape and market my stories.
Results of each survey can be found here in Surveys.
If you're a first-time visitor you might be interested in...
- 7 Elements of Historical Fiction
- Top Ten Ingredients of Favourite Historical Fiction
- Historical Fiction – She Says, He Says
- Historical Fiction Would Be Better If …
- 10 Ways Social Readers are Changing the Reading Landscape
- Four Dimensions of Researching WWI (I’ve written three novels featuring WWI)
- Interviews with Sharon Kay Penman, Elizabeth Chadwick, Edward Rutherfurd, Ben Kane
- Reflections on a career of writing historical fiction with Margaret George
I sincerely hope you’ll enjoy A Writer of History and will add your comments to enrich the conversation.
