Reading a conversation between Christina Baker Kline and Lisa Gornick about “Historical Fiction” (Poets & Writers, September-October 2019, pp. 31-37), I agreed with Kline. Excerpts: “In writing about people from different eras, I’m less interested in verisimilitude than in exploring ways that the past resembles the present.” “There comes a point for me with any kind of research when I have to let go and trust that I’ve sufficiently internalized what I need to know. It’s like taking the tea bag out of the water when it’s steeped the right amount. Then it’s time to write.” “I don’t think novelists have a responsibility to be historically accurate. Fiction writers — people who make stuff up — can do whatever they choose. I need to allow myself the freedom in my own mind for flights of fancy.” Read more of my own thoughts about writing in REFLECTIONS.
