Jan Fields is moderator of this interview/workshop, and Web Editor of the ICL Web Site. Green shows names or usernames of people and the questions they asked of our speaker.

Jan Fields: We're glad to have you with us. Many of our Writer's Retreat visitors love historical fiction so we're looking forward to having you join us and share your wisdom on characters. I know I would be lost about how to make really believable characters from another time or place. With editors and agents hinting that historical fiction might be seeing a real boom soon...this is very timely.

Fancy: Jan, that statement makes my little heart go pitty-pat! A boom in historical fiction ? Where do I sign up? Speaking of signing up, we all want to get our work noticed, right? Anola, how do you think an editor or agent would react to an "unusual" presentation such as a novel set in Egypt in the time of the pharoahs hand delivered in the form of a roll of parchment? A book about Paul Revere delivered by a rider on horseback? I'm sure it's been tried, does it ever work?

Anola Pickett: Wow, Fancy. You're very imaginative and I'll bet your writing reflects that originality. I tend to take editors and agents at face value. If they say they want an exclusive full ms or a query with the first two chapters, I believe them. I'm not sure how you'd fare with a parchment presentation or a horse-delivered ms, but consider that most editors live in NYC. A parchment would surely raise suspicion in the city so deeply affected by 9/11 and I'm trying hard to picture Pony Express in the Big Apple. I say the best method is to have a great manuscript that will catch the fancy of an editor or agent. Good, strong writing wins out over a unique delivery methoc

wonderwegian: Should I construct a formal bibliography to have ready to send if requested for a YA historical novel? Is it standard practice to submit a documentation of your research?

Anola Pickett: I always keep track of my research sources, including interviews, travels, books, websites, films, and visits to museums. Then it's ready to go if requested. This also makes it easier to document a fact should an editor have a question about something. Sometimes publishers will list resources at the end of a book, but I think that's more common with works for adult audiences.

Dionnetales: In writing about an actual historical character, meaning this person did exist. Is it okay to add dialogue among real people in the story for action or creative liberty? It doesn't stray away from the character's true personality? This will be my first work that I will present to a publishing house.

Anola Pickett: Absolutely, as long as the dialogue is true to the historical character's personality and his/her story. Be sure, too, that the dialogue fits the times as well. Word choices that fit the time period of your book will add to the young reader's understanding of the period.

ColoradaKate: If my main character was an historical figure--let's just say Lincoln--but I'm making up a story about him, with invented events and dialogue and interactions, then that's obviously not a biography. It's historical fiction, even though the main character was a real person, right? The reason I'm confused is that it seems as if kids might read that kind of book and assume that, if Lincoln is the MC, and he's real, then the stuff that happens in the book must be true and part of history, too, even if it's shelved in fiction and not in biography. I wouldn't worry about it if Lincoln were just a minor character, someone my fictional MC interacted with somehow. But if he's the main character... ? Although I suppose it would be obviously fiction if I made him into a vampire hunter or something--oh, wait, that's been done. Oh, well. So what kind of liberties can an author take, when writing about an historical figure? Is there a line drawn somewhere?

Anola Pickett: I think the thing to do here is to make sure that your story about Lincoln has some basis in fact. For example, say you've come across a historical tidbit about Lincoln's love for cats (I notice your photo) and so you develop a story around the tidbit. The events, dialogue and interactions are all invented, but they're built around his love for felines. In a prologue or author's notes at the end, you relate the historical tidbit. Your work would be historical fiction based on truth. Does that help?

Fancy: Thank you, I was going to ask something like that. My story references Paul Revere and his "midnight ride" but 99.9% of it is fictional. The action takes place around that day, though. Do you think it would be ok to add an "epilogue" or notes at the end mentioning that the ride actually happened, and the next day began the siege of Boston and so on? It feels incomplete without it.

Jan Fields: I've read a lot of historical fiction in magazines and novels and MOST of it includes author notes specifically to help the reader sort out what is 100% accurate (and often the notes introduce more information about the time period or events too). So publishers do want the difference between what is real and what is made up to be clear to readers and they use authors notes to do that.

zebrakitchen: Also, how do we tell if a story is under the category of creative non-fiction and not strictly non-fiction?

Anola Pickett: if you're building a story around an historic event and adding characters, I would call it creative non-fiction.

Carolyn: I now have an additional question related to historic fiction vs. creative non-fiction. I am writing a story about a family of 6 children who were orphaned during the Schenectady Massacre. They family really exists, but I am making up the conversations and activities during the year before the massacre and the month or so after the massacre. Would this then be considered historical fiction or creative nonfiction. I just participated in a 4-week historical fiction writing class at our local library and some of what the instructor said there is contradicting some of this. She had said using anyone who had died at least 50 years ago was fine and that family did not need to be contacted and that it would be classified as historic fiction. But now I am wondering, is that really the case?

Anola Pickett: Your story seems to me to be historical fiction. While it's based on historic fact and people, you're fictionalizing the family's life and interactions both before and after the Massacre. This sounds as if you're first showing a typical family of that time and then how the Massacre affected those family members who survived. Contacting, or obtaining permission from, descendants of that family isn't necessary, although they might have some interesting information to share with you. If you're concerned about this, you could change the family name and in your Author's Notes explain that your story and characters are based on a real family. In writing WASATCH SUMMER, I changed the main character's name, but kept the basic nugget of her story and built from there. I'm guessing that you want to show the effect the Massacre had on those 6 children, rather than report the historic fact of the Massacre itself. In that case, you're writing historical fiction rather than creative nonfiction. I hope that helps.

zebrakitchen: What about the 50 years ago thing. Is that a marker used in writing?

Jan Fields: Ah, okay. First, this isn't necessarily something for YOU to worry about. Permissions are often handled by the publisher. And if not, they let you know what needs to be done. What you're dealing with here is mainly invasion of privacy, I think. If a person is still alive (and not a celebrity) then the law says they have a right to keep their own story private if they want. So even if the story is 50 years old, the person who lived the event has the right to keep the event private.

Jan Fields:Also, if bringing the events of recent family to light are likely to bring attention to the living family then the living family has a right to privacy -- a right to not have their family story shared.

Jan Fields: BUT "newsworthy" is also a factor in privacy. If something is considered "newsworthy" then it can be shared EVEN IF the family doesn't want it shared. That's why newspapers can tell about fires and such without asking the family. And it's why you can unearth old crime stories and such without asking family. Now, the media has tried to argue that if they want to tell the story, that automatically makes it "newsworthy" but the court hasn't quite gone along with that. Still, "newsworthy" is a determiner of a privacy suit. Still, keep in mind that someone can SUE over just about anything...we're a sue happy country in the US...but many cases aren't really likely to be won.

Jan Fields: If telling the story can be argued NOT to affect the present family -- not to draw attention to them. Then you should be okay from a privacy suit (I believe, keeping in mind that I am not a lawyer and my media law classes were longer ago than some members here have been alive).

Jan Fields: If telling the story can be argued to be newsworthy because it's tied to a clear historical newsworthy event, then you should be okay. But ultimately, it's the publisher who figures out most of this...not the writer.

wonderwegian: What do you think is the best way to show dialect without burdening the reader? My historical WIP is set in the south during 1898 (Spanish-American War) and the characters range from Irish immigrants to Buffalo Soldiers to New Englanders to actual southerners.

Anola Pickett: Wow! You've got a great mix of characters and therefore, of speech patterns. I'd say to use dialect very sparingly. Drop a word in here and there, but don't have your southerner continually saying "heah" instead of "hear," for example. Each character could have a certain turn of phrase that identifies him or her.

Fancy: My question has to do with the ages of a character in context, versus today's readers. Right now I'm working on a story for readers ages 9-12 set in 1775. My main character (Seth) is 14, and so is his best friend. I realized after doing the outline that Seth is a typical 14 year-old in today's context. Back in 1775, though, a 14 year-old would have been much "older" in some ways. He might have been out on his own and at 16 might be married and a dad. My instinct says to leave him at 14, because my readers are living in today's context, and might not be interested in a 10 year-old hero. Am I making too much of this? What do you think?

Anola Pickett: I'd say leave Seth at 14 because your target audience wants to read about a character older than themselves. I think it's good for young readers today to realize how much more responsibility young people had in the past. Seth could well be out on is own or at least responsible for helping support his family. Stick with your instinct on this.

Fancy: That makes a lot of sense - I'll leave him at 14, but let some of the differences show too. Thank you so much!

Venture: I ran across an interesting anecdote in a historical character's autobiography and am turning it into an article for a children's magazine. The story contains quotes that are, for the most part, understandable by my target age group, but I'm wondering if I can add some fictional dialogue and it still remain in the nonfiction category. Also, if the story takes place sometime in the 1820's or 30's (it's vague), how would I relate that to young readers?

Anola Pickett: First, let me give my answer about using fictional dialogue in a nonfiction article. Unless you have access to verbatim conversations, you're almost forced to fictionalize what characters would have said. This is a good thing (as Martha S. would say) because dialogue will help bring the anecdote alive for young readers. Creating dialogue to bring the event and characters alive would not take it out of the nonfiction genre. I once wrote--and had published--an account of the first passengered hot air balloon launch in Paris. I created two young boys who "ditched" school to be at the event. A tag line under the title could set the time period. Or a sentence such as, "Early in the nineteenth century, an interesting event took place in Tallahassee, Florida," would work as well.

Venture: Yes, I like dialogue because it makes the story come alive! The anecdote I am pulling from has it's own dialogue, and I didn't know if it was proper to add to it or rephrase it. The characters I'm using are not fictitious; can I still put words in their mouths?

Anola Pickett: I would think that, even though you have the exact dialogue, you can add--or subtract--from the actual words spoken. You want to keep your young reader involved in the story and editing actual dialogue might be necessary, to make the story more accessible and/or understandable to youngsters.

Ella: If I may add to this conversation, I would keep track of what is verbatim and what is artistic license. The editors will want to know and may want to stick a note in there to tell the readers what's what.

Jan Fields: Who your target market is will make a difference too. Unless it's clear in the article that you're "imagining" the possible moment, some magazines will not run "made up" dialogue -- Cobblestone, Carus, and Highlights, for instance only allows those kinds of liberties if you make it very clear that you're inviting the reader to IMAGINE the scene rather than actually showing an accurate moment in history.

SarahLee: If I want to write a story that takes place in the 1600-1700's I know that I will research clothing, food, and so forth. BUT do I HAVE to write dialouge in the tense or style used at that time? I had tried to do that, writing "thee," "thou" etc and it became very tedious and confusing. Is it possible to write a novel that takes place then and still use somewhat modern speech.

Anola Pickett: Speech patterns from the past can prove tricky, especially when writing for young readers. I think you can do without the "thee" and "thou," or perhaps one elderly person--a minister or grandparent perhaps--could use them. The time period can be conveyed through certain expressions or phrasings. There are reference books on speech and expressions of specific eras. A good example of effective speech patterns can be found in Portis' novel, TRUE GRIT. The language there is typical of the time in which it's set.

Mikki: I think it also depends upon who is doing the talking, and the time frame. In my research for my pre-Civil War novel, the only people who used the "thee" and "thou" speech patterns were the Quakers. That held true for my research in both earlier and later time periods. Since Quaker families played an important part in the novel, I used "thee", "thou" and "thine" where it was appropriate to do so, and don't feel that it should be confusing at all. If these words were an integral part of speech during your time frame, to substitute "you" and "yours" would not be an accurate representation of the way people spoke during that particular time.

Mikki: I have one entire file on nothing but the speech expressions and colloquialisms of the Southern people during the 1800s. Simply by incorporating some of those expressions into the dialogue, I could convey an accurate picture of both children and adults' language during that era.

Mikki: If you Google "speech expressions and colloquialisms 1600s" you should come up with a wide array of information. That's how I found mine.

BethC: Are there books out there that discuss speech used during various time periods? Not that I don't trust any sources, but I have heard and read many cautions about internet-based research. I would want my research to be as true as possible to the time period.

Anola Pickett: Instead of taking Google's word for your research, you can always use it to give you a list of sources (books, reviews, etc.) for what you're looking for. I have to say that I've generally found them to be reliable--especially the first few listings. They may not always be what I'm specifically looking for, but when they are, the info has checked out elsewhere. Always have at least two sources, and if they don't agree, look for a third.

Mikki: I've found that the Internet can work for you and against you. I used a lot of historical society websites for mine, as well as journals, diaries, and newspaper articles written and printed by "real" people. There is a fantastic website called "Cyndi's List" that has accurate information about almost anything you could possibly want, and more links than you can read in a whole week. I also used a Civil War site which gave me a lot of information about expressions and colloquialisms, slavery and the Underground Railroad.

Mikki: One way to check out your resources is to check those the site you're on is using. If that site gives several library or Internet resources, go to them and see what they have to say. The main "bad" sources of Internet info are all the "Wiki" sites...Wikipedia, WikiAsk, etc. But even with others that you might think are accurate, you need to make sure they are still up to date.

SarahLee: when I wanted my Indian girl to speak, I did things like having her say, "Wanishi", to which the white person simply replied, "You're welcome." I didn't want to have to type "wanishi means thank you", etc, too awkward. At other times I wrote that she motioned with her hands to say...etc, etc...(and typed the text in plain English) I don't want an Indian who just grunts. But then I wondered how the 17th century white person may have really said, "You're welcome"...see what I mean?

Anola Pickett: Your "thank you-you're welcome" sounds workable. In WASATCH SUMMER, the two girls teach each other some words, plus I explain that the Blackfeet sheltered a wounded trapper one winter and learned some English from him. After establishing a few scenes in which language is halting because of the differences, it worked--at least for me--to move into a smoother dialogue between the two and occasionally return to a mutual language lesson now and then.

Gladys1: I've been writing a Historical Fiction about Calamity Jane and there isn't much that I can find. My question would be: how far can I go with fiction about her life that isn't known? Can I make up fictional names for her brothers and sisters and other unknown facts?

Anola Pickett: Calamity Jane seems like a good subject for young readers. You say you're writing historical fiction about her. Does that mean she's the main character? How are you framing your narrative? It can be tricky to write a book of fiction about a real person because as a writer you have an obligation to portray the subject accurately and truthfully. If, on the other hand, Calamity is one character in a wider story, I think you have some leeway. If the book is about her exclusively, it seems to me you need to show her as she truly was. I'm not sure if that's a helpful answer. If not, ask me again!

MikkiS: Gladys...if you go to this site, you will find a world of information about her, a good biography plus a list of books about her at the end, as well as a couple of other websites. www.lkwdpl.org/wihohio/cana-mar.htm This site is from the Montana Historical Society Press. If the link doesn't work, put "biography of Calamity Jane" into Google, and when the list comes up, look for "Martha Jane "CalamityJane" Cannary biography. check the link below to see if it's the same one I listed here. It might help, as well as the books about her that are listed at the end of the biography.

Anola Pickett: These are great sources, Mikki. Thanks for suggesting them. Gladys, it looks as if there' more out there in the way of research about Calamity Jane than either of us realized!

Zebrakitchen: In Jan's introduction of you, she said that editors and agents are hinting that historical fiction might be seeing a real boom soon. My question is why is that? And is this a market more for schools and libraries, than the book stores?

Anola Pickett: The markets are quirky, as far as I can tell. When I first started "peddling" my manuscript I was told time after time by both agents and editors that, while they liked the story and thought the writing was strong, historical fiction was not selling. Now the tide has turned back in favor of the genre. As a former teacher, I know that historical fiction is a valuable tool in the classroom because it gives students an interesting, involving window into the past. I used it often, as do most teachers who choose literature that ties in with the history being studied. However, I don't consider this a market just for schools and libraries. If a book is well-written, it's bound to do well in bookstores as well.

Jan Fields: The market for curriculum related historical fiction is pretty consistent because of the use of it in schools, but it also means there are A LOT of books out there all tied to very specific things -- Civil War and slavery, Revolutionary War, Civil Rights, etc. But the things I've seen agents asking for are more "exotic" historical fiction with periods and locations that are brand new for readers and with strong, very active story lines. Plus, YA seems to be where they expect the boom to start and then trickle down -- which is how a lot of trends work in publishing. What is hot today in women's fiction is often hot in a year or two in YA and then another year or two in MidGrade -- each with some changes for the needs of the market.

zebrakitchen: In another post I asked a question about Creative non-Fiction. Perhaps you could explain what you know the differences to be in these three categories. I assumed Historical Fiction had to be a lot more accurate that what I am getting the feeling for here.

Anola Pickett: This is my understanding: historical fiction is a fictional story set in a specific time period and place. While the plot and characters are fictional, the setting (time and place) should be authentic. In other words, a writer places her story in a real time period and place. Creative non-fiction relates an event that actually took place in a specific time and place; then the author adds some fictional aspects--characters, dialogue, etc.--to help it become more accessible to the reader. Nonfiction is a straight reporting of an actual event. Does that help?

Jan Fields: From reading librarian mailing lists and lists specifically for those writing nonfiction, this is how many of them look at it:

Jan Fields:Historical ficton is FICTION set in a well-researched real time in history. The history is true but the story is fiction. However, historical fiction can be strongly inspired by a real story you've heard and then expanded with lots and lots of creative, made up, fiction stuff all set within the well researched mesh of historical accuracy. But you'll always keep an eye toward plot, character motivation, and all the normal demands of fiction.

Jan Fields: Creative nonfiction is NONFICTION told as if it were a story. It uses storyteller pacing, dialogue, setting but every single thing is backed up with research. It's not fiction. You don't spruce it up to make a better plot, you just expand it with well researched, careful real life details. It's just using storyteller techniques on completely researched facts -- it actually has a harder research burden than nonfiction since you have to really have deep research to be able to use storyteller techniques on a real moment of history. But none of it is just made up -- you have to have a good solid researched reason for believing every single thing actually happened that way (or darn close to exactly that way.)

Jan Fields: Nonfiction is more like a traditional article. It's reporting. It covered the facts and can be told in a lively way but it's going to SOUND like an article. You'll get less caught up in the moment because the style of telling keep you a little bit at arm's length.

SarahLee: "Nonfiction is a straight reporting of an actual event." I wrote a story on an actual event. It was rejected as "too much narration". How do you "un-narrate" :-) a completely nonfiction piece without making up dialogue that may have happened 300 years ago? (Doesn't that change it from nonfiction to fiction?) What am I missing? Thanks!

Anola Pickett: Without knowing the specifics of your article, I'll have to generalize. "Too much narration" could mean the editor wanted some description (of the place, the times, even the weather and how people dressed or what they ate), some quotes, some indication of why the event or person is important for readers to know about. Where did you get your information? Could you include a quote or two from an authority? It might be a matter of organizing of your material in a different way. I hope you didn't accept the opinion of just one editor and have sent your piece out to other publications.

Jan Fields: Anola, can you tell us a bit about how you created your historical characters? Where did the people who populate your book come from?

Anola Pickett: Sure. The main character, Hannah, is based on the girl in a true story. A friend of a friend told me about his grandmother who, at the age of 8, had to take the family herd of sheep into the Wasatch mountains in Utah for summer grazing. She did this by herself and was early on befriended by a group of Blackfeet who had their summer camp nearby. That story stayed with me and I knew that I wanted to develop it into a book. To do that, of course,I needed to come up with a family, friends, Blackfeet characters and some minor characters to give Hannah a life story and to layer the story with some subplots. So, except for the little girl who became Hannah in WASATCH SUMMER, the other characters--even her two sheep dogs--came from my imagination. The names, customs, language, etc., grew out of my research.

SarahLee: Just curious...did you need to get a note from the friend to base your story on their family story?

Anola Pickett: Actually I talked with him later by phone and he gave me permission to use the story as long as his grandmother was never identified. I've honored that request. Also the original story was only the tiny kernel that I planted to grow my novel. The character's age changed, as did her name, her town, her family, etc. The true story got me started on the journey of writing the book. The thrust of using the true story was to show how much responsibility youngsters had to shoulder to help their families survive in the 1880's.

SarahLee: I'm wondering how fictional one may go...for example. In real life an Indian maiden in 1638 named Snowflower married a Dutch settler. (there is no other public information about her) We know nothing of her previous life as an Indian and I wish to write a story about her reactions to seeing the first explorers when she was 10 yrs old. Thus my MC is real, general events are real, place is real, I even researched some of the Indian words for thank you, games she may have played, toys she may have owned, and so forth. Am I at liberty to make up a story about an event in her childhood? (I just like the name, Snowflower)

Anola Pickett: I agree with you about the name Snowflower. It's lovely! Do you know her tribal affiliation? It would be important to check with a current member of her Nation, not so much to get permission to tell her story but to make sure that all things relating to her background, customs and language are true to her native culture. In WASATCH SUMMER, the main character is befriended by a group of Blackfeet who are camping nearby. I contacted the Blackfeet in Montana, whose guidance proved invaluable. The guidance of Snowflower's people should prove invaluable to you as well.

SarahLee: There are no people left in her tribe, it died out in 1738. BUT they were part of the Algonquin, Turkey. I did check them out for customs, foods, clothing, language, etc. But there is only a single book written in 1897 in the Harvard library with a tiny amount of definitive info on this tiny tribe. I have some names from local creek beds and campsites in the area where I grew up that are named from members in their tribe, too. Most of what I have is pretty obscure, as they only numbered 170 people total at their height in 1634.

Anola Pickett: You've found a fascinating group to write about. I've never heard of the Algonquin, Turkey, and I'm sure you have a unique and valuable story to share with young readers. If you can, spend as much time as possible in those creek beds and campsites and see if something comes to you. I don't mean to sound "spooky," but sometimes being in a place can give you some direction about how to proceed. Have you checked out the American Indian Museum that's part of the Smithsonian? There's a slim chance they might have some info you could use.

SarahLee: They are a tribe that is just a tiny part of that group. :-) I'll have to use my memory and family photos as I live on the other side of the country now, wish I could visit! We used to camp there for two weeks every summer and visit most weekends. My father gave me a "nature name" based on that tribe when I was a child, "Birdsong"...my name is Robin Carol...but I loved Snowflower so much that I wanted to use that. It's a tribe that spent many hours in "Storytelling" and their stories were handed down via legends, not much written, so I hope to bring them to life.

Laurie: hank you for giving us your time. I have several questions about historical fiction. For starters, if your fictional main character appears in a scene with a real historical character (in my case, this is a celebrity from the 1960s who is still alive), how do you go about portraying the actions and dialogue of the real person without misrepresenting them?

Anola Pickett: Well, Laurie, I think this depends on many things. First, make sure that the scene you're depicting could really have happened and that the time and place are such that the celebrity would have been there. Research your celebrity at the time of your book so that appearance, dress, etc. are consistent with the times. As long as you're not portraying the person in a scandalous, negative way, I think you'll be all right. You might check Delia Howard's novel, GHOST GIRL, in which President and Mrs. Hoover appear. Another source would be Gennifer Choldenko's two books about Alcatraz, AL CAPONE DOES MY SHIRTS and AL CAPONE SHINES MY SHOES. Besides finding scenes with Al Capone, you'll also find valuable information at the end about how Choldenko went about her research. Good luck!

ZebraKitchen: Even if she is not "portraying the person in a scandalous, negative way" wouldn't she have to ask the permission of the person who is still alive to put them in her book? I mean, especially since she is using a fictional character to have dialogue with the real person?

Anola Pickett: Ah! I had the same thought as I was going to sleep last night. I agree that, if the person is still alive, asking permission would probably make sense.

Jan Fields: TECHNICALLY, if the person is truly a "celebrity" I believe you don't need permission as long as the person is a minor element in the book (in other words, you don't look like you're trading on the person's celebrity to sell the book). I know a writer who put her main character into a dinner party full of celebrities (folks who are big names today). She had the celebrities talking and acting in ways that are consistent with how they are portrayed in the media but she definitely did not ask permission (and the portrayals were FAR from nice either). The book was published by a major publisher who seemed fine with that. Ultimately, it's a question the publisher will resolve.

Jan Fields: And I'm pretty sure "NO MORE DEAD DOGS" has a celebrity (Julia Roberts, I think) write a little to one of the kids near the end of the book...it's been a long while since I read the book. Anyway, a running theme of the book was about one of the characters who idolized Julia Roberts and wrote her letters...seems like she got an answer near the end. I don't think they asked permission for that...they wouldn't have needed to. The "rules" for celebrities are different.

KatieC: In another post you mentioned that visiting the site of where the story took place is important. What if we can't do that? Is it unadvised to write about it, then? For example, I have started a YA historical novel. It is set in 16th century England. I can in no way travel to England anytime soon So should I save this story for another day?

Anola Pickett: Katie, I think that there's so much source material about England during this time period that you can write your YA without actually going to England. There are so many films--both travel and fiction--that can give you a feel for the setting. The English countryside is lovely and hasn't changed much over the years. Soak up as much as you can about the time and place of your story and then work on creating characters that fit there. Envision an author's tour through England when your book is published!

KatieC: Thank you, and boy do I like the sound of that!

Ella: I am planning a story based on a group of moundbuilder Indians. I have enough of information on the setting, and their activites (which provide the plot), but since they were prehistoric (in the sense that they didn't write anything down) I'm not sure know how to shape the dialogue. My inclination is to borrow heavily from the style of the Native Americans that came after them, but that feels cliched. Any advice?

Anola Pickett: Ella, I live in a part of the country where the moundbuilders lived. One of the problems in researching them, as you pointed out, is that they are a prehistoric people. The American Indians that we know today had no knowledge of the moundbuilders, as the moundbuilders had died out before the present-day Indians arrived. I'd suggest looking into archaelogists' and/or anthropoligists' studies on the moundbuilders.

Anola Pickett: I just had this thought for you. Jean Auel has written many books about prehistoric times (CLAN OF THE SAVE BEAR, etc.) Her children's series, EARTH'S CHILDREN, might be of some help to you. I haven't read them but they're about the same period as her adult books and are, apparently, doing well.

Ella: I have visited a couple of moundbuilder sites, and was planning on going back to one and talking with the staff, but Smoonee one of your links reminded me there are some other sites nearish me that I haven't visited, so I'm thinking there's a field trip in my future. Anola, I will definitely check out EARTH'S CHILDREN. I get such inspiration from other writers. Thanks for the suggestion! And research, yes, more research. It occurs to me that the problem may solve itself once I have a high enough understanding of my subject.

Anola Pickett:I really believe in the value of going to a place where the original story took place. A sense of place can be a tremendous help to a writer. So go for it! Visiting the sites of the mounds, especially if there are any interpretive centers attached can be an invaluable part of your research. There's at least one National Park dedicated to the Hopewell moundbuilders. Good luck!

Carolyn: One thing you need to be very certain of when writing anything related to any Native American groups is that nothing sacred is included and that everything is culturally accurate. When I began researching about Iroquois food in 2000, I was informed that 75% of the books written about Native Americans at that time were blacklisted by Native Americans because they were either culturally inaccurate and/or included sacred information or pictures. Also, there are some Native American names that are sacred and can be read, but can not be said out loud. If you include any of these in your books, be certain that you include in a forward that should this book be read aloud that the particular name cannot be read out loud. The Iroquois have a name like this in their culture. When they are referring to this particular person orally they call him by one name which can be said out loud, and in writing they use his sacred name.

Carolyn: Also, prior to the arrival of Europeans, there were over 400 different Native American tribes in North America and many had different languages or dialects within the language. Another example from the Iroquois is that each of the 5 beginning tribes within the Iroquois spoke slightly different dialects and verbal communication was not always possible.

MikkiS: I have read historical novels and found things that were not historically accurate in them, and this has always bothered me. I didn't want to make the same mistakes with my own writing. However, even with the contemporary novel I wrote, I also did a lot of research to make sure that certain things I was writing about that I was unfamiliar with...such as cheerleading ...would be correct. I agree that I am a history buff, and also that I enjoy doing research, but when is it enough, merely acceptable, or too much?

ANOLA: It sounds as if you've thoroughly investigated the time, place, and lives of people at the time of your story. As a history buff, you're concerned about historical accuracy and editors will appreciate that. One problem of having so much research can be that it overwhelms the story and character development. Be sure that your research serves your story and not the other way around. It's a tricky balance, but it sounds as if you're truly capable of weaving details into the story without distracting the reader.

MikkiS: Thanks, Anola. I am aware of the details overwhelming the story...I did that with the first historical fiction short story I wrote, which was...um, politely rejected...so I have been very careful this time to make sure my characters and the plot are as strong as the details.

Ella: Never having attempted historical fiction before, I don't have any insight as a writer, but a comment as a reader suddenly occurred to me: I think maybe if you do an insane amount of research and, as Anola said, maintain the right balance, then you can present an intimate sort of familiarity with your subject matter. Like professional ice skaters, perhaps the more work you put into it, the more effortlessly (ie, natural) it looks to the reader.

Anola Pickett: It's a great point about the value of a great deal of research, while you probably won't use all of it (and probably shouldn't!) will bring you closer and closer to the characters and times you're writing about. And that will bring your readers closer and closer without feeling that they're being given a history lesson.

SarahLee: How would you handle a situation where you are researching a war battle and EVERYONE (including so called experts) give different numbers of soldiers and wounded?

Anola Pickett: There are a couple of options, it seems to me. You could settle on a number that appears most often in your research sources and add a footnote explaining the number variations you've come across. Or you could mention the discrepancies in author's notes at the book's end, perhaps speculating on reasons for the differences. Are exact numbers important to your story? Can you convey the impact or importance of the battle with unspecific numbers that show who suffered the loss or who won the victory?

Anita: Thank you Ms. Pickett for your wonderful insights and knowledge into the historical fiction world. Even though I didn't personally ask any questions, I learned a lot about the genre.

ColoradoKate: Yes, thank you for answering our questions!