(Continued from Part 1)
My previous post on researching to write historical fiction recommended starting large.
That is to say, beginning with a book that provides a broad overview of the historical era in question.
(Continued from Part 1)
That is to say, beginning with a book that provides a broad overview of the historical era in question.
You also have to present a well-constructed setting that captures the culture, customs, details, and ethos of the historical period in question. In this way, histfic genre conventions have as much in common with an honours-level history class as with any other genre of fiction.
(Continued from Part 1)
I am not one of those writers, to my great and ongoing dismay.
Not just those pertaining to good writing in general—and I made those big time—but also those specific to historical fiction in particular.
I’m a long-standing lover of New Year’s resolutions, and this year, aside from just setting some—which is the easy part—I decided to perform regular progress assessments in order to course correct as needed to help boost my likelihood of achieving success.
I’m not talking about back to school, but hooray for that too, I guess (good luck, kids).
Rather, I’m referring to the review and selection period for the current cycle of Pitch Wars.
I did this to examine my progress to date, in order to adjust course as necessary, and better plan for success.
It covered historical notions of women as “misbegotten” lesser humans, as helplessly insatiable and promiscuous, and as ever in danger of being considered unmarriageable and “spoiled goods” if subject to even the hint of impropriety.
Medieval perception of women’s sexuality
But no discussion about sex, be it in a historical or a modern context, can be deemed complete without a parallel discussion about the societal perception of women as sexual beings, as well as their sexual agency, or lack thereof.
The two topics are intrinsically linked.