tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post3503281050123869540..comments2024-03-09T11:34:22.175+00:00Comments on The History Girls: Historical Problems of a Fantasist: N M BrowneMary Hoffmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06241989732624913706noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-21591624208288908292012-02-05T17:52:07.834+00:002012-02-05T17:52:07.834+00:00I think it is. I know I've held back from depi...I think it is. I know I've held back from depicting the full weirdness of the Roman army - eg their obsession with phalluses etc. I first approached the classical world filtered through Hollywood,TV ( I Claudius)etc and novels - an entry point shared by my readers so I have compromised a little for the sake of accessibility.Nickyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15442269757463713048noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-62272046757512662892012-02-05T17:32:18.931+00:002012-02-05T17:32:18.931+00:00What a fascinating blog... and discussion. I love ...What a fascinating blog... and discussion. I love that you borrow real ideas from history for your fantasy books, and presumably use your other expertise (like dye making and animal husbandry). <br /><br />I especially like your last two questions:<br /><br /><i>In order to be credible and feasible do we have to ignore the most peculiar of facts? How do you deal with the truly weird?</i><br /><br />I think that peculiar and weird facts are the best parts of historical fiction (especially if shown to be true!) Isn't that why we trawl through primary sources? Not just to depict the world, but to find exceptional events? Like Pliny the Elder taking a bath during the eruption of Vesuvius. Or Mark Twain fighting a duel because of a drunken newspaper article. And a thousand more... <br /><br />That's why I prefer historical fiction to fantasy. Truth really is stranger than fiction.Caroline Lawrencehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07249424644829463560noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-24269002482254740312012-02-05T14:37:38.689+00:002012-02-05T14:37:38.689+00:00I sometimes miss out less-palatable details from t...I sometimes miss out less-palatable details from the past (eg in my first book I discovered that wedding guests spat their prune-stones across the room) because I don't wish to alienate readers. And I invent extra events. But I would be very reluctant to actually alter the past significantly. <br />However, we can only ever reinterpret the past, and capture fragments of how it really was. How I would love a time machine or at least a window onto past events.<br /><br />You have depicted one of my all-time favourite films here - love it!Marie-Louise Jensenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18006940874591015786noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-86303751706805784712012-02-05T12:05:26.821+00:002012-02-05T12:05:26.821+00:00I am proposing an analogy with going on holiday: ...I am proposing an analogy with going on holiday: Some people want to go somewhere exotic and meet new cultures and struggle with new languages and the danger of the unknown, and the strangeness, struggle, danger and interest is very much part of the benefit. In contrast, other people want it to all be arranged for them, to be with people just like them, to only speak English, and to get their meals from McDonalds: Different travellers and different readers.J Elliotthttp://twitter.com/newnhamengineernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-24947544872257497872012-02-05T11:50:18.825+00:002012-02-05T11:50:18.825+00:00What an interesting question! Sometimes the most w...What an interesting question! Sometimes the most weird can be slotted in with the weirdness a feature - but sometimes, of course, it just ends up looking implausible. <br /><br />I've not written fantasy, but I imagine it must in some ways be harder to do the research. At least with historical research, you can get one bit wrong and the rest is still right, whereas if you build your whole world on a false premise I guess the whole thing could crumble!Stroppy Authorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16560035800075465845noreply@blogger.com