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| Kris Tualla |
As the author of mostly (I’ll get to that in a minute) historical
novels, I find that when I am deep into writing the story I actually forget
what time it is, what day it is, and even what year it is. I’m not kidding. I
have to look up from my laptop—where all fiction lives—and focus to bring
myself back into the present. Hopefully before I miss some important
appointment or meeting!
Since stepping down after five years as a regular blogger on
Romancing the Genres, I published a mixed-genre trilogy: a Viking caught
between life and death for 950 years who manifests to my modern-day heroine, a
collections manager at a museum.
This story encompasses several elements of a historical novel, both
in the hero’s character and the heroine’s job. It also includes a light
paranormal aspect in the hero’s condition, one that is remedied at the end of
the second book when he returns to physical life. I’ve never written paranormal
before, so that part was fun.
And it’s a contemporary story; the first one I’ve written for
publication. That was fun as well, but I doubt I’ll do it again. Turns out I
really like creating worlds, and writing the here and now doesn’t present the
same challenges as either the parameters of a non-corporeal existence, or the
environment of say, 18th-century life.
My current works in progress, however, are bridging this gap: I am
telling my contemporary heroine’s great-grandfather and great-uncle’s stories. These
brothers were involved in World War Two, but not the WWII that Americans are
familiar with.
I’m telling Norway
The upside of writing an era which people remember is that there
are plenty of first-hand experiences to tap into through social media—and I
have. I’ve been given wonderful anecdotes to include in the narrative and will
give credit in the end notes.
The downside of writing an era which people remember is that there
are plenty of first-hand experiences to contradict what I might include.
Memories of seventy-five-year-old events aren’t perfect for one, especially if
the reporter was a child at the time. And people in different parts of the
country experienced different things.
I knew this was going to be challenging when I had to stop halfway
through the opening sentence to look up what high schools were called in Norway
Anyway, that’s “when” I am now. Once the books are completed, I’ll
come back and finish this tale. Until then, I’ll be disappearing into the
Nordic world of Nazi occupation.
5 comments:
Your series sounds wonderful! Isn't it great when you get caught up in creating a good story? Good luck with sales.
Great post, Kris. I have also been lost in time--kind of a neat feeling, isn't it? Good luck with your WWII book--these stories need to be captured while we can.
THANKS! Boy, will I have random knowledge when I'm done!
Great post. As a historian I admire your dedication to getting it right. It isn't easy to find some of those answers even in my favorite era (the Old West.)
It is difficult to live between to periods in time. But when you are know for historically accurate stories (as you are) anything less isn't an option.
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