by Marie Wells Coutu, @mwcoutu
History was my least favorite subject in school. My teachers made it all about dates and facts. Only one high school teacher, a Civil War buff, seemed to have passion for the subject, and that was only when he taught about that war.
It was historical fiction that changed my attitude, and now I’m fascinated by anything historical. I learned more about American history by reading John Jakes’ series, The Kent Family Chronicles, than I ever did in a classroom. The difference was that the novels made history come to life. Believable characters, settings I could visualize, and details of everyday life combined to immerse me in a different time and place.
Since I’ve begun to write historical novels myself, I strive to create that same feeling in my future readers. I know that inaccuracies or—worst of all—anachronisms will pull the reader out of the story. Research is key, and it can be fun.
Historians refer to three types of sources: primary, secondary, and tertiary. All three can be helpful to a historical novelist, but the first two are most useful. There’s an abundance of primary sources for the early-Twentieth-Century novels I’m writing. But the Internet offers a variety of tools for any time period you may choose for your setting.
Primary Sources
Primary sources are those that were created during the designated time period, such as letters, journals, newspapers, relics, and eyewitness testimony. Since my novels are based on an actual locale, I’ve used photographs, maps, newspaper articles and eyewitness testimony. Local historical societies, websites for the region, and university libraries have all been important. A regional group published a monthly magazine in the 1990s featuring first-hand accounts of recollections of area residents, and I purchased the entire 20-plus issue collection. It’s provided story ideas, photos, and anecdotes I’m able to adapt into scenes.
Here are some resources I’ve found helpful for locating primary information:
A list of online historical map collections from around the world is available here: https://www.thoughtco.com/historical-map-collections-online-1422030
Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/) includes nearly 4,000 newspapers and is easy to search and to save clips. Associated with Ancestry.com, it requires a subscription but I’ve found it worth the annual fee. The Library of Congress and National Endowment for the Humanities joined forces to sponsor Chronicling America (https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/), a free collection of digitized American newspapers from 1789-1963. It includes about 3,000 newspapers and continues to grow.
Speaking of the Library of Congress, I’m only beginning to discover the vast materials available through their website. Their digital collections, available at https://loc.gov/collections/, include photographs, maps, original correspondence, audio recordings, and more.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation also has a collection of articles, objects, and exhibits that reveal much about American history. To see what they offer online, go to https://collections.savingplaces.org:2443/landing.aspx.
If your novel is based on real places, check with area museums and university libraries. I’ve listened to audio recordings of interviews with local residents who experienced the events I’m writing about, as well as gone through files of original letters and documents. Priceless!
One way to locate those resources, along with secondary sources (see below), is through WorldCat (www.WorldCat.org), the online database of thousands of libraries. In many cases, items listed in WorldCat can be borrowed through interlibrary loan at your local library. You may need to wait weeks and pay a small fee, but out-of-print books about your region or event can be invaluable, especially if they were published during a historical time you’re writing about. I keep a running list of titles I want to borrow.
Secondary Sources
When researchers review primary sources and write about them, it’s considered a secondary source. Many websites, textbooks, and popular overviews, such as the American Popular Culture through History series about different decades, fit into this category. These books can often be located through WorldCat. I’ve also found both primary and secondary sources on Google Books.(https://books.google.com/), especially medical reference books related to treatment of illness for my characters in that time period.
Tertiary Sources
These can be thought of as “third-party” sources. Like hearsay testimony in a courtroom, they can be less reliable than the first two types of research, since they are primarily based on secondary sources and may be slanted by the author. Still, they are useful for understanding the culture of a time period or for analysis of a particular event. Even more helpful, typically, is the bibliography, which may point you to primary or secondary sources you hadn’t yet discovered.
Personal Experience
I’m listing these separately because I’m not sure which category fits. Examples include:
- Historical reenactments, such as Revolutionary or Civil War battles (One friend participated in a trip that recreated a wagon train journey.)
- Living history sites where you can try such activities as churning butter, weaving, ropemaking, or sharpening an ax (I love taking my grandchildren to these!)
- Tours of restored businesses and buildings, such as movie theaters, train depots, and government buildings (For my Prohibition-era novel, I’ve visited a speakeasy and a working moonshine distillery.)
Of course, I’ve only scratched the surface of all that’s available for authors of historical novels. Check these out and share your suggestions. But don’t get so lost in research that you forget to write your story!
Truth is messy. But will their shared secret destroy his political career—or sabotage their marriage? After a whirlwind romance, beautiful Shawna Moore marries Hunter Wilson, the governor of Tennessee. Now, she wonders if the governor ever loved her or only hoped to avoid a scandal. In this modern re-imagining of the biblical story of Bathsheba and King David, an investigative reporter is asking questions—the wedding took place only six weeks following the death of Shawna’s first husband in Iraq. If he discovers the truth about Shawna’s baby, Hunter’s chances for reelection, as well as Shawna’s reputation, will be ruined. But keeping their secret is destroying their marriage. Will Hunter’s choice mean the end of his political career or his family?
Award-winning author Marie Wells Coutu finds beauty in surprising places, like old houses, gnarly trees, and forgotten treasures. When she’s not writing about finding restoration and healing through God-designed journeys, she enjoys taking broken things and making them useful.
She is currently working on historical romance novels set in the 1930s. One manuscript won the 2019 Touched by Love Contest and the 2019 Sheila Contest, and a second novel also won in the Sheila Contest.
Her published novels are women’s contemporary fiction. Her debut novel, For Such a Moment, won the Books of Hope Contest. The Secret Heart, her newest release, and Thirsting for More, the second book in the series, were finalists in several contests.
You can find more about Marie and her novels on her Facebook page (Author Marie Wells Coutu), at her website (MarieWellsCoutu.com), or follow her on Twitter (@mwcoutu) or on Amazon.com.