The bestselling author Florence Olajide writes about the difficulties of researching pre-colonial African history for her novel, The Stolen Daughter, including the language the Victorians used about her ancestors. Authors face many challenges when it comes to their writing, but my experience with African historical fiction involved some unique and personal difficulties. My first task […]
Historia Live in Dublin, 1 May, 2024
Historia Live Dublin returns on 1 May with four more bestselling authors of historical fiction. The theme is When History Meets Mystery featuring Sinéad Crowley, Amanda Geard and Carmel Harrington. The discussion, led by Hazel Gaynor, will look at novels with dual or multiple timelines and narrators, the skill of creating suspense on the page, the difficulties of weaving a […]
Moonlight and the Pearler’s Daughter by Lizzie Pook
The Brightwell family has sailed from England to make their new home in Western Australia. Ten-year-old Eliza knows little of what awaits them on these shores beyond shining pearls and shells like soup plates – the things her father has promised will make their fortune. Ten years later and Charles Brightwell, now the bay’s most […]
The bloody history of pearls
Moonlight and the Pearler’s Daughter, Lizzie Pook’s debut novel, takes us on a journey to 19th-century Western Australia. She tells Historia about her immersive research process and what drew her to writing about the dangerous pearl diving industry. A pearl cleaner’s job is a meticulous one. To remove the visible blemishes on the gem they […]
Historical books to look out for in 2022
Our popular annual list of books to look out for during the year is back for 2022, with history, biography and historical fiction. Here are books to read from HWA authors covering eras from Ancient Rome to the 1980s and sweeping across continents from China to Russia and India, the USA to Australia and the […]
Two Norfolk singers and the Maid of Australia
Social historian and music writer Bruce Lindsay examines the ways in which different versions of the same song can tell a story of love, seduction, or rape. The song, The Maid of Australia, was in the repertoire of the two traditional singers who are the subject of his most recent book. Sam Larner and Harry […]
Fled by Meg Keneally
Jenny Gwyn has proven herself a survivor. Faced with destitution after the death of her father, she toughens her skin to become a highwaywoman in order to support her impoverished family. But one fatal mistake leads to her arrest, and the king’s justice demands her death. Rather than beg for mercy, Jenny condemns the system […]
How I became a historical fiction writer (I think)
Gill Thompson tells Historia how she became a historical fiction author…
much to her surprise