Writing the Historical Novel Part 1: Create the Atmosphere

Create the Atmosphere: Building a Setting That Transports Readers to Another Time

Accurate facts and rich sensory description are critical to immersing readers in a historical novel, but they can't be allowed to overwhelm the story. They are the frame for the story but they are not the story itself. This session will include discussion, examples, and a hands-on exercise designed to help attendees explore economical ways to convey these all-important details.

Note: Each session is fully stand-alone. You can take this class independently without enrolling in the other parts.

YOUR INSTRUCTOR

Mary Anna Evans is the author of seventeen novels, which have received recognition including the Benjamin Franklin Award, the Oklahoma Book Award, the Will Rogers Medallion Award, and the Florida Historical Society's Patrick D. Smith Award. They have earned starred reviews from Library Journal and Booklist, they have been recognized as Book Sense and Indie Next Picks, and they have been on "Best of the Year" lists in The Strand, True West, and Voice of Young America. Her nonfiction has appeared in publications including The Atlantic and the Louisville Review, and it has been shortlisted for the Edgar, Agatha, Macavity, and HRF Keating Awards. She holds an MFA in creative writing and a PhD in English literature, and she is a retired tenured professor of creative writing with a specialty in genre fiction.