“Writing History” Conference

Two days of discussing historical details, research, plots and markets with Calkins Creek and Highlights for Children editor Carolyn P. Yoder.

I love reading historical fiction, and when it’s well done, I learn a tremendous amount from it. And since the best things to write are things you enjoy reading, I’ve tried my hand at it. So I leaped at the chance to attend the “Writing History” SCBWI workshop, spending the entire two days with Carolyn Yoder, editor for Calkins Creek Books and historical editor for Highlights for Children. I’ve never spent an entire conference with one speaker, and the focus it gave was fantastic!

We discussed the importance of setting, that a great story needs to be “anchored in time and place,” whether it’s for children or adults. Accuracy in historical fiction is crucial, to the point that the research (and quality of research sources) is no different than for non-fiction. In fact, the number one reason Carolyn Yoder rejects a manuscript is that the bibliography isn’t complete enough.

We talked about fatal flaws such as the lack of connection to the bigger world and overdone plots (she gets way too many similar war-era stories: one parent dead, sibling problems, starvation, amputation all rolled into one plot, no matter which war).

We discussed emotion and tension, dialogue, and language that sings. We dissected children’s books that work, such as Joyce Moyer Hostetter’s novel, Blue (Calkins Creek Books, 2006), and Selene Castrovilla’s By the Sword (Calkins Creek Books, 2007), a non-fiction picture book that reads like fiction. And of course we got great specifics on what Yoder is looking for in both the magazine and book market, as well as critiques and one-on-one time with her.

We had been split into critique groups prior to coming, so in addition to Carolyn’s wisdom and advice, we had time to review long sections of each other’s novels. That, plus a two-hour writing break which most of us used instead to relax our tired minds or to brainstorm with new friends, was another crucial component of the conference.

I came away with a good idea of how to fix the major flaw I see in my historical time-travel novel, and three new writing buddies with whom I will share critiques in the future. I also realized I have an immense amount of additional research to do to add to the flavor of my historical period, but I returned home pumped up and ready to go.

If you’d like some nuggets from the conference, read Historical Fiction Settings or Historical Fiction for Children. An article on Historical Research Sources is coming soon. Write on!