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Meet Joanne Joseph, author of the historical fiction novel, Children of Sugarcane. Set against the backdrop of 19th century India and the British-owned sugarcane plantations of Natal, it paints an intimate and wrenching picture of indenture told from a woman’s perspective.
In this episode, Joanne explores how the story of her own great-grandmother inspired the novel. She shares the importance of highlighting intergenerational trauma through fiction, and how to approach writing the more harrowing aspects of history. We also talk about her advice and tips for other historical fiction writers—from creating meaningful connections with characters, all the way to the craft of plot twists!
To keep in touch with Joanne, you can follow her on Instagram and Twitter.
Timestamps
(00:17) - Introduction to Joanne
(00:44) - What first inspired Joanne to write
(03:22) - Intersections between journalism and writing historical fiction
(04:08) - An introduction to Joanne’s novel, ‘Children of Sugarcane’
(04:48) - How the story of her great grandmother inspired Joanne’s novel
(07:40) - The character to whom Joanne feels most connected
(09:16) - The craft of creating meaningful, authentic connections between characters
(11:54) - Handling the emotion of writing difficult scenes
(15:06) - The art of writing plot twists
(19:34) - The underlying takeaways from ‘Children of Sugarcane’
(24:13) - Writers that have inspired Joanne
(27:01) - Joanne’s writing advice to her past self: “You can write.”
(29:33) - How to stay in touch with Joanne
(29:40) - Announcement: this is the last episode of this season of the Writing The Past podcast
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Meet Susan Stokes-Chapman, author of the Sunday Times bestselling novel, Pandora. The story reimagines the Greek myth of Pandora’s Box against the backdrop of Georgian London, as an aspiring jewellery artist encounters an ancient vase that her villainous uncle is desperate to keep secret. The novel was previously shortlisted for the 2020 Lucy Cavendish Fiction Prize and longlisted for the Bath Novel Award that same year.
In this episode, Susan shares her journey towards becoming a published author, querying advice for writers who are currently seeking representation, the inspiration behind her novel, Pandora, and more!
To keep in touch with Susan, you can visit her website at https://www.susanstokeschapman.com/ and sign up to join her mailing list. She also has a blog, including a helpful guide to the agent submission process. You can follow her on Instagram and Twitter.
Timestamps
(00:16) - Introduction to Susan and her novel, Pandora
(00:50) - What led Susan into writing, and historical fiction in particular
(02:40) - The premise for Pandora, and what inspired Susan to write it
(04:05) - Integrating research into the story in a way that feels natural
(06:11) - The characters from Pandora which Susan relates the most to
(11:25) - Susan's querying journey and route to publication
(16:27) - The power of writing competitions
(17:25) - Advice for authors who are seeking representation (featuring Susan’s article on the agent submission process)
(20:25) - "Plotting" vs. "Pantsing"
(21:52) - A typical writing day
(23:50) - Susan's upcoming writing projects
(25:50) - Susan's current book recommendations
(27:30) - Where to stay in touch with Susan -
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We speak with Graeme Johncock, a writer and storyteller. He’s also the creator of Scotland’s Stories, sharing tales from Scottish folklore and history. He also goes on regular story research trips, accompanied by his labrador, Molly!
In this episode, we discuss how Graeme became a storyteller, the locations that inspire him the most in Scotland, and advice for writers who are going on research trips. Graeme also shares his key tips to building a strong platform, and tells us one of his favourite stories from Scotland’s past (which sounds like something straight out of a film)!
To keep in touch with Graeme, you can visit his website www.scotlands-stories.com and sign up to join his mailing list. He is also active on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
Timestamps
(0:15) - Quick update: The podcast host is changing from a pen name “Isla Fynn” to a real name “Megan Douglas”
(1:10) - Introduction to Graeme Johncock, creator of Scotland’s Stories
(1:39) - What led Graeme to want to become a storyteller, and to promote stories from Scotland in particular
(4:20) - The journey towards creating Scotland’s Stories
(6:40) - The locations that inspire Graeme the most as a storyteller
(09:28) - Advice for authors who are hoping to go on research trips to inform their writing
(13:15) - Tips for writers who want to build a strong online presence
(17:03) - A reading of one of Graeme’s favourite stories from Scotland, set in Kilchurn castle
(21:23) - Graeme’s upcoming projects
(22:28) - Where to keep in touch with Graeme
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We chat with Cameron Brett, an Australian author of a young adult historical fiction series, set in Ancient Egypt. He’s also the creator and writer of the children’s series Meet the Quokkas, and is currently writing a new novel for adults.
We’ll explore his advice on writing memorable historical adventures, how writers can successfully self-publish and market their books, and get a hint of Cameron’s upcoming writing projects!
You can check out Cameron’s books and join his mailing list at www.thecameronbrett.com. You can also follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads.
Timestamps
(00:24) - Introduction to Cameron
(00:50) - Cameron's favourite historical figures
(02:17) - What got Cameron into writing
(04:27) - The inspiration behind Cameron's YA historical fiction series
(06:39) - The research process behind the series
(08:35) - The key to writing a memorable historical adventure
(09:45) - What Cameron's writing routine looks like
(11:46) - The journey to publishing the Ascendancy series
(13:24) - Advice for historical fiction writers who hope to self-publish
(13:50) - How authors can successfully market their books, and why email lists are so important
(15:45) - Cameron's advice to his past self, starting out as a historical fiction writer
(17:28) - Launching a children's book series, and what it’s like to write in a different genre
(18:39) - Cameron’s upcoming writing projects. Plus, why you should translate children’s books, and some thoughts on Brandon Sanderson’s recent Kickstarter, and the opportunities this opens for other authors who want to do the same
(21:20) - Wrap-up -
In this episode, we chat with Claudia Merrill, an Australian writer based in Vienna. Her genre is historical fiction with a bit of fantasy mixed in, and she’s currently writing a novel series set in ancient times. With her stories, she brings mythology and folklore to life through the lens of history.
We discuss what it’s like to research and write historical fiction, including the best tools to use, how you can prevent burnout, navigating seasons when it’s difficult to write, and the key to building a strong author platform.
You can keep in touch with Claudia on her Instagram account, or check out her blog. You may be especially interested in her article on how to do historical research for a novel, featuring some Notion templates to help you get started.
Timestamps:
(00:15) - Introduction to Claudia
(01:06) - The significance of regular, everyday historical people’s lives
(02:29) - What led Claudia to want to write historical fiction
(04:00) - How to organise your research process in a way that doesn’t feel overwhelming
(06:00) - Using Notion to organise your notes
(07:30) - Balancing writing with life commitments
(11:40) - Preventing burnout as a writer
(12:50) - Navigating seasons when it’s difficult to write
(15:30) - Tools that support the research and writing routine—see Claudia’s blog article with Notion templates here
(16:30) - Claudia’s experiences working with a publishing house, and what it showed her about the industry
(20:25) - Building a strong online author platform
(22:52) - Claudia’s advice to her past self as a historical fiction writer, letting go of perfectionism and “all or nothing” thought patterns
(24:24) - Finding a balance between the research and writing process
(28:35) - All about first drafts
(30:25) - Learning to be present at every stage of the writing journey
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In this episode, we chat with Helena Barnard, whose debut novel, ‘A Painted Winter’, has just been released. It tells the story of two Pictish brothers who conspire with the Ancient People from beyond the Great Wall to attack the Romans. Helena was born in Australia, and she now lives in northern England at the foot of Hadrian’s Wall.
We’ll find out what inspired Helena to write historical fiction, and we’ll discover her path to releasing her debut novel with an independent publisher. She’ll also describe her writing and researching process, including what it’s like to write about a civilization that we know very little about.
Helena’s book ‘A Painted Winter’ is available everywhere books are sold. If you’d like to keep in touch and follow her historical fiction journey, you can catch her on Instagram under the username @helenareadsandwrites.
Timestamps
(0:20) - Introduction
(1:34) - Helena’s favourite historical figure
(2:44) - How Helena’s historical fiction writing journey began
(5:00) - The inspiration behind her novel ‘A Painted Winter’
(7:10) - Researching and writing a civilisation that didn’t record their own history
(9:40) - “Research rabbit holes” and filtering out what’s important for your book
(11:21) - Fitting writing around a full-time job
(13:40) - Transitioning to becoming a full-time writer
(16:03) - Signing a contract with an independent publisher
(17:02) - Dealing with constructive criticism and navigating the editing process
(19:45) - Helena’s second book in the series
(20:26) - Advice for historical fiction writers who are looking to publish with independent publishing houses
(21:57) - The most important element of a historical fiction novel
(24:13) - Wrap up and a teaser for Episode 4
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Bethany Hudson is a Seattle-based writer of historical literary fiction. She is seeking representation for her novel The Shadows of Tacubaya, whilst also writing her next work, a novel set in the 1910s exploring the murder of a young teenager and a miscarriage of justice. This episode explores how Bethany Hudson's experience as an actor has helped her to develop her characters and give a multifaceted view of history, how she navigates the research and writing process, and the advice she would give to herself when she was just starting out as a historical fiction writer.
Timestamps:
(0:15) - Introduction
(1:55) - Bethany’s favourite historical character
(3:58) - How Bethany became a historical fiction writer
(10:20) - How acting has impacted her as a storyteller and helped her to explore multifaceted views of history in her writing
(16:30) - Bethany’s approach to researching a historical novel, including how multiple POVs can be used to give an unbiased view of historical events
(21:00) - Her writing routine and methods
(26:30) - The development from a genre voice to a literary voice
(28:35) - Bethany’s advice to her past self when she was just starting out as a historical fiction writer
To keep in touch with Bethany, you can visit her website bethanyhudson.com, and you can also follow her on Instagram and Twitter.
To keep in touch with Isla, you can visit her website islafynn.com, where she also has a blog for historical fiction lovers. You can follow her on Instagram under the username @isla.fynn_ , where she posts entertaining reels about writing, shares progress on her novel, and posts regular blog and podcast updates.
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We'll explore why Writing The Past has been created, who the show is for, and what you can expect from each episode. We'll then explore the 3 things Isla learned from writing her first historical fiction novel: to prioritize the story, to silence her inner critic, and to have patience with the process.
Timestamps
(0:17) - Introduction
(0:37) - Meet Isla
(0:45) - Why this podcast was created, who it’s for and what to expect
(2:55) - The 3 things Isla learned from writing her first historical fiction novel
(3:59) - 1. Prioritising the story
(6:35) - 2. Overcoming symptoms of imposter syndrome
(9:41) - 3. Learning the power of patience
(11:54) - What to expect from upcoming episodes
To keep in touch with Isla, you can visit her website islafynn.com, where she also has a blog for historical fiction lovers. You can follow her on Instagram under the username @isla.fynn_ , where she posts entertaining reels about writing, shares progress on her novel, and posts regular blog and podcast updates.
