History is filled with interesting people and readers are eager to see them come alive on the page. The challenge is to make sure your historical characters are compelling to modern readers while also reflective of their historical world.

Transferring real facts into a fictional world is not always easy. You are essentially building a world from known details and working with readers’ imperfect understanding of that world. Deciding what to include and what to pare away can make the difference between engaging readers and losing them.

One of the most common questions I see from writers of historical fiction is how to balance research with writing. First, you want to know how much research is necessary. Then, you want to know when to stop researching and start writing.