Book cover Crafting Stories from the Past: A How-To Guide for Writing Historical Fiction

There exists an endless supply of books on writing craft or technique that cover every angle a writer could want. Books on writing historical fiction are less common, although several good ones do exist. Very few, if any, dive deep on some of the most pressing dilemma’s that are particular to writers of historical fiction in today’s market. I was excited to hear that a collaborative effort was underway to write a guide for writers of historical fiction by the Paper Lantern Writers, an author marketing collective.

They did not disappoint. Crafting Stories From the Past: A How-To Guide for Writing Historical Fiction (Paper Lantern Writers, 2025) includes a broad scope of essays on research and writing, while also narrowing in on those topics that are particularly relevant to historical fiction writers. This is not a general “how-to” book that covers all the basic elements of storytelling, rather it discusses elements of storytelling through the lens of making the best use of the history in a story. In the topics they did cover, the authors were able to include both breadth and depth, which makes it incredibly useful for novice, while still offering some value to more experienced writers.

The breadth and depth of the book

The first section was all about research which covered the usual topics such as knowing when, where, and how to research. They provided a great starting list of sources to explore and gave some very detailed examples of how to manage and use the materials that inevitably start to pile up when you go digging for story details.

They also go beyond the usual topics to explore issues that are particularly salient today. These are topics that cover questions and arguments I see brought up and discussed in historical fiction writing groups on a regular basis. Topics like “How to Embrace Diversity in Historical Fiction” and “How to Use Non-Western Story Structures” and the ever controversial “How to Make Authenticity Feel Accurate”. These topics were covered with nuance and a focus on practical application that was much appreciated.

The section on writing your novel covered some issues that all writers of historical fiction must pay attention to like “How to Tackle Dialogue, Voice, Lexicon, and Lingo” along with “How to Create Historical Fiction from Fact”. They also covered some topics related to subgenre and structure such as “How to Organize a Dual Timeline Novel” and How to Bring Fantasy into Historical Fictional”. These were very practical essays with many great examples drawn from the author’s own work as well as others from the authors in the collective.

What I loved about the book

A strength of the book is that it really gets at the heart of the most common issues historical fiction writers grapple with as they move through the research and writing process. Another benefit is the wide range of experiences that are shared in the collection of essays, which are written by a dozen different writers. That said, those who spend time engaged in the wider historical fiction community won’t gain as many new insights, especially if they regularly attend the Historical Novel Society or History Quill conferences and are thus exposed to these sorts of deep discussions.

One of my favorite aspects of this book was how the authors took you through their own decision-making, sharing specific examples of choices they made and how well they worked or didn’t! So many books tell you what worked, but very few tell you about the mistakes that were made along the way and the outcomes of those mistakes. For me that was the most valuable part of the book.

I think the authors deserve a lot of credit for being so open and vulnerable in their willingness to share those parts of the writing process. This was especially apparent in the chapters on “How to Write a Historical Sex Scene” and “How to Embrace Diversity in Historical Fiction”. These are topics that are often overlooked by writers in their own work but also in spaces where writing is discussed and debated. I was happy to see them included and covered thoughtfully.

Overall, I think this book is a great addition your writing library, especially if you are in the early years of writing. You can learn more about the book and the Paper Lantern Writers on their website.