Cherie
asked
Paula McLain:
How much of your story about Beryl Markham is fact and how much is fiction? Especially the "love affair" with Dennys Finch-Hatton?
Paula McLain
Hello, Cherie, and thanks for your question. Although other writers in this genre have their own rules, no doubt, I don't make up events for my historical characters, or imagine fictional characters for them to interact with--so you can be sure the love story between Beryl and Denys did indeed happen. What I do make up and then dramatize is the inner lives of my characters, their thoughts and feelings, and all the dialogue. I also feel very free to embellish setting and details of place, etc. I hope this answer helps!
More Answered Questions
Kathy
asked
Paula McLain:
No ? just feedback: Loved both books! I loved Circling the Sun a bit more because I had no awareness of Beryl B and her groundbreaking life. I love that for me, you created many conflicted crossroads for her that despite my wanting her to remain independent and as spirited as possible, I found that I was also rooting for her to be conventional "just this once" since it seemed it would be "easier". Best wishes
Herb
asked
Paula McLain:
I'd like to recommend the writer HD (Hilda Doolittle), as an eventual subject for you. An American who lived in Europe from 1911 until she died in 1961, she had fascinating relationships with many American expatriate and European writers, was a patient of Freud's, wrote wonderful poetry, prose and memoirs and there's also a lot of more recent biographical work on her life and career. ?
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Nov 17, 2015 11:43AM · flag