Violet Bilbao asked Elizabeth Hoyt:

And yes, another question, but what books [historical, critical, whatever] can you recommend for research on writing historical romance novels, especially those set on the Georgian/Regency/Victorian era? [It's a dream of mine to make a romance novel set on one of these eras, and I've outlines concerning this, but most research books I have about romance novels are contemporary]. Thanks a lot for answering this.

Elizabeth Hoyt Oh, gosh, soooo many books! A lot depends on what you're researching. For instance, right now I'm reading "Down and Out in Eighteenth-Century London" by Tim Hitchcock, published 2004 by Humbledon & London. It's great if you're interested in beggars, thieves, anyone who might be poor, etc. Mostly Georgian, not Regency or Victorian. I write Georgian as you know, so most of my research is Georgian. I'd recommend for Georgian any book of annotated Hogarth prints to study. I've heard from others that "Georgette Heyer's Regency World" by Jennifer Kloester is a fun book. I haven't read it myself.

In terms of how to write an historical romance novel vs a contemporary romance novel, I think a lot comes down to the voice of the author. You get that by reading a lot of historical romance novels--and history books in general. The structure, etc, is pretty much the same, though.

Good luck!

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