F. Glenn
asked
Sharon Kay Penman:
As you know by now, I am a devoted fan. In fact, I believe that your books have inspired and helped me as a writer. I would like to know more about your preparation for a new novel. Do you outline, mind map, brain storm, or just research?
Sharon Kay Penman
Hi, F. Glenn; sorry for the delay in responding to you. I begin by researching the period I'll be writing about. Then I determine which events must be dramatized and how I want to go about that. This leads me to a rough outline of the book's chapters, subject to revision. Since I write about real people and actual events, I always start out with a road map; unfortunately, that map often takes me places I'd rather not go. I continue to research as I write, general research about the period and specific research about a particular castle, town, battle, etc. I don't do drafts as many of my writer friends do. I stay with a chapter until I am satisfied with it. Once the book is complete, I go back and polish it up, correct minor errors, tinker with phrases, etc, but I don't make dramatic changes. There is no right way; each writer has to find what works best for him or her. Do you prefer to do drafts? And are you writing historical fiction, too?
More Answered Questions
Charity Sheppard
asked
Sharon Kay Penman:
I recently saw BBC Documentary "How to Get Ahead at Court - Medieval Times" Stephen Smith said, "In the Middle Ages, Court was a place for the chaps. Going to war, defending the realm, that was the stuff that the boys got up to. A powerful woman around the place tended to mean instability, even civil war." What are your thoughts on this statement and of women, great and common, in this time period?
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