What do you write?

[Michelle]

Every day I am going to ask and answer one question. If anyone else has a question, I will be happy to answer that. Otherwise, hopefully someone will find this and enjoy.

[Michelle]

I write historical romance for Harlequin Mills & Boon Historical.

So let's break it down.
Historical fiction is fiction where the author has no direct experience with the time period and so must do research. Historical fiction by definiition is anchronistic as the author has no direct experience and will be drawn to certain themes, themes which an author writing in that period may not have been. That said, making sure that details are accurate help the reader suspend disbelief.
Historical fiction holds a dark mirror up today and allows the author to explore themes that might be harder to explore in contemporary novel.
Historical fiction takes place at definite time in history. Contemporary fiction takes place in the eternal present.
Jane Austen and Charles Dickens were contemporary authors. Emily Bronte as Wuthering Heights takes place in 1780 -1802 (published 1847)and Georgette Heyer were historical fiction authors.

I also write romance. This means the over arcing plot or spine if you will of the story is the growth of the emotional relationship between hero and heroine. There is an emotionally satisfying ending and the threads are tied up by the end. Also in a romance the emotional relationship drives the story rather than the sex or sensual tension. So in my books, the sensual tension and sex arise as a result of the emotional relationship rather than the other way around.
To understand how the history and the romance combine, it can be helpful to think about Victoria HOlt who also wrote as Jean Plaidy and Philippa Carr. As Jean Plaidy, her books focussed on real historical figures. As Philippa Carr, her books focussed on real events and real people were often secondary characters. As Victoria Holt, the history served as the backdrop. My historical romance are somewhere between Philippa Carr and Victoria Holt and ultimately I hope people will become interested in history.
So any questions or comments? Otherwise I will be back tomorrow with my own question.