Today I’m heading out of town to write for a week. This doesn’t happen often, and I’m very excited. A whole week to spend “in” this story. I’ll officially be on the East Coast, but my mind, my emotions, will be in Spain.
One of the questions I get the most is HOW I make my novels so historically accurate. The answer is I read . . . a lot. (I have purchased or checked out from the library over 40 books on The Spanish Civil War.) I also interview people who were there.
Currently, I am writing a book that takes place in 1936 in Spain, the veterans of the civil war during that time are in their 90s. They are great guys from places like Britian, Scotland, and Poland. What an honor!
So that’s how a novel starts to form. A fact here, information about a battle there, memories of a train ride or a march through the streets of Madrid . . . and soon the world begins to form in my mind.
It’s only when I’m “there” that I figure out the people in my supporting cast. And only after they are real to me, do I then figure out the layers of my plot.
Spain has been in my heart lately, and hopefully . . . once the book is finished, it will be in readers’ hearts too!
I’ve been meaning to comment on this post forever (I know, I’m behind the times, LOL!). Thank you for additional insight into your writing process — I love reading this stuff! 🙂