Am I slipping from fantasy to historical fiction?

[Tywin]

So, I'm working on a set of stories set in a fantasy world with characters modeled after the historical Vikings.

As I get deeper into researching little bits of culture for the set of stories, I'm to the point where I'm really just a shade shy of my 'fantasy' setting becoming just a plain 'historical fiction' setting.

Some of the folks that have read the first of the stories assumed it was set in our history (with some added fantasy elements).

The question I have is should I make the jump to historical fiction? I'm kind of afraid to because then I feel like I would be held to a standard ("What, you thought they had benches in their ships? Don't you know they sat on their sea chests instead?"), but on the other hand I may have drifted close enough to historical accuracy that I'm afraid to cause confusion when a reader goes to look up more background information on the setting and geography (which is complete fantasy).

Should I worry about this?

 

[The Judge]

No.

Next question...

Really, don't let it worry you. Years ago when I was faffing with some stories I realised I was writing kind-of historical fiction, but I was too much of a perfectionist to write real history because it would have to be wholly accurate. I wanted the freedom to invent people and places and situations, while still having them act and move and think as much as possible as their real life counterparts would have done.

I've now invested a good bit more fantasy into my work, not in the sense of dragons, but simply an underpinning of this-couldn't-happen-in-real-life stuff, but at the same time I'm sticking as far as I can to an historical feel and attitudes. Basically what you are doing with your Vikings. Real and unreal co-existing.

If you haven't already, read GG Kay's The Lions of Al-Rassan -- it's based on the Reconquista, but he's telescoped the action, given the religions different names, and basically shredded real history and historical attitudes so he could write what he wanted, and then added a minute bit of couldn't-happen-in-real-life so it can be called fantasy by those who trouble themselves with labels.

As for reader confusion, just have a Author's Note at the end and explain whatever you feel needs some commentary.

 

[Brian G Turner]

I wouldn't worry, or think about jumping into anything.

You only have to look at writers such as Guy Gavriel Kay, Joe Abercrombie, Douglas Hullick, Scott Lynch, Stephen Lawhead and Anne Lyle, to see that a degree of historical realism can work very well, though different authors work with it to different degrees.

I think there's a grey area between fantasy fiction and historical fiction - sometimes labelled "historical fantasy", where the inspiration of the real world is clear, but there's limited or no attempt to hold to historical timelines.

It's the timelines that define historical fiction IMO. Work anywhere outside of that and you're already in fantasy territory.

 

[Montero]

And just to be really cheery - not - rest assured that even in a fantasy folks will pick up on anachronistic details. Economically consistent is the key - for example when you have an economy of medieval level, metal is very, very expensive and everything is labour intensive. So anyone with a metal needle would treasure it in its own carry case. etc. Therefore don't have peasants with a full pewter dinner service.

If your economy has a reason that metal smelting is cheap, that is a different matter.

We have vast amounts of easily available metal manufactured in a vast variety of shapes. You are dealing with a world where each nail was hand hammered by a smith.

There is also the sort of oopsie where say someone turns over in bed. I have seen in a published book "the bed springs creaked" - not at that period they didn't. Where as saying "the bed creaked" - no problem.

 

[Tywin]

Thanks for the comments guys, I will blissfully drive ahead with my stories regardless of the confusion they may cause in historically-minded readers. The same goes for the bits of language I throw in there which I would categorize as kind of pseudo-germanic and romantic pidgin that derives from my varied and limited language background.

Of course the silliest part of the whole dilemma is that I'm assume that anyone's ever going to read my swill, lol.

 

[Mark R]

The setting for my fantasy book is largely indistinguishable from a european pre-industrial society circa 1150-1300

I could change the names to real places and alter one or two small details and it'd be historical fiction.

But its not, because it's an entirely fictional place with fictional characters, fictional social mores, and a fictional monster.

As everyone else says, don't worry

 

[Brian G Turner]

How did you get on with this @Tywin ? I've not seen you around for a while, but I'd be interested in seeing how your historical fantasy panned out.

 

[James Bridie]

It's an interesting question, asking what the boundaries are and what they mean.

Maybe 'historical' fiction needs to be fastidious with historical standards, but presumably fantasy has its own fantastic standards.

I am guessing an issue could come at the 'contact with the audience' stage: if people like historical fiction because it takes them far away to some particular (real) place in the past then they might feel short-changed if the fantastic voyage/battle/society described didn't take place.

But also, history is full of fantastic tales.

Would you say a fictional (invented by author today) fantastical historical account (set in history) was historical fiction or fantasy? (and does it matter?)

 

[Kerrybuchanan]

I have written a novel that I classify as Historical Fantasy. Not sure if that helps?

 

[sknox]

This is a zombie thread, but who doesn't love a good rejuvenation?

I'm encountering a similar issue. I've joined a few FB groups, one of which is a Historical Fiction group. My Altearth stories a strongly historical but also firmly fantastical. I am shy to put forward my own questions, still more my own work, because the fantasy element seems to cross a line.

One way to think about this, though I know the OP is long gone, is to imagine oneself the owner of a bookshop. On which shelf would you put your book--SFF, or Historical Fiction? (yes, if it's my bookstore I put it on both. Heck, I put a copy in Cookbooks!)

 

[James Bridie]

This is a zombie thread, but who doesn't love a good rejuvenation?

 

 

[James Bridie]

On which shelf would you put your book--SFF, or Historical Fiction? (yes, if it's my bookstore I put it on both. Heck, I put a copy in Cookbooks!)

What is your book? Dinner with a Vampire? Frankenstein's kitchen nightmares?

 

[Martin Gill]

I went through this turmoil whith what i wrote last year. I havent pitched it yet, so i havent had to come up with a category label, but ive written semi mythic vikings set 90% in real places, with one exception, based partly on real historical people and partly on mythological people. Historical fantasy, I think. Im curious how others have pitched things like this to agents though.

 

[sknox]

I've pitched, though not successfully, so ... that.

Historical fantasy is the category (have a browse through Amazon categories for more context). When pitching, I add other books for reference. So, Naomi Novik. Harry Turtledove. You could even pick a non-fantasy historical novel--my book is like X, but with magic (or whatever).

Basically, with agents, you are trying first to give them a quick decision. Oh, this book is one of those--I'm looking for one of those. Or, I can't market that kind right now. If they have to read the three-chapter sample in order to categorize your book, it's probably going into the reject pile right off.

That's really all there is, I think. Categorizing your book to an agent is a little like presenting a book cover to a potential reader. It's a quick decision point which, if yes, leads to further decision points (blurb, summary, sample, buy!).

I wish you all best luck in your agent hunt. I found it to be slow and dispiriting.