HOW I WRITE

‘I have to psych myself up to do them justice, they were real people’

Alison Weir

What bestselling author and historian Alison Weir doesn’t know about the Tudor era isn’t worth knowing. Developing an interest in history at the age of 14, she has gone on to publish 32 historical fiction tales and biographies, bringing rich detail to every book. Having written about the Middle Ages, Queen Elizabeth, Isabella of France and more, it’s the Tudor period she returns to, with the second book in her Tudor Rose series. Henry VIII: The Heart & The Crown is an ambitious novel about the man who changed England forever – and this time, King Henry VIII gets to tell his side of the story.

If I’m writing a novel about a big subject, like Henry VIII or Elizabeth I, I have to psych myself up to do them justice. I’m aware they were real people and always strive to follow the historical sources as closely as possible. I find starting a new novel exciting – it’s always a challenge and there are so many approaches you can take. Writing a historical biography requires a chronological narrative starting at birth and ending with death, but there are many different ways into fiction. I usually discuss the way forward with my editor at the outset. I’m glad to say we usually have a similar vision.

I don’t think you can over-research a historical novel. I sometimes use only about a quarter to a third of the research for my books.

I can’t stop being a historian, so I am somewhat obsessive about keeping to the historical record! I had to be dragged kicking and screaming across the fence, rather than be left sitting on it. If I permit myself to be a touch creative, I do so only where there is some historical basis, however flimsy, for a storyline, supernatural threads aside.

The advice I’d give to someone writing historical fiction: show, rather than tell. It means you don’t rely on narrative as much as creating scenes where the reader can see the action and people’s reactions. The other advice is ‘Never give up!’

The most challenging thing about writing a novel is keeping to the word count. I always want to write more, and when you are asked to cut the text while adding scenes at the editing stage, that can be a real challenge.

We converted a double garage into a library. It’s lined with shelves of inspirational books, and is one of my favourite places.

I work office hours, stopping at 5.30pm. I do my second daily session of exercise before dinner. Then, I might work on my itunes playlist or my online archive of royal portraits, and then watch TV with my husband to wind down.

✢ Henry VIII: The Heart & The Crown by Alison Weir (£25, HB, Headline) is out on 11 May.

Nights at the Circus by Angela Carter

Extravagant, convoluted, funny and with one of the most unashamedly sensual heroines in literature, this is my favourite among Angela Carter’s books. The story of a circus aerialist whose wings may or may not be real, this is the book that taught me about the power of storytelling, the intoxication of words and the perennial appeal of the unreliable narrator.