Blog
Stories that Need to be Told
How can fiction bring forgotten stories to light when the historical record is incomplete? Jessica McCann explores how Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin and its companion work, A Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin, helped inspire her approach to researching and writing All Different Kinds of Free. Through the story of Margaret Morgan, McCann reflects on the power of historical fiction to document injustice, recover overlooked lives, and tell stories that need to be heard.
Best New Historical Fiction - November 2026
From the glittering parlors of Gilded Age New York to the mythology of eleventh-century Taiwan, November's best new historical fiction takes readers on unforgettable journeys through the past. This month's five recommended novels explore freedom, resilience, family, and the struggle for independence. Discover the stories we're most excited about this November!
HTF PUBLISHING SIGNS AUTHOR LYNNLEE SCHMIDT; WILL PUBLISH DEBUT NOVEL OPERATION OKAPI ON JULY 27, 2027
History Through Fiction Publishing is delighted to announce that LynnLee Schmidt has signed a publishing contract for her debut novel, Operation Okapi. Combining true historical events with universal truths about grief, healing and courage, Operation Okapi follows two eras of Congo’s history and explores how our relationships with animals bring us closer to ourselves and the people around us.
Sharing Stories Is Our Skillset
Reading and writing have always impacted history, and museums can be spaces where people practice critical thinking, open their minds, and make changes to society. Melissa Chadowski introduces Museum Extraordinary, a resource for museum staff and volunteers, and invites readers to use their skills and talents to make their communities better.
Seeing the Elephant: The American Dream of the Extraordinary
What does it mean to “see the elephant”? Jane D. Cairns traces the nineteenth-century American expression through Civil War soldiers, California gold seekers, and the era’s fascination with exotic animals. Exploring the tension between anticipation and experience, Cairns connects this enduring idiom to her novel Exalted Objects and Tim Schooley’s Circus of the Vanishing Elephant, where elephants become symbols of extraordinary dreams and the realities behind them.
Announcing the Shortlist: Eleven Stories Headed to the History Through Fiction Anthology
After 172 submissions and a 70-title longlist, History Through Fiction is pleased to announce the shortlist for its 2026 Short Story Contest. Eleven stories will appear in a forthcoming paperback anthology, with the grand prize winner, runner-up, and anthology title announced November 15. Read the selected titles and thank the volunteer judges.
The Symbionese Liberation Army and Me
What can the violent extremism of the 1970s teach us about the present? Tim Schooley, author of Circus of the Vanishing Elephant, reflects on his teenage fascination with the Symbionese Liberation Army and the real events that inspired his novel’s fictional Elephant Liberation Army. Connecting his memories of the SLA to contemporary political violence, Schooley considers how historical fiction can preserve difficult lessons from the past.
Meet the Intern: Introducing Sophie
Meet Sophie, the newest intern at History Through Fiction. In this personal introduction, she shares what it was like growing up across several cultures, her lifelong love of books, her path into publishing, and the historical fiction titles she has enjoyed this year.
Depot Dining in the Era of Steam Engines: Fred Harvey and the Harvey House Model
Before fast food chains and roadside restaurants, Fred Harvey transformed dining along the American railroad. Marilee Aufdenkamp explores how Harvey's restaurants and hotels brought reliable food, refined service, and the famous Harvey Girls to communities along the Santa Fe line. From steam-powered trains to Route 66, discover how the Harvey House system shaped Western travel—and left a legacy that continues today.
Best New Historical Fiction - October 2026
October’s historical fiction releases take readers from eighteenth-century music and the courts of medieval England to Victorian finance, the Boer War, and the world before Rome. Discover five new novels about ambition, power, memory, identity, family, and the courage of women who refuse to let history decide what they can become.
A Dream Interrupted: Türkiye’s First Coup and Istanbul Dreaming
When Denise Derya Brandt began writing Istanbul Dreaming, she envisioned a coming-of-age and love story. But researching Türkiye in 1960 brought the country's political upheaval into the novel. Brandt explores the events leading to Türkiye's first military coup, from student protests and martial law to the May 27 takeover, and considers how those events shape Ayten's struggle to build a life of her own.
What Was on Her Bookshelf? A Civil War-Era Girl's Very Opinionated Reading List
What can a teenage girl's reading list reveal about life in nineteenth-century New England? Jane D. Cairns explores the 43 books Abby Locke recorded reading in 1867, from Dickens and Shakespeare to Sunday School stories, historical fiction, travel writing, and sensational romances. Abby's diary offers a fascinating glimpse into the reading habits, interests, and imagination of a real Civil War-era New England girl—and the inspiration behind Exalted Objects.
Writing Historical Fiction about Real People
Writing historical fiction about real people offers novelists a unique balance of research and imagination. Jane D. Cairns, author of Exalted Objects, explores the opportunities and responsibilities of bringing historical figures to life on the page. From researching overlooked lives to respecting the worldviews of people from the past, she considers how writers can use the gaps in the historical record to imagine the emotions, motivations, and conversations history leaves behind.
Elephants, Actors, and Frisbees
Before writing Circus of the Vanishing Elephant, Tim Schooley spent time around elephants as a Ringling Bros. clown. In this personal essay, he shares what research taught him about elephant intelligence and personality, recalls the circus moments that stayed with him, and reflects on how changing attitudes reshaped the American circus.
Announcing the History Through Fiction Virtual Book Festival
The History Through Fiction Virtual Book Festival is a free, one-day online event for readers who love discovering new books, exploring the past through story, and connecting with the authors behind the novels they love. Join us on Saturday, November 14, for headliner conversations, reader panels, discussion rooms, and a featured community read.
Best New Historical Fiction - September 2026
September brings five new historical fiction releases that move from witch trials and wartime Oak Ridge to sixteenth-century Ireland, a 1970s traveling circus, and railroad-era New Hampshire. Discover stories of inherited trauma, moral courage, independence, family, freedom, and belonging in this month’s History Through Fiction recommendations.
Killing Your Darlings, Circus Style
For historical fiction writers, real-life experiences can be both a source of inspiration and a challenge. In this personal essay, Tim Schooley reflects on his years as a Ringling Bros. clown and the real-life stories that inspired scenes in Circus of the Vanishing Elephant. He explores the difficult process of “killing your darlings” and explains why even his most memorable circus experiences ultimately had to be cut from the novel.
Book Feature: After Appomattox by Diane Green
After Appomattox: The Foot Soldier’s Journey Home follows Nathan Nelson Campbell, a Union soldier in the 10th New Jersey Volunteer Infantry, through the final days of the Civil War and the difficult journey back to ordinary life. Inspired by documented family history and military records, After Appomattox is a moving work of historical fiction.
Manuscript Matchup: Bringing Historical Fiction Writers and Readers Together
Writing historical fiction can be a solitary process, but great stories are shaped by collaboration. Grace E. Turton introduces Manuscript Matchup, History Through Fiction’s guided beta reader program connecting historical fiction authors with fellow writers and passionate readers. Learn how authors and beta readers can become part of a community dedicated to bringing new historical stories to life.
From Pamphlets to Podcasts: The History of the True Crime Genre, the Real Stories That Inspired It, and Why Our Culture Craves It
True crime may feel like a modern obsession, but its roots stretch back to sixteenth-century pamphlets, ballads, and courtroom narratives. This essay traces the genre’s evolution from print to television to podcasts while exploring why stories of crime, fear, and human darkness continue to fascinate us.