Institute for Medieval Studies
IMC 2017 Session
| Session | 1444 |
| Title | Imagining the Medieval World: Popular Medievalism and Historical Fiction - A Round Table Discussion |
| Date/Time | Wednesday 5 July 2017: 19.00-20.00 |
| Sponsor | School of English, University of Nottingham |
| Organiser | Melissa Venables, School of English, University of Nottingham |
| Moderator/Chair | Katrina M. Wilkins, Department of English & Foreign Languages, McNeese State University, Louisiana |
| Abstract | Fiction offers a degree of creative freedom unavailable to the scholar, yet as both readers and critics, we desire authenticity in these texts - particularly because, for many, such texts are the first point of contact with the medieval world. Thus, historical fiction as a genre raises important questions. How 'historical' is it? How does the fiction writer balance creativity against the restraints of historical 'accuracy'? What is the relationship between research and storytelling? This round table discussion will explore these issues, as well as practical aspects of writing and publication, with published fiction writers whose works can be broadly classed as 'medieval historical fiction'.
Participants include C. J. Adrien (Voyageur Book Publishing, Oregon), James Aitcheson (Independent Scholar, Marlborough), Kelly Evans (Independent Scholar, Toronto), and Justin Hill (Sheffield Hallam University). |