The Power of Historical Fiction and Legacy Writing: Unlocking the Past

I gladly invest weeks of reading or hours of listening time to beloved and challenging works of Historical Fiction. I love opening the door to a different time and place where my journey awaits. I reach for the author's hand, trusting that I will learn about the history and appreciate the characters and their intertwined lives. I will learn about their customs, challenges, triumphs, social expectations, economic struggles, and political and internal turmoil. 

I am also touched by the same journey when the characters are not conjured from the author's imagination. The recollections, historical times, patterns, and discoveries stemming from the author's experiences are compelling. The essence of legacy writing is the same as the essence of historical fiction. The author takes our hand and transports us to a different place and time where we learn or are inspired by the author's life. If the author is a family member, the ancestors are our ancestors; the mentors become our mentors; the story is about our loved ones. We see glimpses of our future in the author's past. 

My recent re-reading of The Ladies of the Club reaffirmed my love for the genre. The first time I read it, at 35, I connected with the young women at the start of their journey—founding a literary guild, accepting their place in a world that often overlooked them and did not afford them the right to vote. In my 70s, I read the exact words through a different lens. I see their entire lifespan, joys, and heartbreaks, and I appreciate their resilience. I could not enjoy the full spectrum of their lives decades ago. I recognize their time's political and racial tensions and how they echo today's struggles.

I feel the same about my great-grandfather's memoir about starting a wool and fur trading business in the Wild West. When I read it as a young woman, I did not have the depth of life experience to read below the surface and understand what a remarkable man he was. His values are mine; his entrepreneurial spirit and success are more significant than my life. He inspires me. The period was the same. I am delighted he kept going at seventy and formed another business incarnation with his four daughters. 

This year alone, I have read David Copperfield and Demon Copperhead, The Women, The Warmth of Other Suns, The Giver of Stars, The Count of Monte Cristo and many other historical novels. Each book has drawn me into a world I did not live in but could vividly imagine. I walked alongside the characters through their perils, successes, traumas, and redemptions.

Likewise, a legacy book captures a person's experiences and wisdom for future generations. A reader receives emotions, context, and depth of understanding. A reader is given the gift of belonging. Economic turmoil may have shaped their grandparents' decisions; wars forced families to adapt and preserve. There may have been a fall from grace and a subsequent redemption. These are not stories pulled from the imagination—they are the stories that build our foundation.

Legacy writing is the ultimate historical fiction but without fiction. It takes us on a journey through time with real people as our guides. It helps us see history as events in a textbook and the lived experiences of those who came before us. It connects the past to the present and allows us to learn from those who came before us. We ensure their lessons, triumphs, and humanity endure by capturing and sharing these stories.

That is the power of legacy. That is why we write.