# The Nuts and Bolts of Historical Fiction

The construction of historical fiction requires the attributes of good story telling plus some important additional components. Novelist David L. Robbins -- whose most recent political thriller, "The Assassins Gallery," imagines the assassination of President Franklin D. Roosevelt -- discussed the building blocks of historical novels in a lecture sponsored by the Center for the Book. Robbins discussed the importance of research, the role of time and place, narrative pacing and character development. According to Robbins, the novel's backdrop, which needs to be built as clearly and accurately as possible, plays a far more important role in historical fiction than in regular novels.

- Kind: Talk
- Year: 2007
- By: Library Of Congress. Center For The Book
- Genres: History
- Archive: [Library of Congress](https://www.loc.gov/item/2021687889/)
- Licence or status: Rights statement at the Library of Congress (as the archive states it)
- Credit: Library of Congress
- Who can watch: Teens profiles and older (the archive gives no rating; placed by Invisible Network from its collection and subjects)

[Watch now](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/watch/archive/loc/2021687889?play=1)