The Key to Writing Excellent Stories in any Genre: History
Hello again!
Today, I wanted to wax lyrical about the magic of our own history and its power to shape our stories, even the ones with wizards and spaceships.
The subject of Human History is one that has long fascinated me and one that I have understood the value of since I was a very young child. Within the stories of mankind you find everything that one can hope to be found in an incredible tale. Triumph, loss, villains, heroes, daring plans, betrayal, romance, camaraderie, treason, revolutions, and exploration are just a handful of examples of the types of stories that we can find throughout our past and they are the blueprint for the greatest fictional stories ever created.
Star Wars is a story that was inspired by the rise of the Nazi party in 20th century Germany and the fall of democratic rule. Tolkien wrote The Lord of the Rings while being heavily influenced by the ancient mythology of the British Isles and his own life experiences related to World War 1 and the Industrial Age. Game of Thrones is based upon the twisted ideals of medieval European monarchies and the relationships between the royal families as well as their attitudes towards the people that were unfortunate enough to live under the rule of the royals at the time. 1984 by George Orwell is based on his experiences with witnessing the rise of Fascism in Spain during the 1920s. Even Frank Herbert’s Dune was inspired by the geopolitical events he had witnessed in his own lifetime with regards to the Middle East and the zealous religious groups living in the desert on top of vast oil wells which were coveted (and controlled) by the rest of the world.
Even if a fictional story is not based upon a singular historical event, we still must pull upon History as a way to understand how to write believable characters and plot lines. If you want a story heavily dripping in politics between empires you can study the relationships between Rome and Carthage, or the United States and the U.S.S.R. If you wanted to write a story that included a rural farming village under the boot of a local lord, you would need only to look back at the experiences of the people that have already lived that life to create something realistic and believable in a fictional world. Every great story that we experience is based in human History, we are simply retelling the tales with new names and new costumes.
I have long held the belief that our history is the instruction manual to humanity. It shows what we are capable of (good and bad), how we interact with our surroundings and other people, what drives us forward as a species, our weaknesses, our strengths, and our hopes and dreams as well as our deepest fears. Want to rule the world, become insanely wealthy, overthrow a government, or just be incredibly talented at something? History can teach you how to do it by simply studying the lives of those that have already accomplished those goals and come before us. It can teach us how to look out for the bad actors and spot disaster as it approaches like a freight train. All of these lessons also translate very well into telling compelling stories and this is why I believe that to be a great storyteller, you first must study the stories of those that have come before you. Study why somebody chose to sacrifice their well-being to take a stand against something they abhorred. Study why a prince threw away their birthright of a throne for the promise of a quiet life and romance with a lowborn. If you can look back and learn from the people that lived their stories, you can create worlds, characters, places, and events that make a story truly great.
As a writer/storyteller, I can not recommend enough the study of History as a guide to creating marvelous fiction. And, as a human being, the study of History will help you achieve your goals and avoid devastation, in the literal sense. Afterall, even the aliens in Science Fiction stories are based on human societies or ideas.
