Anachronism is Your Best Friend9/16/2022 Anachronism is described as a chronological inconsistency, which basically means when something in history is brought outside its proper context and/or a timeline gets skewed. A popular example of an instance of anachronism would be in the scene in the 2019 version of Little Women, in which Amy March can be seen wearing Ugg boots, which weren’t invented until 1978. While incidents like these tend to stir internet historians into a frenzy, I would like to argue that sometimes anachronism can be good, actually. Of course, there is a time and place to bend your facts, and the use of an author’s note is a wonderful way to correct yourself, but ultimately, historical fiction is meant to tell a compelling story, not to educate people on what really happened, and sometimes liberties need to be taken in order to tell the story right. One more popular example of anachronism is Our Flag Means Death, (yes, basically the whole show). From the costuming to the language, to characters referencing people who technically weren’t even born yet, this show is one historical trash fire, from a factual perspective. Yet it is a wildly popular show that has resonated with many history nerds and normal people alike (that’s a joke I’m allowed to make as a history major). This show is proof that anachronism in historical fiction can sometimes really work to your advantage. Modern Language Sometimes the addition of more modern language can be useful in helping an audience better understand a time period. By this, I don’t mean that your Victorian characters should be saying “bruh” or “lol” in response to everything, but the language that you use can still be accessible to a modern audience. Let’s be honest here, classics are dense. Many of them are highly verbose bricks that are difficult to get through. This is no diss to classics, they obviously have earned their place in the literary canon, but the language can be hard to read. There is no need to emulate the language used in your time period in your own writing if you don’t want to. One example of this use of more modern language is The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller. The Song of Achilles is obviously not written in the same way as the Iliad, and I would say it falls more into the category of modern poetic prose. Though she still stays away from modern slang terms, it is definitely written in modern English, in a way that is very accessible to a modern audience. I think that this only adds to the strength of the book, as it is very easy to read, and the words seem to glide across the page. Using language that is more familiar to a modern audience can be helpful when writing your historical fiction novel, as it helps it be more accessible to modern readers. Of course, if writing in a classical style is your jam, there is no reason for you to change that based on this one article, as there is definitely still a market for classic-style writing Condensing Timelines Condensing timelines can make the pacing of a novel more compelling. Sometimes in history, things tend to be more drawn out, especially before the advent of modern communication. There is no shame in slightly condensing your timeline to keep the pacing of your novel quick and entertaining to read. You can feel free to gloss over certain bits that are less interesting, and/or change the timeline of events to move slightly quicker. You might not want to condense the timeline of major world events, (such as a world war), but sometimes there are events that happen over the course of years that might be better told in the course of months. All in all, the use of anachronism can really help spice up your historical writing and make it more accessible and appealing to modern audiences. Of course, you want to attempt to stay somewhat close to historical fact, but at the end of the day, a little anachronism can’t hurt. Nate Fahmiis a young writer from Ottawa, Canada. When he isn’t in school, he enjoys reading, writing, crochet, and playing with his two cats. Their favorite genres are horror and fantasy, and they enjoy all things strange. You can find him on Instagram at @nate_fahmi
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