Award-winning writer and historian Rebecca Stott @rebeccastott64 on how she immersed herself in 6th-century history for five years for her latest book Dark Earth, a historical story set in Londinium. We talk about how she balances researching and writing, accuracy in historical fiction and the importance of the 'history of emotions'. 

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ABOUT REBECCA STOTT

Rebecca Stott is the author of fifteen books, including works of literary criticism, fiction, and nonfiction. Her nonfiction books include Darwin and the Barnacle (Faber, 2003), Darwin’s Ghosts: In Search of the First Evolutionists (Bloomsbury, 2012), and Oyster in Reaktion’s Animal series (2003). Her first novel, the historical thriller Ghostwalk (2007), was a New York Times bestseller, translated into fourteen languages and shortlisted for several prizes, including the Society of Authors First Novel Award. Her second novel, the historical novel The Coral Thief (2012), was a BBC Book at Bedtime. Her memoir, In the Days of Rain (2017), won the Costa Biography Prize. Her third novel, Dark Earth, set in the sixth century, is published in the UK by Fourth Estate and in the US by Penguin Random House.

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QUOTES

“We can’t assume that people in the 17th Century grieved the same way that we grieve.”
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RESOURCES:

• Rebecca's newest book, Dark Earth
• Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall trilogy
• History of emotions
• Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned by Wells Tower
• 'Leaving the Ivory Tower' radio segment on BBC4
• Rebecca's memoir In the Days of Rain
• Freedom app
• Articles on Rebecca's writing process of Dark Earth
• Rebecca on Twitter @rebeccastott64
• Poets: R.S. Thomas, T.S. Eliot, Don Paterson, Elizabeth Bishop

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For show notes, transcripts and to attend our live podcasts visit: podcast.londonwriterssalon.com.

For free writing sessions, join free Writers’ Hours: writershour.com.

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FOLLOW LONDON WRITERS’ SALON

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If you’re enjoying this show, please rate and review this show!