The Colour of Power Author Marie Heese Reveals Pleasures and Pitfalls of Writing Historical Novels

by Chris on Jul 22nd, 2011

Marie Heese, author of The Colour of Power and the Commonwealth Prize-winning novel The Double Crown, says that when writing a historical novel, you have to be careful not to tell the reader too much.

If an author has done a lot of research on a historical period, as she did on Ancient Egypt for The Double Crown and the Byzantine Empire for The Colour of Power, there is the temptation to include too much information in the novel. “There are all of these lovely things you know and want to include, but it can cause the novel to sag, so it’s a fine line to tread,” Heese told Natalie Bosman:

It’s a talented author that can write about the past with such ease and accessibility that it seems as though the plot is taking place in the present. In her latest historical fiction novel The Colour Of Power, South African author Marié Heese whisks her readers through the incredible rise to power of Empress Theodora, one of the Byzantine Empire’s most powerful women figures.

Her lengthy academic career – including an MA (English) (cum laude) and D Litt et Phil – explains her love of the research element required to write a book of this magnitude, but there’s another reason behind Heese’s choice of the historical fiction genre.