As some of you know, I've written four historical romance novels -- and I'll assert all day long that historical romance belongs squarely in the category of historical fiction (and, of course, the category of romance). In my Cowbird Creek books, I list research sources in the Acknowledgments section. In the first book, What Heals the Heart, that section took two pages. By the second book, What Frees the Heart, it was three times as long. In Book 3, What Shows the Heart, it stretched to a ridiculous twelve pages. By Book 4, What Wakes the Heart, I essentially gave up, including only the people with whom I'd directly communicated in an Acknowledgments section as short as the one in the first book, while putting a two-page list of research subjects in the Author's Note.
All of which is to say that I took historical research seriously when writing historical romance. But for The Decision, my first non-romance historical fiction as well as the first novel connected to my family history, I took one step further. I've often corresponded with reference librarians and museum staff, but this time, I also hunted down and consulted professors of 20th century German history. Seven of them, in fact. These historians recommended books for me to read, answered what must have looked like peculiarly random questions (based on scenes in my rough draft), and in several cases, actually read my semifinal draft to flag errors. They were notably generous with their time and expertise, and I owe them a great debt of gratitude. (They are of course listed in the Acknowledgments.)
I've never visited Nebraska (in which the fictional small town of Cowbird Creek would have been located) or Berlin. But neither the late 19th century nor pre-World War II Berlin are accessible by any available transit -- except that of imagination, buttressed by the guidelines research can provide.
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