Ah, the joys of writing historical fiction or fantasy. What do you try to get “right” when you build your setting and characters, and what do you elide, or just omit entirely? Sarah’s comment the agent who said she should show human sacrifice as a positive good touched on a dilemma I’m currently facing: How accurate should I be?
The book is set in, um, well, roughly late Iron Age Scotland, on the western side of the Island of the Mighty. So the culture is broadly Celtic, be it more Irish Celtic or Brythonic/Pictish. This means a pagan world, with sacrifices. So … what about human sacrifice?
If the book were accurate to the archaeology and Classical sources, human sacrifice would be seen my the characters as a positive good, just like sacrificing a sheep or cow, or valuable goods. The various peoples called “Celtic” practiced human sacrifice, as did most other humans in Eurasia, as far as we can tell. There was nothing “wrong” about it. Modern readers, however … might balk at a “good guy” enthusing about why offing someone by, oh, burying them alive (or mostly alive) to ensure that a wall or bridge remained standing was a great and standard thing.
Casual violence that was normal in the premodern world would make readers run, unless it is very carefully written and makes very, very good story sense. Now, I have one advantage, in that the protagonist should not have to fight, because he’s a member of, well, a sort of protected class. He can fight if he has no choice, but prefers to use words, wit, and avoiding trouble as opposed to defaulting to sword, knife, or spear. However, his world is, by today’s standards, very violent, with casual brutality the norm. So that I’m eliding.
There are other details that readers would prefer not to be immersed in. The scent of a medieval city in summer comes to mind. I’ve been in Vienna and a few other places in summer, when the air temp is on the edge of hot, and the walls and stone buildings reflect and trap the heat. Now, add garbage, manure of various kinds, mudflats and perhaps tanning and slaughter house scents if the wind is right (or wring), wood or coal smoke … An EPA air quality specialist would flee, shrieking, from Medieval Hamburg or Vienna.
Mad Genius Club 
9 responses to “Accuracy vs. Reader Expectations”
the causal slavery of medieval eras would drive away a lot of readers, too…. especially if you don’t mention they’re white… or maybe if you do!
Or if the slavery was in ancient times.
But what’s worse IMO is when the POV character (a person of that time) defends slavery. (Especially if the reader (like me) knows that a person of that time wouldn’t see the need of defending slavery. IE the person is telling the story to people would see slavery as a fact of life.)
And defends it anachronistically.
I recall reading a history book about al-Andalus that quoted several manuscripts of the time written to advise young taifa lords. Including idly describing how the best way to keep your harem girls/sex slaves in line was to make them all watch while you took then prettiest of them, tied her to a post, poured lantern oil over her face, and set it on fire. Don’t let her die, just put her out in the streets to live there. All of it said in a very bored and casual ‘well how else are you supposed to make them obedient’ fashion.
I like to think that most of the young amirs who read that didn’t actually follow that advice.
I’ve known one or two writers who, along with myself, tried to present the past or worlds based on it in a ‘warts and all’ fashion. It can get grim, though it helps to present the main character refusing to engage in horrible behavior for reasons that make sense in their time.
Like a soldier/mercenary I once wrote a little about who was on campaign for the first time along with his uncle, who refused to plunder and/or abuse local peasant women when he was taunted over his ‘weakness’ by fellow soldiers. Less out of any sense of decency than simply because he didn’t like the man taunting him, and he remembered his father and uncles warning him about a cousin who DID do that years ago and ended up with his throat cut by the woman. Or who’d seen what happened when you were forced to retreat through a territory you’d plundered and the locals knew you were helpless and being hunted by men who’d pay for your body.
Eh, depends on the region. Mostly you had serfdom, and serfs were at least persons at law. Most slaves were household slaves, which tended to be easier.
I’ve read that it’s mostly confusing medieval, mainly Western European serfdom with the later, post-Enlightenment and especially Russian sort of serfdom. They were two very different beasts.
One thing I like about an implied magitech background is that it allows you to elide so much.
The Stiger Chronicles made the “go with detail” decision. Sword and pike fighting is ugly. I knew this, but “seeing” it laid out was grim. On the other hand, I very much enjoyed learning about marching an army of thousands around the countryside. It’s SLOW. It’s also hard to write without boring the reader; he did a good job.