Historical fiction writer Karen Odden found her niche writing historical fiction set in 1870s London. Now, she wants to share her passion with others by hosting a slideshow discussion for readers and history buffs alike.
Odden said you do not need to have read her book, “Under a Veiled Moon” to attend the free event Thursday at the Park City Library.
The talk is titled “Victorian Murder, Mayhem and Mystery and Why Historical Fiction Matters Now.” As Odden explained, we have a lot in common with the Victorians 150 years ago. She pointed to four Scotland Yard senior inspectors tried and convicted for accepting bribes in 1877.
“Trust with the police, the racism against the Irish, which was virulent and horrible at the time, the newspapers, the divisions between gender, the gender discrimination, the class divisions, all of this feels very much modern to me,” Odden said. “And I think that writing historical fiction and reading it and talking about it enables us to talk about some of the things that are troubling us now.”
Odden will host a second event Saturday for other Park City writers. Last year, Odden’s workshop helped develop backstory. This year her workshop will focus on developing secondary characters to prepare writers for National Novel Writing Month in November.
“The backstory workshop and then this workshop on secondary characters were intended to help people start getting some of the infrastructure in place so writing a novel is easier.”
Both of the events are free. The writing workshop is Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon at the Park City Library. Registration is required.