How do I make a historical fiction book seem real?

Question

I am writing a story tentatively called Planes And Towers. It is a historical fiction book about siblings, Molly and Jacob Johnson, who are going on a trip to New York on September 11, 2001. They are inside the World Trade Center, where their parents, Ashley and Dylan, work. Somehow they learn of plans for a terrorist attack and have to convince their parents to escape and find a way out of the World Trade Center themselves. At the end, only Jacob and his parents escape, and Molly is stuck inside one of the towers.

I love these characters and plot, but I don't think that it feels real enough. I don't know if this would be a good enough story to put on the shelves. I don't know if it captures the mood of the brave people who were there on 9/11.

Should I add something to make it feel more real?

Answer 1

Well, do your research.

Read eye-witness reports about 9/11. Look at photos and movies of what the World Trade Center looked like before, during, and after the attrack. Acquire the detail knowledge to describe everything – from the location to the actual events to the impact they had on the people – in realistic detail.

But at the same time don't overdo it. Readers don't want to read a scientific report. Allow them to fill in the gaps with their own ideas, knowledge, and imagination.

Answer 2

A place for you to start is to understand why your story doesn’t feel real.

Is the setting solid? Does the writing convey a tangible sense of place? Do the characters interact with this setting? I’d imagine that the idea of walking all those stairs to escape encompass a lot of emotions for the characters. As would the view from the windows — so high and even seeing the aircraft.

Do the characters act and react to the situation in ways that reveal their inner state: emotions, thoughts, opinions, attitudes?

Assessing writing is this way is called critical reading. Its an important skill to master since it enables learning writing and storytelling techniques from authors that you enjoy. And it lets you dispassionately assess your own writing.