Capturing The Historical Thread With Susan King
Photo: Susan King, the visionary author who bridges the gap between dusty medieval archives and the vibrant pulse of storytelling.
From The Artist’s Eye To The Medieval Page
Susan King discusses blending academic rigor with imaginative storytelling. By utilizing her art history background and hands-on research, she breathes authentic life into medieval Scotland, reclaiming historical figures from literary myths.
I n the world of historical fiction, few authors command as much respect for their meticulous craftsmanship as Susan King. With a career spanning over thirty novels and novellas, King has established herself as a master of the “long view,” bridging the gap between the dusty archives of academia and the vibrant, emotional pulse of storytelling. Best known for works like Lady Macbeth and Queen Hereafter, King’s narratives do more than just recount the past; they resurrect it.
In a recent conversation with Mosaic Digest, King opened up about her transition from art historian to USA Today bestselling author, the delicate alchemy of blending fact with fiction, and the physical lengths she has gone to—including catching arrows—to ensure her work rings true.
Susan King is a master of atmosphere, weaving impeccable scholarship with profound empathy to create the gold standard of historical fiction.
From the Gallery to the Page
King’s journey into the Middle Ages began not with a pen, but with a paintbrush and a slide projector. “I discovered historical fiction in grade school,” King recalls, “but in college, I went to art school, then graduate school in art history with a focus on medieval studies.”
This academic rigor provided a unique foundation for her literary career. Art history, she explains, is not just about looking at paintings; it is about visual observation and structured argument. “Crafting a strong research argument relies on structuring a beginning, middle, and end that hooks the reader,” she says. “Both art history and fiction evoke character and emotion when describing and analyzing artworks or in storytelling.” For King, a medieval tapestry and a novel’s plot are cousins—both require deep immersion and a clear, narrative thread to hold the viewer’s, or reader’s, attention.
Highlights
- The Visual Method: How a background in art history allows King to “see” the 11th century before writing it.
- Fact vs. Feeling: The delicate balance of “conjuring” history while staying tethered to the “historical thread.”
- The Shakespearean Elephant: The challenge of stripping away myths to find the real woman behind Lady Macbeth.
- Catching Arrows: King’s dedication to experiential research, including falconry and medieval combat tactics.
- The Flavor of Gaelic: Using sentence structure rather than thick dialect to ground her characters in their culture.
The Duality of Names: King and Fraser King
Readers may recognize her by two names: Susan King and Susan Fraser King. The distinction is more than just a nod to her Highland ancestry (her great-grandparents were Frasers); it represents a strategic approach to genre.
- Susan King: This identity is reserved for historical romance—adventure-laden tales that utilize the “generous parameters” of the genre to explore love, heroism, and even paranormal elements.
- Susan Fraser King: This “academic” moniker was requested by her publisher for her mainstream historical fiction. These works, like Lady Macbeth, are longer and more complex, following the strict chronology of verifiable historical events.
“I want my readers to feel immersed in the story while knowing it’s as close to the truth as the author could get,” King explains. This commitment to truth was particularly daunting when she tackled the history of Lady Macbeth. She describes the Shakespearean version of the character as “the elephant in the room.” By following “historical breadcrumbs” and Latin documents, King unearthed a woman far removed from the bloodthirsty villain of the stage—a queen rising out of a factual landscape of power and survival.
The Balance of Fact and Imagination
One of the greatest challenges for any historical novelist is knowing when to stick to the records and when to let the imagination soar. King views this as a difference in intent. While a nonfiction historian reconstructs the past through logic and analysis, the novelist “conjures” it to evoke a sense of place.
“A writer becomes an authority of sorts for the reader, and I try to stay cognizant of that by sticking close to the historical thread, though I’ll wander a bit where it serves the story.”
This “wandering” is always informed by a deep sense of authenticity. For King, it isn’t enough to know the date of a battle; she wants to know how the air felt and how the dialogue tasted.
Experiential Research: Catching Arrows and Finding “Bits o’ Wallace”
King’s dedication to research is legendary. To bring her stories to life, she has stepped out of the library and into the field—literally. She has taken lessons in falconry, the Celtic harp, and archery. “I once trained in catching arrows to learn how it could be done,” she admits, an example of the physical commitment she brings to her craft.
Her research trips to Scotland often yield treasures that no digital archive could provide. She recounts a rainy afternoon in Dunfermline where a local historian pointed out the legendary burial spot of the “bits o’ Wallace” (remains of William Wallace). These local legends and oral histories provide the “fresh angle” that sets her work apart.
Even the names of her characters are products of deep-sea diving into genealogy. While researching Lady Macbeth, she found the name “Gruoch” in a Latin document. However, finding a great-granddaughter named “Gruaidh” in Irish myth led her to rename her protagonist Gruadh. “Besides,” King quips with her characteristic wit, “I kept typing ‘Grouch.'”
Crafting the Historical Soul
Beyond the dates and the arrows, King’s novels are celebrated for their strong, intelligent heroines. She develops these characters by filtering research through a modern understanding of human motivation. “We’re all filters and models toward understanding what drives people,” she says.
To ensure her characters feel anchored in their time, she pays special attention to language. Rather than using dense, archaic Scots that might alienate a modern reader, she “salts” the story with linguistic flavor, such as using Gaelic phrase structures in dialogue. It is a subtle technique that creates an immersive atmosphere without sacrificing readability.
A Lasting Impression
Whether she is writing a sweeping romance or a dense historical epic, Susan King’s goal remains the same: to leave a lasting impression on the present by illuminating the past. Her work serves as a bridge, reminding us that while the settings change and the centuries pass, the core of the human experience—intrigue, love, and the quest for truth—remains eternal.
As King continues to explore the rugged landscapes of medieval Scotland, her readers remain safely in the hands of a master who has not only studied the history but has lived it, one arrow and one ancient document at a time.
