When does Historical Fiction end and Contemporary Fiction begin?
Take the poll in today’s post so we can attempt to get to the bottom of this, then join this dialogue. I want to know what you think in time for Thursday’s post! [Updated from 2025 Archive]
I have seen a lot of recently published fiction that takes place in the 1990s being labeled as Historical Fiction and, well … It has stirred up a lot of questions and feelings for me and others in my age bracket (based on various casual conversations I have had with fellow book lovers online as of late).
I don’t know about you, but I was actually alive during the 1990s and reflexively cringe when I hear the era being referred to as Historical Fiction when it’s written about in novels. The 1990s were not that long ago and I am not that old! Old enough to be considered historical?! Come on! At least, that was my initial reaction…
Then, once I got over feeling offended, I started to wonder what fictional works I would personally classify as Historical Fiction. Certainly, works covering eras before I was born. But that is clearly of zero interest, and decidedly unhelpful, to publishers classifying various works of fiction they intend to sell. And if I’m being honest, I don’t think I would classify anything that took place during the 1990s as Contemporary Fiction, as the 1990s era was entirely different from the contemporary world we live in… but I am still on the fence.
So, I’m curious about what you think.
Do you think Historical Fiction should be defined as fiction that is set in the past that is not ‘contemporary’?
If so, what fictional works should be classified as Contemporary Fiction?
Should Contemporary Fiction include works about anything that takes place within the last decade? Which would mean that Historical Fiction could include works with timelines from the 2010s?!
Or should Contemporary Fiction include anything that has a timeline after the internet and social media started becoming more popular?
Unfortunately, all my questions on this topic only spur more questions.
So, let’s see if we can come up with some kind of consensus. Take the poll, then leave a comment with your reasoning for your responses below to see if we can figure this out!