Use objects to inspire historical fiction writing

In October 2021, author Alex Wheatle toured schools around Scotland, discussing his book Cane Warriors and true story that inspired it. Set in Jamaica in 1760, it tells the story of a real life rebellion in a British-owned slave plantation. Alex drew upon materials available in the UK and travelled to Jamaica to research the revolt and pin down the historical facts to inspire his story. You can read more in his top tips for writing historical fiction.

The International Slavery Museum, based in Liverpool, offer some fantastic online resources(this link will open in a new window) on the history of the slave trade which can be used as a starting point for writing. The museums virtual tour(this link will open in a new window) is the ideal place to start. You can follow a tour of the gallery spaces, and look at high quality images of the artefacts and information on display. Choose one of the images, quotes or stories you can see as part of the virtual tour to inspire your writing. Write a short piece of historical fiction, a short story or poem inspired by an an object. The questions below are to help you get started.

Explore your senses

Think about your sense in relation to your chosen object. It might help to imagine holding it in your hands as you answer these questions:

• How does it feel in your hand or when you touch it?
• What does it smell of? Is it metallic or fresh, or dusty?
• What do you hear when you hold it or stand near it? What sound do you image? Or if it can make a sound, what do you hear?
• What do you see when you look at it? This could be descriptive, but also what you imagine when you see it.

Weave the answers to these questions into your writing. Including reference to the senses in your writing can help add detail and richness to your story or poem.

Other questions to consider

Once you have chosen an object or story you want to write about, you might want to do some more research on that object and explore all the information on International Slavery Museum website(this link will open in a new window) in more detail. Other questions to explore could be:

• How might this object have been used?
• Who used to own it?
• How did it end up in the museum? What was it's journey?

Alex Wheatle touring schools as part of Black History Month, find more resources by visiting the Anti-racism section of our website, or using our Understanding and challenging racism resource.

The Scottish Friendly Children's Book Tour ran for over 25 years, ending in March 2025. To find out abour future school events, see our Schools events and opportunities webpage(this link will open in a new window).