Opening the door to historical fiction.
For people who love exploring the past.
As the Arizona Chapter of the Historical Novel Society, we host free public events for readers, writers, and authors alternating between Phoenix and Tucson.
If you enjoy historical fiction of whatever kind and for whatever reason, you’re welcome to join us!
Scroll down for more information and details on upcoming events.
“Historical fiction makes us feel. It presents to us a truth more human than what history books present.”
— Susan Vreeland
Upcoming Events
December 9, 2023
Aimie K. Runyan
11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. — Author presentation, Q&A, book signing
Location: Armory Park Neighborhood ~ Historic “The Palmers” Building, circa 1909, Tucson, AZ
Complimentary light refreshments will be provided by HNS-AZ.
Runyan's novels will be available for purchase at the event through our partnership with Bookman's Entertainment Exchange.
Admission is FREE, though attendance is limited and reservations are appreciated.
Runyan is the author of five historical fiction novels, including Daughters of the Night Sky, Girls on the Line, Across the Winding River, The School for German Brides, and her upcoming release (August 2023), A Bakery in Paris. She has also written two historical romances set in New France.
In May 2023, she released a collaborative tri-period, historical novel set during 1870, 1917 and 1945, The Castle Keepers, with authors J'nell Ciesielski and Rachel McMillan. Runyan has been honored as a Historical Novel Society Editors’ Choice selection, as a three-time finalist for the Colorado Book Awards, and as a nominee for the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writer of the Year.
2024 - Save the Dates!
January 6 with Melissa Sevigny in Tucson
March 2 with Teresa Janssen in Phoenix
Details and RSVP links for these events will be available soon.
Past Event Highlights
August 12, 2023
Jessica McCann
Presented in partnership with SEEDS for Autism.
Award-winning novelist Jessica McCann discussed the relevance of neurodiverse characters in historical fiction. Her novel Peculiar Savage Beauty was named 2018 Arizona Book of the Year and shortlisted for the international 2020 Rubery Book Award. Publishers Weekly called it a “gripping, atmospheric novel [that] meshes a seminal event in American history with a suspenseful plot and insightfully etched characters.” Set in 1930s Kansas, the book’s main characters include Woody, an autistic savant born in an era long before any medical diagnosis would explain his peculiar ways and unique talents.
April 15, 2023
Ash Davidson
Presented in partnership with the Western National Parks Association.
Davidson joined us to discuss her writing journey and lessons learned publishing her critically-acclaimed debut novel Damnation Spring. The book won the Reading the West Award for Debut Fiction and was named a best book of the year by The Los Angeles Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, Newsweek, Kirkus, Amazon, the Chicago Public Library, BookPage and BookRiot. A resident of Flagstaff, Davidson is a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. She is currently at work on her second novel about a family of wildland firefighters in the American West.
February 11, 2023
Nancy E. Turner
Presented in partnership with SEEDS for Autism in Phoenix.
Bestselling Arizona author Nancy E. Turner, joined us to discuss aspects of historical fiction writing. Her debut novel, These is My Words, chronicles the spirited Sarah Agnes Prine living in Arizona Territory (and early Tucson) from 1881-1901. Winner of the Arizona Author Award, the novel also was a finalist for the Willa Cather Literary Award. Nancy’s most recent novel, Light Changes Everything, revisits Arizona Territory through Sarah Prine’s niece, Mary Pearl, in 1907. Nancy is the author of four additional works of historical fiction: Sarah’s Quilt, The Star Garden, The Water and the Blood, and My Name is Resolute.
Sign Up!
Our email includes details about upcoming events.
