William C Hammond (on Writing Historical Novels)

Data confirms that people read fiction primarily for entertainment and for an escape, but they read historical fiction also to learn about history: their own country’s history or the history of some specific place. So in a real sense the author of historical fiction becomes a teacher of history - the “fiction” part notwithstanding - and as a teacher, the author must endeavor to be as accurate as possible about the historical era he or she is writing about, as well as the definitions and terms associated with that era.
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US author of four naval novels set in the 19th century, William C Hammond, at http://writinghistoricalnovels.com/2013/01/28/researching-for-historical-novels-by-william-c-hammond-guest-article