How history and science influence writing

Have you ever read a book that stays with you? That you keep coming back to again and again? That despite the fantastical characters and unbelievable antics, they just felt… real?

For me, it was The Immortals series by Tamora Pierce. I started reading it when I was like 11 or 12, and even now, 20 years later, I keep coming back to it. Shapeshifting, international politics, conservation, divine parentage… it’s a beautiful mix of everything I love about fantasy and I’m craving to get my books out again.

Now, as a writer, I look back, trying to work out what it was I loved so much about the series, and the world itself. And I think a large part of it was how real it felt. How grounded. How both the shapeshifting and the international politics felt real.

In this blog post I’m going to explore three important ways that you can ground your fantasy worlds in reality:

• Using historical events as blueprints for your fantasy conflicts (cough Game of Thrones)
• Borrowing from cultural traditions and mythology to build authentic societies, magic structures, and magical creatures
• Applying scientific principles to create believable (yet fantastical) ecosystems.

Ready to go?

Learning from History

We see the same patterns throughout history. War, religion, marriage, treaties. Often real life is more absurd than any story could be, which is why it can be the most compelling source material for our writing. Think of George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series. Set to a backdrop of dragons and weird weather systems, the foundations of the major Stark vs Lannister conflict is the York vs Lancaster conflict of the War of the Roses.

I’m not suggesting that Martin copied the conflict battle by battle. But through studying the decades-long conflict, he could see how family loyalties, regional powers, and personal ambitions shape and change conflicts. The impact that ‘Kingmakers’ can have. The fantasy elements just enhance these dynamics. What story isn’t made better with dragons, after all?

Examples are everywhere once you start looking: Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn draws parallels to the French Revolution, while Mary Robinette Kowal’s The Calculating Stars reimagines the Space Race with a meteor strike twist.

To research historical periods without drowning in details:

• Start with children’s history books - they focus on the key events and players
• Use Wikipedia (particularly the simple English version) to get an overview, then follow the references for deeper dives
• Find YouTube channels that specialize in accessible historical content (like Crash Course or Extra History)

We’re not writing a history book, we’re using history as a springboard. Our stories don’t have to follow history verbatim to be grounded in reality.

Looking beyond Medieval Europe

Wait, fantasy doesn’t have to look like 14th century Europe? Popular literature is slowly catching up with the reality, and for the better. There is such a wealth of history, culture, and mythology to inspire our fiction (in a respectful, tasteful way). Throne of the Crescent Moon, by Saladin Ahmed demonstrates this perfectly, weaving Islamic folklore and Middle Eastern traditions into an epic fantasy quest to face a dark sorcerer (and who wouldn’t root for a protagonist who wishes that they could just drink some tea?).

Looking beyond the traditional backdrops and there is a wealth of inspiration. Innovation rises from necessity, and seeing how cultures are shaped by their environment can inspire a plethora of ideas. The Aztec city of Tenochtitlan was built on artificial islands in a lake, using sophisticated agricultural techniques to feed its population. Traditional Japanese architecture shows how cultural values translate into physical spaces; moving screens to rearrange living spaces, integrating of gardens into daily life, and the careful consideration of sight lines.

When researching different cultures for inspiration, remember that these are living traditions, not just story elements to be plucked out of context.

• Start with academic sources rather than pop culture interpretations
• Read works by authors from within the culture you’re researching
• Focus on understanding the ‘why’ behind traditions, not just the surface details
• Consider how belief systems and social structures shape daily life
• Look for common threads between different cultures that might inform your world-building

The goal isn’t to copy-paste cultural elements, but to understand how different societies solve universal human challenges in unique ways. This understanding can help you build more nuanced and believable fantasy worlds.

Beyond History: Science!

All good magic systems have grounding rules; what an individual action can and can’t achieve. Likewise, all fantasy or created systems need to be grounded in reality to feel realistic to the reader.

James Cameron’s Avatar offers a masterclass in science-based world-building. The ecosystem of Pandora demonstrates complex biological relationships—from the neural connections between Na’vi and their environment to the bioluminescent properties of the flora. It is not only visually striking, but also feels believable, tangible.

Likewise, The Immortals series by Tamora Pierce grounds its wild magic in a lot of animal research. When protagonist Daine transforms into various creatures, she doesn’t just change appearance—she experiences the world through that animal’s senses and instincts. What drew me into these books was how nuanced and distinct each shift felt, the way the animals, despite ‘speaking’, followed natural patterns. In her acknowledgements for each book, Pierce attributes all of the resources and contacts that help her expand her world-building, giving a glimpse into the work she puts in.

The goal isn’t to write a scientific paper—it’s to create enough plausibility that readers can suspend disbelief. As Arthur C. Clarke famously noted, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” The reverse can also be true: magic that follows consistent rules can feel as credible as science.

By grounding your stories in reality, whether historical or scientific, readers are more likely to accept the impossible because it grows from something familiar.