When Writing A History Book...

[Walkman93]

Hi all,

 

I'm writing a mini history booklet (with illustrations) on the history of Detroit with regards to its Black population.

 

My question is, what permissions do I need when discussing historical figures, many of whom are still alive?

 

I just read, Lies My Teacher Told Me and there's no way the author consulted with the heirs of Lincoln and Ho Chi Minh. Is it free game? It's nothing scandalous or inflammatory. Just history.

[Gibran]

35 minutes ago, Walkman93 said:

Hi all,

 

I'm writing a mini history booklet (with illustrations) on the history of Detroit with regards to its Black population.

 

My question is, what permissions do I need when discussing historical figures, many of whom are still alive?

 

I just read, Lies My Teacher Told Me and there's no way the author consulted with the heirs of Lincoln and Ho Chi Minh. Is it free game? It's nothing scandalous or inflammatory. Just history.

I would suspect that if you are writing about history, then all you are doing is recording the truth as it relates to that person, place, or thing.  Any and all info on historical people, places or things are a part of the public record so you are not prohibited from repeating facts. However, you do not have the reward to bend the truth or to slander. One of the things about celebrity, whether famous or infamous, is that you surrender your privacy

[Walkman93]

On 10/28/2020 at 5:55 PM, Gibran said:

I would suspect that if you are writing about history, then all you are doing is recording the truth as it relates to that person, place, or thing.  Any and all info on historical people, places or things are a part of the public record so you are not prohibited from repeating facts. However, you do not have the reward to bend the truth or to slander. One of the things about celebrity, whether famous or infamous, is that you surrender your privacy

Sounds good. I'll make sure to keep it as unbiased as possible. Thank you!

[Gibran]

On 10/30/2020 at 5:17 PM, Walkman93 said:

Sounds good. I'll make sure to keep it as unbiased as possible. Thank you!

Peace. A few days ago I saw a promotion about a book that was based on  black Detroit. Write your book now. It won't ever be too late, but since there is a book already out in that vein, a wise thing to do would be to piggy-back on the publicity that book might generate. Let that book do all the heavy lifting and you just get as much benefit as possible. Even if it is a bad book, you can promote your book as 'an upgrade'. If it is a good one, you can talk smack about it anyway, just to draw attention to your book, Nothing sells better than controversy. Peace