"Most of my stories have some basis in fact"
About this Quote
Follett’s line is a quiet flex disguised as humility: a promise of plausibility that also inoculates him against the pickiest reader. “Most” does a lot of work. It concedes invention without surrendering authority, a hedge that keeps the novelist free while still letting the audience feel they’re getting something sturdier than pure fantasy. It’s a marketing sentence, sure, but it’s also a craft credo.
The subtext is about trust. Follett writes historical epics and thrillers that trade on the sensation that the world on the page has weight: the right kind of weapon, the right political pressure, the right social taboo. Saying there’s “some basis in fact” tells you he’s done the homework, then invites you to stop checking his citations and start surrendering to momentum. The phrase “some basis” is also a reminder that history itself is incomplete and contested; the novelist steps into the gaps with narrative logic, not footnotes.
Context matters because Follett’s readers often come to him for an experience that feels adjacent to education: the cathedral rises, the spy network tightens, the era’s textures become vivid. He’s signaling an ethic of realism rather than a claim of accuracy. The intent isn’t to lecture; it’s to anchor spectacle in research so the emotional stakes land harder. Fact becomes a scaffolding for fiction’s real job: making power, fear, and ambition feel lived-in, not laminated.
The subtext is about trust. Follett writes historical epics and thrillers that trade on the sensation that the world on the page has weight: the right kind of weapon, the right political pressure, the right social taboo. Saying there’s “some basis in fact” tells you he’s done the homework, then invites you to stop checking his citations and start surrendering to momentum. The phrase “some basis” is also a reminder that history itself is incomplete and contested; the novelist steps into the gaps with narrative logic, not footnotes.
Context matters because Follett’s readers often come to him for an experience that feels adjacent to education: the cathedral rises, the spy network tightens, the era’s textures become vivid. He’s signaling an ethic of realism rather than a claim of accuracy. The intent isn’t to lecture; it’s to anchor spectacle in research so the emotional stakes land harder. Fact becomes a scaffolding for fiction’s real job: making power, fear, and ambition feel lived-in, not laminated.
Quote Details
| Topic | Writing |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
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