Biographer Gabriella Kelly-Davies chats with biographers across the world about the myriad of choices they make while researching, writing and publishing life stories. In every episode, she explores elements of narrative strategy such as structure, use of fiction techniques, facts and truth, beginnings and endings and to what extent the writer interpreted the evidence rather than providing clues and leaving it to readers to do the interpreting themselves. She also asks how they researched their books; how they balanced a subject’s public, personal and inner lives; and ethical issues, such as privacy and revealing secrets.
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Biographer Gabriella Kelly-Davies chats with biographers across the world about the myriad of choices they make while researching, writing and publishing life stories. In every episode, she explores elements of narrative strategy such as structure, use of fiction techniques, facts and truth, beginnings and endings and to what extent the writer interpreted the evidence rather than providing clues and leaving it to readers to do the interpreting themselves. She also asks how they researched their books; how they balanced a subject’s public, personal and inner lives; and ethical issues, such as privacy and revealing secrets.
In this episode of Biographers in Conversation, Diana Parsell chats with Dr Gabriella Kelly-Davies about her choices while crafting Eliza Scidmore: The Trailblazing Journalist Behind Washington’s Cherry Trees.
Here’s what you’ll discover in this episode:
Diana Parsell reveals how a reprinted travelogue led her to the forgotten story of Eliza Scidmore, a pioneering woman behind Washington’s iconic cherry trees.
Diana discusses Scidmore’s remarkable career as a travel writer, journalist, and early National Geographic board member.
Parsell reflects on the narrative power of her prologue, “A Grave in Yokohama,” and the decisions behind her book’s compelling structure.
She describes the challenges of researching a 19th-century woman whose archives were scattered, incomplete or inaccessible.
How Eliza’s personality, passions and persistence drove the plot of her biography.
How thematic timelines and scene-building created a vivid, cinematic portrayal of Scidmore’s global travels.
The literary techniques and authorial choices that shaped the biography’s immersive style and emotional depth.
Advice to first-time biographers about the balance between historical truth, narrative craft and ethical storytelling.
Biographers in Conversation
Biographer Gabriella Kelly-Davies chats with biographers across the world about the myriad of choices they make while researching, writing and publishing life stories. In every episode, she explores elements of narrative strategy such as structure, use of fiction techniques, facts and truth, beginnings and endings and to what extent the writer interpreted the evidence rather than providing clues and leaving it to readers to do the interpreting themselves. She also asks how they researched their books; how they balanced a subject’s public, personal and inner lives; and ethical issues, such as privacy and revealing secrets.
