If you’re writing a book, chances are you will need to be familiar with history. The genre of your book, of course, will dictate to what extent you will need to know history.

If you are writing a character into your story and you have him fighting a battle in WWII, make sure you don’t have him born in 1938. If your story takes place during a certain time period, become familiar with that period. What was happening at that time? Who was the president? What cars were popular? How did they talk?

Having a broad knowledge when it comes to history can help you cope with today’s events as well. Harry S. Truman was quoted as saying, “The only thing new in the world is the history you don’t know.” Kind of makes you think.

The next time you turn on the TV and you hear, “Breaking News!” “Happening Overnight!” “A Bombshell in Washington!”, maybe you won’t be as shocked at what you’re hearing. You’ll know that what they are reporting-with their red banners- is not new but has happened before. Look to history to ease your anxiety. What caused this before? How did they solve the problem? Of course, be careful choosing the source of your information (can’t be too careful today).

Having knowledge of history will improve the detail in your writing. And, as an added benefit, it may reduce your stress level the next time you hear, “This is unprecedented.”