The celebrated novelist Andrea Barrett has for decades reached backward to find inspiration from the past, and written acclaimed and prize-winning works of historical fiction. In Dust and Light, her first non-fiction work, Barrett draws from that deep well of experience to explore the mysteries, methods and delights of the form. She reveals how she created some of her own beloved works, taking readers on a fascinating journey into some of the largest questions in the genre. Building on pieces originally published in leading literary magazines, Dust and Light is an elegant exploration of the hazy borderlands of fiction sewn from the materials of history. Filled with profound insights, it will be a delight for any devoted fiction readers, and of great use to aspiring writers too.