Over the past year, I've taken some time to muse, study, and read on the subject of characters in historical fiction. I've retained some of what passed through my brain, and I'm going to pass it on . . . it's a thing I do. This column is dedicated, then, to characterization, voice, period research, and realism.

It has occurred to me lately that TV programming is a great way to explain what I consider to be one the biggest problems with books, the public, and publishing today—if not the biggest. The epiphany came to me first while watching the new program The Mentalist which is about a psychic turned detective who lost his wife and family to a serial killer he'd insulted on a live television broadcast. The problem is a very deeply rooted one, and I'm pretty well convinced that it's not one that can be fixed—but I think, at the same time, we need to remain aware of it.

So, I'm sure you've all been following the trials and tribulations of James Cameron and Simcha Jacobovici as they try to convince the world that a tomb unearthed back in the 1980s in Jerusalem is actually Jesus' family crypt. There are a lot of lessons to be learned in a debacle like this, and there are infinite plot lines for future stories and novels, so pay attention. First I'm going to tell you why I believe they never intended to prove anything. Then I'm going to tell you why they never had a chance of proving anything even if they wanted to . . .