Tracy Chevalier and Dr Karen Skinazi on delving into the past through fiction

Acclaimed novelist Tracy Chevalier, best known for her second novel Girl with a Pearl Earring, which was later adapted into a film starring Scarlett Johansson and Colin Firth, and Dr Karen Skinazi, Senior Lecturer and the Director of Liberal Arts at the University of Bristol, are participants in the inaugural Genesis Jewish Book Week Emerging Writers' Programme, which champions and supports selected emerging writers in the UK through mentorship and bursaries. The pair discuss their mentor/mentee relationship and how it supports Karen as she writes her latest novel, Ness. They also share why they enjoy writing about the past and the challenges it can bring.