History writers have a choice: relaying a story bound by fact and record to produce a non-fiction account, or bring the people and times alive with a narrative arc. Acclaimed author Elizabeth Cobbs has succeeded in both.

Her best-selling historical novel The Hamilton Affair gave life and depth to Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton and his wife, Eliza. Her nonfiction account of World War I telephone operators, The Hello Girls, became an off-Broadway musical.

Now she's turned her deft hand to American hero Harriet Tubman in her new book The Tubman Command. This "Moses" of the Underground Railroad risked her life regularly to conduct escaped slaves to freedom. Cobbs fleshes out the facts of record into a fully-rounded tale of a strong woman, her times, and her love.

Join Elizabeth Cobbs and Kepler's Literary Foundation journalist in residence Angie Coiro for an evening of fact, fiction, and writerly prowess.