Answer: conduct research to gather relevant facts and details of the era
Step-by-step explanation:
The options to the question are:
a. develop diverse fictional characters that function effectively in fiction
b. solely give factual evidence to support the themes and messages
c. conduct research to gather relevant facts and details of the era
d. create plots that have the same outcomes as those in history
Historical fiction simply means a fiction or story that happened in the past. The step that writers must first accomplish in order to build believable story elements whithin historical fiction is to conduct research to gather relevant facts and details of the era.
Since historical fiction has to do with the past, it is vital for the writer to know what really happened in the past so as to be able to write the story and make it believable.