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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/46012
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/46012
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Exactly how you do it depends of course on your story. One way is to simply use them with no explanation and let the reader figure it out over time. Or you can indicate the past within the quotes themselves.

_The Queen of the Tearling_ does something similar to what you're doing. Each chapter opens with a set aside quote at the top from a historian. Each is about the Queen and cites her words during this time of turmoil (the period the book is about). The first few I just glossed over, but then I figured out what was happening and went back and read them again (it took a while because this Queen has multiple names and we hadn't heard "The Glynn Queen" yet).

The novel (trilogy actually) itself is told as if the events were happening now. It's not in present tense but it has an immediacy about it (as most novels do). Yet it's not at all odd to have the "modern day" historian's quotes. The book is not framed such that the historian is presenting the material. More that the narrator is including some quotes to round the story out.

[![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/ehfsN.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/ehfsN.png)

To deal with the grammatical part, just set the quote aside. If you have quotes before each chapter, change the margins and italicize it. You may also wish to create a line or other separation between it and the rest of the chapter.

If you just have one quote, and it starts the novel, put it into a prologue. Make it stand alone. If it's short, center it on the page and italicize it. It will set the stage for the rest.

Original score: 3