Frontier newspapers in 1870s
Each chapter of Iron Horse Claim ends with an 1870s newspaper article that is relevant to events unfolding in the story. Except for stories “published” by the Dakota Dispatch (the newspaper I created for my imaginary town of Shady Bluffs), these articles were found in the Library of Congress Newspaper Collections – actual, digitized pages […]
On the Dakota Frontier audiobooks are coming!
Earlier this year, I was invited to speak to a book club comprised of retired teachers. One of the members asked if my books were available on audio because she had lost her sight and relied on audiobooks. I’ve considered producing audiobooks, but the cost of creating high-quality audiobooks is a significant investment for independent […]
South Dakota’s women homesteaders
My historical fiction series, On the Dakota Frontier, tells the stories of women homesteaders who stake claims in Dakota Territory in the 1800s. And, while the stories are based on considerable research, they’re still fiction. Earlier this year, I was contacted regarding writing a nonfiction book about the real women homesteaders who came to South […]
Railroad slang and jargon
Some industries just have more colorful slang than others — as I learned when researching background information for Iron Horse Claim. Early railroading was a good example of unique jargon. Some railroad slang made it into the common lexicon, such as caboose, graveyard, pencil pusher, and riprap, while other railroad slang was strictly confined to […]
Windmills on the prairie
There are two themes running through Iron Horse Claim: railroads and windmills. Both of these innovations transformed the nation, particularly the West. Windmills had been around for centuries, but the ability to manufacture and mass-produce windmills didn’t occur until the mid-1800s. In 1854, Daniel Halladay designed the first self-regulating model. Other inventors followed, such as […]
Iron Horse Claim tells Lizzy’s story
Medicine Creek Claim told the story of two sisters who left war-torn Missouri during the Civil War to start new lives in Dakota Territory. Except it didn’t tell both sisters’ stories. I had written three-quarters of the novel when I realized I had told Charlotte’s story. What about Lizzy? I had two choices. I could […]
Chapter epilogues
Epilogues – those summaries at the end of the book – are intended to provide closure to the story or offer a glimpse into what happens after the main narrative ends. Readers of the On the Dakota Frontier series are familiar with some sort of “chapter ender” element in all the books. Proving Her Claim used […]
The tyranny of deadlines
I was ruled by deadlines throughout my professional career in advertising and marketing. Most of them were not self-imposed deadlines; rather, I had to finish my portion of the project in order for someone else to begin their contributions. Early in my career, I was a copywriter, writing scripts for television commercials. I had to […]
Naming characters: what I’ve learned
While writing my current novel, I realized I was re-using names for new characters. That’s confusing for readers. It’s also a violation of the Author Rule (I made that up), but it should be avoided. There are guidelines for naming characters. In a blog I wrote several years ago, naming characters, I referred to Writers’ […]