Ask the Author: Erin Lindsay McCabe
Answered Questions (7)
Erin Lindsay McCabe
Hi Mary! Thanks so much for choosing I Shall Be Near To You for your book club-- what an honor! There are discussion questions on my website, which you can find here: https://erinlindsaymccabe.com/the-nov...
These questions are also available in the paperback version of the book.
Unfortunately, it's gotten tricky to find working links for many of the radio interviews I've done about the book, but here's a written interview: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-an...
I've also written quite a few articles about aspects of the novel:
https://archive.nytimes.com/opinionat...
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/women-...
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/milita...
You can find more interviews and articles on my website, on the "News and Events" page, especially if you scroll down to 2014-2015, though I've included many of them above.
I hope this helps, and I hope you have a fantastic discussion about the book! I'm always happy to join bookclubs via Zoom-- if that's of interest, feel free to shoot me an email at erin@erinlindsaymccabe.com.
Thanks again for choosing I Shall Be Near To You! I hope you love Rosetta and Jeremiah and Will!
These questions are also available in the paperback version of the book.
Unfortunately, it's gotten tricky to find working links for many of the radio interviews I've done about the book, but here's a written interview: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-an...
I've also written quite a few articles about aspects of the novel:
https://archive.nytimes.com/opinionat...
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/women-...
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/milita...
You can find more interviews and articles on my website, on the "News and Events" page, especially if you scroll down to 2014-2015, though I've included many of them above.
I hope this helps, and I hope you have a fantastic discussion about the book! I'm always happy to join bookclubs via Zoom-- if that's of interest, feel free to shoot me an email at erin@erinlindsaymccabe.com.
Thanks again for choosing I Shall Be Near To You! I hope you love Rosetta and Jeremiah and Will!
Erin Lindsay McCabe
Hi Tiff!
Oh gosh... I'm trying to think of books you might not have already heard about. Of course I loved Outlander, but I bet you've already read that.
Some other novels with love stories that I've really loved are:
1. The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon, which isn't exactly a romance but which has a wonderful depiction of a long-lasting marriage that I thought was lovely. It probably won't give you the "romance" vibe, but it does have multiple love stories in it.
2. If you haven't read the Veronica Speedwell series by Deanna Raybourn, it's pretty wonderful. Romance isn't the focus (it's historical mystery), but the relationship between Veronica and Stoker is pretty delightful. I keep reading this series just for them.
3. If you like historical fantasy, I recently enjoyed the Divine Rivals series which has an epistolary romance during wartime. And I ALSO really loved the Diviners series by Libba Bray which is sort of historical paranormal/horror, I guess. That makes it sound weird! But it has multiple love stories woven into the larger story.
4. Lovely War by Julie Berry is gorgeous-- just ignore the cover and the back flap copy which just doesn't do the story justice at all! It's also an epistolary wartime love story (x3!) and has a literary style. The audiobook version includes music and is a full cast recording-- wonderful!
5. An older novel I read and adored ages ago and which I keep meaning to reread is Possession by A.S. Byatt. It's another epistolary love story (I'm noticing a theme here, lol!), this one with two different timelines... And in a similar vein but less "literary" in style, there's Letters from Skye by Jessica Brockmole and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer.
6. If you haven't read it, These Is My Words by Nancy E. Turner has a sparkling voice and tons of heart and humor AND a beautiful love story (it's also a diary so another epistolary, lol).
7. If you like historical romance that's historically accurate, then you can't go wrong with Evie Dunmore's League of Extraordinary Women series (suffragists who all find creative ways to enjoy relationships while maintaining their independence) or Mimi Matthews Belles of London series.
I hope this gives you some ideas-- I'd love to hear if you read any of these and what you think of them!
Oh gosh... I'm trying to think of books you might not have already heard about. Of course I loved Outlander, but I bet you've already read that.
Some other novels with love stories that I've really loved are:
1. The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon, which isn't exactly a romance but which has a wonderful depiction of a long-lasting marriage that I thought was lovely. It probably won't give you the "romance" vibe, but it does have multiple love stories in it.
2. If you haven't read the Veronica Speedwell series by Deanna Raybourn, it's pretty wonderful. Romance isn't the focus (it's historical mystery), but the relationship between Veronica and Stoker is pretty delightful. I keep reading this series just for them.
3. If you like historical fantasy, I recently enjoyed the Divine Rivals series which has an epistolary romance during wartime. And I ALSO really loved the Diviners series by Libba Bray which is sort of historical paranormal/horror, I guess. That makes it sound weird! But it has multiple love stories woven into the larger story.
4. Lovely War by Julie Berry is gorgeous-- just ignore the cover and the back flap copy which just doesn't do the story justice at all! It's also an epistolary wartime love story (x3!) and has a literary style. The audiobook version includes music and is a full cast recording-- wonderful!
5. An older novel I read and adored ages ago and which I keep meaning to reread is Possession by A.S. Byatt. It's another epistolary love story (I'm noticing a theme here, lol!), this one with two different timelines... And in a similar vein but less "literary" in style, there's Letters from Skye by Jessica Brockmole and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer.
6. If you haven't read it, These Is My Words by Nancy E. Turner has a sparkling voice and tons of heart and humor AND a beautiful love story (it's also a diary so another epistolary, lol).
7. If you like historical romance that's historically accurate, then you can't go wrong with Evie Dunmore's League of Extraordinary Women series (suffragists who all find creative ways to enjoy relationships while maintaining their independence) or Mimi Matthews Belles of London series.
I hope this gives you some ideas-- I'd love to hear if you read any of these and what you think of them!
Erin Lindsay McCabe
Hi Michelle!
My apologies for taking so long to answer you! My favorite time period to write about is probably 1750-1900. I like writing about times which are long enough ago to not be in anyone's living memory, but recent enough that the resonances with today still feel incredibly relevant.
Thanks so much for the question!
Best,
Erin
My apologies for taking so long to answer you! My favorite time period to write about is probably 1750-1900. I like writing about times which are long enough ago to not be in anyone's living memory, but recent enough that the resonances with today still feel incredibly relevant.
Thanks so much for the question!
Best,
Erin
Erin Lindsay McCabe
Hi Cindy! I am indeed working on a new novel. I just sent it off to my agent, in fact, so cross your fingers that he likes it!
This new novel is set in 1905 and takes its inspiration from the adopted daughter of female serial killer Belle Gunness. Like I Shall Be Near To You, the story is about the secrets we keep and why we keep them. It's also about love. And murder.
While I wait to hear back from my agent, I'm researching an idea for my *next* next novel-- that's what all the pioneer and Olive Oatman books are doing on my Goodreads shelves.
This new novel is set in 1905 and takes its inspiration from the adopted daughter of female serial killer Belle Gunness. Like I Shall Be Near To You, the story is about the secrets we keep and why we keep them. It's also about love. And murder.
While I wait to hear back from my agent, I'm researching an idea for my *next* next novel-- that's what all the pioneer and Olive Oatman books are doing on my Goodreads shelves.
Erin Lindsay McCabe
This answer contains spoilers…
(view spoiler)
Erin Lindsay McCabe
According to the book They Fought Like Demons, there is only one documented African American woman who served in a Colored Union regiment disguised as a man, and the information about her is very scant. The real Rosetta does briefly mention "contraband" (slaves who escaped to the North were initially considered spoils of war) and also black men being drafted along with white men, but that's it. Slavery just didn't seem to be a motivating factor for the real Rosetta to join the Army (though it certainly was a reason other women enlisted). For this reason, it really wasn't a focus of my research, which means I don't know how much material is out there about African Americans who enlisted. For now, I don't feel a strong pull to write another Civil War novel-- I need a break from battle scenes-- but certainly if a character decided to speak to me, I would tell her story!
Erin Lindsay McCabe
There are just so many interesting tidbits about the women who fought-- for instance, there is one known African American woman who fought. There were 6 women who served while pregnant and at least two who gave birth in the ranks. There were women who went alone-- without husbands or family members (including my original inspiration, Sarah Rosetta Wakeman). There were two women who continued living as men for most of the rest of their lives (Jennie Hodgers is one, the other is known only as Otto). There are definitely other stories to be told about the women who fought, but I'm not sure there's anything that I would want to add to (fictional) Rosetta's experience. I did really wish there were a way to address the issue of slavery through her perspective, but the real Rosetta never mentions slavery in any of her letters, mentioning only that black men had been drafted along with white men, and a brief mention of "contraband." That silence was something I wanted to stay true to-- I felt that it revealed a truth about many of the soldiers who fought that we tend to overlook now--that many of them were not fighting to end slavery. I don't know if that really answers your question-- the women who fought are just so fascinating and I feel like there is still so much we don't (and probably won't ever) know about them.
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