AMERICAN HISTORICAL NOVELS discussion

Join us this week on American Historical Novels for our host Fred Dickey, author of Days of Hope, Miles of Misery!

AUTHOR INTERVIEW: MONDAY (DAY 1)

Rebecca Rosenberg: Hello, Fred, and thank you for hosting this week. We are looking forward to hearing about your new release, DAYS OF HOPE, MILES OF MISERY – LOVE AND LOSS ON THE OREGON TRAIL.

Fred: Thanks for having me here for this book interview, Rebecca!

And to everyone: Fred Dickey will be hosting a signed print book Giveaway on AHN Group pages on Goodreads and Facebook. Send your questions and comments here all week to qualify for entry into the contest.

Rebecca: What inspired you to write DAYS OF HOPE, MILES OF MISERY – LOVE AND LOSS ON THE OREGON TRAIL?

Fred: I love writing, I love history, and I love 19th century American history, especially the common people who are far more interesting than the glitterati.

Rebecca: Tell us what you tried to achieve with this book.

Fred:
· The emigrants and others in the plot to be regular people, not the stereotype often portrayed in media and ‘western’ books and movies; to make them more ‘relatable.’
· Distances, the dangers, the diseases, the heat, the cold, the clashes arising from being cloistered in a little wagon train for months with strangers.
· The reality of the woman’s role as not simply an unhappy ride-along, but someone whose burden was the equal of a man’s, and whose efforts were all the more laudable considering lack of enthusiasm for the undertaking. I wanted a strong woman as a lead character.
· During the pre-Gold Rush and post-Civil War eras, Indians were a danger feared more in the imagination than reality. In fact, they were occasionally helpful to the emigrants. It was only during the ensuing onslaught that the Indians awoke to the danger, and responded as any threatened population would.
· The greater danger came from white criminal renegades who saw the emigrants as vulnerable victims alone and exposed in a wilderness.
· The emigrants were mostly ‘innocents abroad,’ to borrow from Mark Twain. Mainly middle-class Midwestern farmers, they were shocked at the ordeal they had ‘stumbled’ into, but for the most part, muddled through.
· Except for a few cameos, I deliberately did not make the protagonists real-life prominent figures. The novelist has greater freedom to portray historical drama and accuracy by creating characters who can achieve everything a historical figure can do without distorting the motivations or actions of a once-living person.

Rebecca: Can you give us insight into your writing process?

Fred: My advice about writing is—read voluminously, and study the writing as you read, then just sit down and write. Write for yourself, and if others like it, fine. I also like to impress my wife because she’s smarter than I. I’m not a fan of writing groups. They’re often populated by people who would rather talk about writing than do it. Also, many of them have bad writing habits that can spread like an angry virus. An excellent tutorial is reading the daily newspaper carefully; see how stories are structured, and realize how using everyday vocabulary is the best communication. Leave obtuse and multi-syllabic words to lawyers and academics. They get paid to confuse, you won’t. Don’t shy away from the gritty side of people. Life, like Gaul, or a traffic light, is divided into three parts: green, yellow, and red. Don’t suggest otherwise to your readers.

From Fred: Here's a question for all of you about the Oregon Trail. Check back tomorrow for my answer.

Question for everyone – What was the single greatest risk to the people traveling on the Oregon-California trail in 1845?

Here’s another question to ponder: What is the first thing you think of when you hear the word “Oregon Trail?” (For me, it is sitting in class in 5th grade!)

** I hear that all of you who offer comments or questions during this week will be entered for a free print book, so ask away. All comments count.

Tomorrow I will answer more questions from Rebecca, reveal an excerpt from the book, and have another question for you. Hope to hear from you in the comments below.

Ooh, I am curious about the cameos?

Kit Carson, Jim Bridger, Chief Truckee, John Sutter, and a couple more.

Days of Hope, Miles of Misery

FYI, I will be adding lots of photos, drawings and paintings (that I cannot place here on Goodreads) of the 1845 trek to the post on American Historical Novels Group (same group) on Facebook.
Check that out.

Fred

For me the biggest danger would be facing the unknown & leaving behind all I knew & loved. The psychological issue would be huge.

Linda wrote: "For me the biggest danger would be facing the unknown & leaving behind all I knew & loved. The psychological issue would be huge."

Agree, it was a very difficult decision to go, and they rarely saw their loved ones again, but what was the greatest physical danger?

Is the Donner Party part of the Oregon Trail? That is what I remember most of any details of the Westward expansion. Thank you

Yes. It is popularly called the Oregon Trail, but more specifically, it was the Oregon-California Trail. The trails split at Fort Hall in what is now Idaho. Before the Gold Rush, the overwhelming number of emigrants went to Oregon. The Donners took a short-cut to California from Fort Bridger in what is now Wyoming, and that caused their delay and eventual tragedy. My story happens in 1845. The Donners were in 1846. Thanks for your interest.

Days of Hope, Miles of Misery

Read more about this book (my 5th) at www.freddickey.net

There is also a Goodreads Giveaway contest for 50 copies of the ebook version that ends Dec. 15.

There was a question by Robin about the biggest risk on the Oregon Trail:

"Was weather one of the biggest risks? Starvation second?"

Yes, weather and starvation were huge risks. Also injuries. But the biggest risk of all was infectious diseases like cholera, malaria (common along the rivers in those days), dysentery, measles and smallpox.

What was the worst trip you ever took? Comment below..

For me the greatest physical danger would be crossing mountain ranges, especially on the downhill side. Another concern for me would be running out of drinkable water, which could happen since the trip would occur during dryer months of the year.

Yes that is an excellent point Linda. The mountain crossings were really tough, as described in the book. One is particularly gruesome - a broken back. Injuries occurred frequently.

But the biggest risk of all was infectious diseases like cholera, malaria (common along the rivers in those days), dysentery, measles and smallpox.

Check out more on the Day 2 interview in this folder, including an excerpt from the book and a discussion of Hastings Cuttoff and the Donner Party.