I’ve been relatively quiet on my blog. I started a new manuscript before the pandemic and chose to set my blogging aside so I could focus my writing time on my manuscript. I returned to my roots with my newest venture and wrote a historical fiction book. Historical fiction was my favorite genre when I was a kid. I couldn’t get enough of history; if that wasn’t nerdy enough, I enjoyed extra history classes in high school. There is a driving force within me that needs to understand the lives of others and the choices they make. Viewing and studying the history of others gives perspective and value to the roads they’ve walked.
A few years prior to this new manuscript venture, I became obsessed with the Civil War. Namely, Harriet Beecher-Stowe who suffered the loss of her infant son to the Cholera pandemic and in response to her grief wrote the book Uncle Tom’s Cabin which was said to spark the country to war. And Harriet Tubman who was a fierce, gun-toting, prophetic woman who lived with a head injury.
And yet they persisted.
I couldn’t get enough of these stories, these women who overcame unbelievable odds to tenaciously chase after their passion. It stirred something in me and I looked for a historical fiction book that told the lives of these women. I was dismayed when I couldn’t find one…so I decided to write one instead.
I finished my manuscript in January and my wonderful book club read it in February as my Beta Readers. I took their feedback to make some revisions and tweaks to the storyline. I’m at the stage now where I’m querying agents in the hopes of finding one who believes in my work as much as I do. I have another book I’m querying, but that’s a different blog topic. I can’t tell you how much I love this story and can’t wait to share it with you. Until then, here’s a brief summary:
Lucy Wright, an abolitionist in the North, is shocked and burdened when the Fugitive Slave Act passes, allowing any free black to be captured and sold. Her worst fear occurs when her friend, Linah, is kidnapped. Lucy pulls on the wisdom of her mentors, Harriet Tubman and Harriet Beecher Stowe who challenge her to stop living in the shadow of shame and acknowledge the power of her own voice. What will Lucy do when she returns to the south to rescue Linah? Will she throw off the shackles of shame and find herself in the process? Or revert to her training and allow the patriarchy of the south to direct her path?
This is the story of three women whose lives intersect as they fight to be seen, heard, and valued. In a world that discredits female voices, join Lucy and the two Harriets as they struggle together to pave a way for others to follow. Harriet Tubman, who suffers from a debilitating head injury, cannot read or write, has no income, yet risks her life for the sake of others. Harriet Beecher Stowe, who pens a heartbreaking and controversial book, stirs up righteous indignations and inadvertently starts a war. And Lucy, like all of us, who seeks strong mentors to guide her as she searches for her own voice.
I hope to get this into your hands soon. Until then, thank you for reading and I’ll leave you with a excerpt from my manuscript - it’s the scene when Linah is kidnapped and Harriet Tubman is encouraging Lucy to fight for her friend.
Lucy wiped her nose. Her voice brittle and shaky. “What power do I have? This is just like when my grandfather beat Sophie. No matter how much I cried he wouldn’t stop until she died in my arms. Linah’s gone and I don’t know where she’s been taken. If I were a man I’d go after her and plead my case, but I can’t even—”
“You won’t ever know your power until you wield it. You won’t know the depth of your voice until you speak.” Harriet’s voice was low and strong. “My momma was trembling the day she risked her life to save my brother’s. I ain’t never seen her stand up to no white man ever before. I didn’t know it was even possible without being flogged and killed. I’ve seen others beaten to death for far less. But it was my momma’s courage that sparked a fire within me to stand up against the evils of slavery. It is her life that continues to give me the courage to continually risk my life for the sake of others.”
Harriet stood up and stepped back. She brushed the wrinkles out of her green gingham dress and tightened the knot in the red scarf around her head. Her words filled the room, “Lucy, we all have to take that risk if we are going to live for something worth fighting for. Perhaps this could be the moment you’ve been waiting for.”