Helena Schrader's Historical Fiction

Dr. Helena P. Schrader is the author of 24 historical fiction and non-fiction works and the winner of more than 53 literary accolades. More than 34,000 copies of her books have been sold. For a complete list of her books and awards see: http://helenapschrader.com

For readers tired of clichés and cartoons, award-winning novelist Helena P. Schrader offers nuanced insight into historical events and figures based on sound research and an understanding of human nature. Her complex and engaging characters bring history back to life as a means to better understand ourselves.

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Why I Write Historical Fiction - A Guest Blogpost by David Wessel

David K. Wessel is a retired U.S. diplomat and amateur historian turned novelist. When it comes to writing about Germany between the two world wars, he relies not only on his family stories, but on his Rutgers University history degree (where he focused on the Weimar Republic) and a life-long interest in his subject matter. Wessel is one of six children born to Karl-Heinz Wessel, the primary character in Choosing Sides – and the coming sequel, Changing Sides.

I have always loved the old adage: “Before you judge a man, walk a mile in his shoes.” I believe that before ascribing motive to the actions of another person, one should attempt to understand his/her/their life experiences. Before criticizing someone or assuming negative intent behind the words they speak, we should try to appreciate where they are coming from. Before criticizing others for what we see or hear them do, we should make an effort to see things from their perspective.

What are the challenges they have faced? How have their thought processes been formed? What events have they been influenced by? How have they been shaped by the world in which they live? What is their history?

In the words of the renowned scholar and Pulitzer Prize winning author David McCullough, “History is who we are and why we are the way we are.” It is the key to understanding the thoughts and deeds of an individual – and is especially critical to understanding the words and actions of societies.

But the recording of factual history – a description of past events with the dates and locations in which they occurred – does not get into the soul of the participants. Well written historical accounts of days-gone-by do explore the preceding events that shaped the participant’s actions. And the best writers of history, like McCullough, provide insight into the thinking and intent of the protagonists. But their writing, as good as it is, does not leave the reader with a true understanding of what it  would have felt like to be in that time and place.

For that, we need historical fiction. As E. L. Doctorow, author of Billy Bathgate, Ragtime and other wonderful novels said: “The historian will tell you what happened. The novelist will tell you what it felt like.”

When I decided to write the story of my father’s childhood - growing up on both sides of the Atlantic in the years between the two world wars - I wanted to do just this. I hoped to portray what it must have felt like for Dad. In writing about an ordinary family torn apart by Hitler’s Germany, my aim was to develop the reader’s understanding of what it meant to live in that time and place.

How did my family’s experiences in World War I and the post-war years lead to an emigration to the United States? Why did they move back to Germany just a year after Hitler had come to power? What was it like for Dad to be placed in the Hitler Youth? How did the family’s meeting with der Fuhrer himself come about? How did my immediate family respond to the Nazi takeover of their country? And what did the extended family, who remained, feel about it all?

While writing the first draft of Choosing Sides I worked at getting the story down and making sure I had the facts right. I focused on placing the family lore into historical context, building my own understanding of the circumstances behind the family’s multiple moves from northern Germany to southern New Jersey. The result was, in the estimation of my dear wife and ‘first-reader,’ a 90,000 word term paper with a personal twist. It was, at best, something a few of my family members might read. But it was dry and lacking in emotion and devoid of any character development, description of settings, dialogue or buildup of personal feelings and tension between family members. If I wanted anyone else to read it, I needed to liven it up.

I needed to change it from a biographical history to historical fiction. In doing so, I wanted to use the power of fiction to draw the reader into the souls of my characters – my father, his parents, his aunts and uncles and cousins, his schoolmates and friends. I hoped that I would enable the reader to understand the difficult choices my family members made as Hitler ascended in power and their country descended into chaos and despair.

How well I have achieved my goal is, of course, a matter for readers to decide. But I must say that the exercise of getting the family stories down on paper and placing them in the context of this terrible period of history has certainly given me, as the author, a level of understanding that is much deeper than I had before I started. I hope it will do the same for my readers.

 

Blog Host Helena P. Schrader is the author of 25 historical fiction and non-fiction books, eleven of which have one one or more awards. You can find out more about her, her books and her awards at: https://helenapschrader.com 

Her most recent release, Cold Peace, was runner-up for the Historical Fiction Company BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023 Award, as well as winning awards from Maincrest Media and Readers' Favorites. Find out more at: https://www.helenapschrader.com/cold-peace.html

 

 

Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Why I Write Historical Fiction - A Guest Blogpost by Linda Matchett

 Linda Shenton Matchett writes happily-ever-after historical Christian fiction about second chances and women who overcome life’s challenges to be better versions of themselves. Follow the journeys of relatable characters whose faith is sorely tested, yet in the end, emerge triumphant. Be encouraged in your own faith-walk through stories of history and hope. A native of Baltimore, Maryland, Linda was born a stone’s throw from Fort McHenry (of Star-Spangled Banner fame) and has lived in historical places all her life. She now lives in central New Hampshire where she is a volunteer docent and archivist at the Wright Museum of WWII. 

This opportunity to share about why I write historical fiction has come an interesting time because I recently spent three months with a branding consultant. Her first few questions were about this very topic. Why did I write? Why did I write fiction? And…why did I write historical fiction?

When I was in third grade, my parents gifted me a notebook, and I’ve been scribbling stories ever since. Thanks to my dad’s job, we moved often, mostly to areas steeped in history. Writing was my one constant. However, after entering the workforce, my fiction writing dropped away as I focused on business writing for my job. After moving to New Hampshire, I freelanced for travel and live style magazines, and as much as I enjoyed that, fiction was always my first love.

But what to write about? I started lots of stories, but struggled to finish. All historical, they covered a variety of eras, but none of the plotlines resonated with me.

Then one afternoon at the Wright Museum of WWII changed my life...

The carpet muffled my footsteps as I wandered into the home front gallery during my volunteer docent shift. I sauntered past the dioramas: a five-and-dime, a kitchen, then a living room, chatting with visitors and answering questions. As I approached the exhibit about war correspondents, my eye was drawn to the small photo at the bottom: a woman wearing a combat helmet and a cheeky grin as she cradled her camera, finger poised over the button. Riveted, I stopped.

Who was she, this lone women in a display of men? I scanned the placard: Therésé Bonney, photojournalist. Minimal information so I yanked out my smart phone and keyed in her name. Facts and figures emerged, but one struck me more than the others: Of the more than two thousand accredited war correspondents, only 127 were women, including Ms. Bonney. Intrigued, I continued to dig. My pulse raced as I read.

By all accounts, she and the other female correspondents had it tough, often relegated to fluff pieces and denied access to combat zones. They fought for the right to tell stories…real stories…the same sort of stories the men had access to. By hook and by crook, these stalwart women made their way across Europe and other countries, shining the light on war’s atrocities. 

There had to me more women like them. Women who went outside their comfort zone to do jobs never before held by women in places they’d never dared go: pilots, welders, mechanics, doctors, farmers, truck and ambulance drivers, parachute riggers, radio operators, laboratory technicians, and even spies. Then there were the women who served in every branch of the armed forces. Some of the women remained on the U.S. home front while others crossed the globe to places most people had never heard of.

Inspired by the tenacity and doggedness of these often-overlooked women to follow a story wherever it led, I knew I needed to shine the light on their stories, their lives, and those of other ordinary women who did extraordinary things – things I could never do in my wildest dreams.

Spies & Sweethearts

She wants to do her part. He’s just trying to stay out of the stockade. Will two agents deep behind enemy lines find capture… or love?

1942. Emily Strealer is tired of being told what she can’t do. Wanting to prove herself to her older sisters and do her part for the war effort, the high school French teacher joins the OSS and trains to become a covert operative. After her training, she finds herself parachuting into occupied France with her instructor to send radio signals to the Resistance.

Major Gerard Lucas has always been a rogue. Transferring to the so-called “Office of Dirty Tricks” to escape a court-martial, he poses as a husband to one of his trainees on a dangerous secret mission. But when their cover is blown after only three weeks, he has to flee with the young schoolteacher to avoid Nazi arrest.

Running for their lives, Emily clings to her mentor’s military experience during the harrowing three-hundred-mile trek to neutral Switzerland. And while Gerard can’t bear the thought of his partner falling into German hands, their forged papers might not be enough to get them over the border.

Website/Blog: http://www.LindaShentonMatchett.com

Blog Host Helena P. Schrader is the author of 25 historical fiction and non-fiction books, eleven of which have one one or more awards. You can find out more about her, her books and her awards at: https://helenapschrader.com 

Her most recent release, Cold Peace, was runner-up for the Historical Fiction Company BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023 Award, as well as winning awards from Maincrest Media and Readers' Favorites. Find out more at: https://www.helenapschrader.com/cold-peace.html