First Steps
I invite you to follow me through the research and development of the characters in my series of upcoming historical novels about the journeys of American women from subjugation to equality–from 1855 when women could not own property, vote, or even protect themselves from a violent husband to the current day when all three are rights under the law.
The first book in the series, Cordelia's Journey, will be published in July 2012. Briefly, in May 1855, thirteen-year-old CORDELIA PIERCE decides to run away from home when her stepfather shows signs of a sexual interest in her. She knows she must run even though she is worried about the fate of her three little sisters and her pregnant, bedridden mother, MINERVA PIERCE, if she isn't there to help care for them. Disguised as a boy, she travels from Hidden Springs, a small settlement in Kansas Territory, to Westport on the Missouri River, hoping to enlist the aid of her mother's sister, HANNAH TRUE, in rescuing Minerva from a husband obsessed with having sons. Out of ten pregnancies, Minerva has five living children, four daughters and a son. She has had four miscarriages. One additional son was born alive the previous winter, but died one week later. Her mother's weakened condition has Cordelia fearing for her mother's life.
I started Cordelia's Journey in November 2011 as part of the NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) challenge and ended up with 20,000 words, far short of the 50,000 word goal. With every scene, items and events required research. From what my characters wore to how they washed it, from courting to crime, from laundry to politics, from the mundane to crucial issues of the time, I am pouring over the sources that will help me bring the past alive and walk in the shoes of my characters.
I invite you to join me as I gather the facts behind my fiction. I'll be reading books and visiting websites, museums, libraries, and ghost towns and sharing my historical research journey with you on this blog.
