Historical Fiction: Unpacked

Kristin Harmel is the New York Times bestselling, USA Today bestselling, and #1 international bestselling author of The Book of Lost Names, The Winemaker’s Wife, The Room on Rue Amelie, The Forest of Vanishing Stars, and more. Her novels that have been translated into 29 languages and are sold all over the world. She's also the co-founder and co-host of the popular web series Friends & Fiction.

In this episode, Kristin and I discuss why she keeps writing about World War II and the Holocaust, how there's no such thing as a perfect writer, and the message she ends up sharing in every book she writes.

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Learn more about the web series "Friends and Fiction."

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Valerie Fraser Luesse is the bestselling author of Missing Isaac, Almost Home, and The Key to Everything, as well as an award-winning magazine writer best known for her feature stories and essays in Southern Living, where she is currently senior travel editor. Specializing in stories about unique pockets of Southern culture, Luesse received the 2009 Writer of the Year award from the Southeast Tourism Society for her editorial section on Hurricane Katrina recovery in Mississippi and Louisiana. A graduate of Auburn University and Baylor University, she lives in Birmingham, Alabama, with her husband, Dave.

Valerie and I talk about her fourth book, Under the Bayou Moon, which is releasing on Tuesday, August 3. We discussed the joy of creative freedom, Valerie's career in magazine writing, what it was like to win a Christy Award, and her desire to present Christians as they really are in her inspirational fiction.

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Tracy Lawson's passion for storytelling led her first into the field of educational theater and dance, where she has enjoyed a career spanning nearly three decades. In the past ten years she's turned her hand to writing. In her debut historical novel, Answering Liberty's Call: Anna Stone's Daring Ride to Valley Forge, a family legend provides the framework for this look at the American Revolution from a woman's perspective. The book also digs into a little-known conspiracy against General Washington! Tracy belongs to the Anna Asbury Stone Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, which is named in honor of her patriot 6x-great grandmother. She is a native of Cincinnati, Ohio who currently resides in the Dallas area. In today's episode, we discuss Tracy's novel, the strength of our nation, and the perspective that historical fiction can give us.

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The annual fast day of the Jewish Calendar, Tisha B'Av, occurs this weekend. It's the saddest day in the Jewish calendar because it marks a number of disasters which occurred on this date. One of those was the destruction of the Second Temple when the Roman Empire destroyed Jerusalem in the year 70 AD. This event is the setting for Lori Banov Kaufmann's debut novel, Rebel Daughter. The book is based on a true story and inspired by the inscription on a 2,000-year-old gravestone. Lori and I talk about that inscription, the research Lori did, her commitment to historical accuracy, and the significance of the destruction of Jerusalem to human history.

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Attend the Live Zoom event at this link.

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Jennifer Anton is an American/Italian dual citizen born in Joliet, Illinois who now lives between London and Lake Como, Italy. A proud advocate for women's rights and equality, she hopes to rescue women's stories from history, starting with her Italian family. On the podcast today, we discuss her debut novel, Under the Light of the Italian Moon, which features women in Italy during the rise of fascism and WWII

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Today I’m sharing my chat with Susie Finkbeiner. Her latest book, The Nature of Small Birds, releases July 6. This book centers around Operation Babylift, which was the name given to the mass evacuation of children from South Vietnam to the United States and other countries at the end of the United States’ involvement in the Vietnam War. Susie and I talk about the way she structured this unique novel, why she enjoys writing about more recent history, and the theme of hope in her novels. In her words, “Sometimes we have to look backwards in order to realize how important it is to grasp onto hope.”

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Wendy Voorsanger's debut novel, Prospects of a Woman, released in October of 2020. On this episode, Wendy and I chat about women's roles in early California, real women in California history, how Wendy eventually got this novel published, and California culture.

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Visit Wendy's website, Facebook, and Instagram.

We also mentioned the following women from California history.

Nancy Gooch

Ina Coolbrith

Josephine McCracken

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Henry O. Arnold is an actor and audiobook narrator as well as an author. His Biblical Fiction novel, A Voice Within the Flame, released in December of 2020. It’s the first installment of his series The Song of Prophets and Kings. 

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My conversation with Roseanna M. White of Whitefire Publishing.

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Carrie Turansky's latest book, No Journey Too Far, is the much anticipated sequel to No Ocean Too Wide and concludes her duology featuring the McAlister Family. Carrie is the award-winning author of more than twenty inspirational novels and novellas and a winner of the ACFW Carol Award, the International Digital Award, and the Holt Medallion. She loved traveling to England to research her latest Edwardian novels including. Her novels have received stared reviews from Christianbooks.com and Library Journal. They have been translated into several languages and enjoyed by readers around the world.

Carrie and I talk about the British Home children featured in her McAlister novels, the stories of actual British Home children she learned about in her research, her path to publishing success, and what readers have to say about her books.

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Visit Carrie's website, Facebook, and Instagram, and join her Facebook Group!

Also mentioned:

Anne of Green Gables books & film (affiliate links).

American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW)

Miss Potter—a film about Beatrix Potter (affiliate).

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Ann H. Gabhart has had a long and successful novel writing career. Her 35th book, Along a Storied Trail, releases June 1. This novel features a packhorse librarian during the Great Depression. The Packhorse Library Program was a program introduced by Eleanor Roosevelt and the Works Progress Administration to provide jobs for women and books for the people of rural Appalachian Kentucky. In this episode of Historical Fiction: Unpacked, Ann and I discussed her new book, the characters she loved writing, and her research and writing process. 

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Join my community and help support the show on Patreon!

Join the Historical Fiction: Unpacked Podcast Group on Facebook!

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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click them and make a purchase, you help support my work without paying any more for the product. Thank you for your support!