I’ve always wanted to be a writer, but for the bulk of my adult life, I told stories through dance. Creating recital pieces and choreographing musicals required most of my creative bandwidth, and left me not totally burned out but always a little singed.
The same year our daughter graduated high school, my husband changed jobs and we moved from Ohio to Texas. Now officially an empty nester, I decided not to seek another job teaching at a studio. It was finally time to write, and hey, I could be a writer anywhere. But what did I have to say? Ideas I’d had in my youth no longer appealed to me or didn’t seem viable.
It was the worst writer’s block ever. So, I fell back on (or so I saw it) nonfiction. I’d been a reporter for a community paper, covering school board and city council meetings and writing features. I figured I could start off writing nonfiction and ease into writing novels later.
I like history and genealogy, and I had a long-standing family history project that centered around my great-great-great grandfather’s 1838 travel journal. He wrote in it each of the 55 days it took to travel from Cincinnati to New York City, and he endeavored to write down everything he found interesting on his journey. It was a slice of life look at travel in antebellum America written in my ancestor’s words. He was interested in just about everything—politics, agriculture, new technology, and life in the bustling cities on the eastern seaboard.
Years earlier, my daughter and I had followed his travel route from Cincinnati to Trenton, New Jersey, and kept our own diary. I annotated my ancestor’s journal and used ours to compare our travel experiences.
As I wrote that first book, I discovered I did, indeed, have something to say.
Why:
Why do I write in multiple genres?
Eleven years and eleven books later, I’ve learned to listen for things that spark my imagination. After my first nonfiction book, I wrote a four-volume dystopian series aimed at young adults, then another nonfiction, then two historical novels, another nonfiction and a children’s historical fiction book. I believe the project chooses the writer and will find me when the time is right. I can’t imagine sticking with one genre!
How:
I hate to admit how undisciplined I am, but if you consider the fact that I’ve published about one book a year since 2012, I guess my method works for me.
The more recent projects required a ton of research, and I love research. If I could get away with just doing research and never writing anything, I would! I have a part-time job, so my writing seems to go in shorter bursts, or frenetic marathon sessions when I have two or three days off in a row. A few years ago, my characters used to demand my attention in the wee hours, but I need my sleep, so I summon them at dawn.
My most fulfilling projects have featured my ancestors. Answering Liberty’s Call: Anna Stone’s Daring Ride to Valley Forge (Gray Lion Books, 2022) is based on actual events and stars my sixth great-grandmother. While on her way to Valley Forge with supplies for her husband and brothers, Anna was recruited as a courier by a congressman in York, PA and asked to deliver a secret message to General Washington. She was only in possession of the message for a few hours when a man rode up, blocked her way on the road, claimed the congressman wanted the letter back, and demanded she give it to him.
Of course, Anna saw through this and refused—and she managed to evade him the remaining 80 miles to Valley Forge. This tale of an unsung female patriot of the American Revolution captured my heart and my imagination. I’ve written a children’s book and am working on a spec screenplay based on the novel.
You never know where your characters will lead.
“With Tracy Lawson’s extensively researched new book in hand, readers who love historical fiction will gallop into Valley Forge on a journey through some of the lesser known aspects of the Revolutionary War.” —Lee Wright, founder, History Camp and The Pursuit of History
Bio:
Tracy Lawson grew up reading mystery stories, and now she approaches her research with unbridled enthusiasm and the eye of a detective. She is the author of eleven books, four nonfiction, six novels, and one children’s book. She and her husband, Bob, high school sweethearts, live in Dallas/Ft. Worth area. They have one grown daughter.
Linda K. Sienkiewicz is a writer, poet, and artist. Learn more about her multi-award winning novel, In the Context of Love. Learn more about her picture book, Gordy and the Ghost Crab. Learn more about her latest poetry chapbook, Sleepwalker Advanced sales on Sleepwalker are now until March 24, 2023 — for every copy sold, Linda will make a donation to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Order here
What:
I write adventure novels which fall into the Fantasy genre, and one that is Dystopian. I have fans both male and female in all different age groups (middle school, high school, college, my … Continue reading >>
