In the Spotlight: Rebecca Douglass ~ Author of "A World of Trouble"

Over the coming weeks, the IWSG Anthology blog will be featuring posts

from each of the authors in Voyager: The Third Ghost.
Our author today is Rebecca Douglass.


Rebecca Douglass on her short story "A World of Trouble"

Starting with a true story ... My IWSG Anthology story, "A World of Trouble," began with history. Not just any history, but personal, family history. Quite a few years back, I set out to write what amounted to a novelized biography of my grandmother. Grandma’s life was pretty interesting: born in 1900 in Nebraska, in 1904 she and her family fled vile weather and farming conditions, ending up in the Spokane area. Four years later, the family moved across Washington State by covered wagon. That’s right. In 1908, my grandmother and her family’s "relocation service" was to put a cover on their farm wagon, hitch the buggy to the back of that, harness their draft horses to the whole rig, and drive some 150 miles over rough dirt "roads." It wasn’t the Oregon Trail—but it always amazed and fascinated me that they traveled like that. It was a story that cried out to be shared. Writing a story based in true events turned out to be hard. Real life isn’t usually as dramatic as fiction, and it seldom holds together in as neat a plot curve. I struggled with "Grandma’s book" for years, each iteration moving farther from her life as I knew it, until I renamed the characters, took the basic framework of her stories, and began to construct a real novel. I still don’t have one I’m happy with, but turning it fully into fiction gave me the freedom I needed to write strong stories. "A World of Trouble" is part of that story-world. The germ of the idea was a story my grandmother told me once, about her dad deciding that it was worth driving the whole family 20 miles up the river to see a real live aeroplane. But while I loved that Great-Granddaddy thought that was important enough to take a day off working, nothing really happened. I had to take that story-nugget and invent a real story. What Mattie Scott did isn’t much like anything Grandma ever did (or at least, it’s not like anything she ever admitted to me). In fact, the air show turned out to be the least important part of the story, as Mattie’s adventure got her into "a world of trouble." My take-away from the project is that the best story will happen when you take the seeds you’re given—and let your imagination loose on it. I kept the thing that delighted me—and gave my character the chance to do what she would do, unconstrained by any need to keep to the facts. The result is a story I am proud to have in the IWSG anthology, Voyagers: The Third Ghost.

Bio

Rebecca Douglass grew up
in Idaho, Arizona, and Washington states,
and now lives and writes
in California. 

Her imagination resides
where it pleases,
in and out of this world.

Her passions include backpacking, hiking, books, swimming, biking, and moderately adventurous travel. 

Rebecca has two grown sons and a husband with whom she travels. 



Rebecca is the author of the delightful Ninja Librarian books, as well as a picture book for outdoor families, a mystery series for the parents, and her middle-grade fantasy, Halitor the Hero. After more than seventeen years working at the library, she has retired still without learning all the secrets of the Ninja Librarian.

Blog| Facebook| Twitter| Amazon

Wikimedia

Rebecca is truly out of reach today, as her post is published. She has set sail for Antarctica. Assuming she doesn't die of sea-sickness, she'll be back on land and back to the internet in a couple of weeks. Feel free to leave comments, and Fundy Blue will respond to them. And likely, Rebecca will check in with her post once she is back.

Coming on Wednesday, March 18, 2020 . . .

Next up is Beth Schuck who shares her backstory for "The Orchard," a tale in which Nels, the young protagonist, has magical powers that connect her to nature.

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Upcoming Blog Interviews and Virtual Tours:

1. May 4 - June McCrary Jacobs https://authorjunemccraryjacobs.blogspot.com/

2. May 6 - C. Lee McKenzie, Author https://www.cleemckenziebooks.com/blog/

3. May 6 - Literary Rambles – Natalie Aguirre https://www.junetakey.com/#writersgambitblog

4. May 11 - Juneta Key https://www.junetakey.com/#writersgambitblog

* * * * * * * * * *

The release date for VOYAGERS: The Third Ghost 
is May 5, 2020,
but purchase links are available,
and you can preorder a copy now.

Print 9781939844729 $13.95
EBook 9781939844736 $4.99
Juvenile Fiction - Historical / Action & Adventure / Fantasy & Magic
Dancing Lemur Press/Freedom Fox Press


Amazon - Print https://www.amazon.com/dp/193984472X/ Kindle https://www.amazon.com/Voyagers-Third-Ghost-Yvonne-Ventresca-ebook/dp/B083C4WPR5/

Barnes & Noble - https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/voyagers-yvonne-ventresca/1135912991?ean=2940163430857

ITunes - https://books.apple.com/ca/book/voyagers-the-third-ghost/id1493413956

Kobo - https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/voyagers-the-third-ghost