Using Real History


I’m a history geek, so the spark for my book often comes from a real historical event. For the soon to be released RIPE FOR PLEASURE (can’t believe it will on shelf in a little over a month!) the spark was an actual lost treasure.

When Bonnie Prince Charlie made his bid for the throne in 1745, the king of France sent a fortune in gold to help fund the rebellion. But as we all know, things did not go well for the prince and his supporters, and the rebellion was quickly quashed and the prince sent feeling back to France. It all happened so quickly that the money never even reached him, and to this day no one knows what happened to it.

No there’s an idea for a story. Not just a lost treasure, but a REAL historical mystery to play with! In my version of the world, a cache of letters discovered by the hero at his new estate hints at the treasure being hidden in a house in London. A house currently occupied by a retired courtesan . . . what’s a poor younger son with a new estate he can’t really afford to do when faced with such temptation?

The next two books are also “inspired” by real history (RIPE FOR SCANDAL by an infamous bigamy case and RIPE FOR SEDUCTION by a very poorly thought-out proposition a man once sent a widow and what she did to punish him for it). I’m always collecting historical tidbits that I think might provide the kernel that will sprout into a story, and when I’m stumped I pull out a few research books and turn on something educational like The National Geographic Channel (my sister calls it the Mummy and Hippo Channel, LOL!). A few hours of “creative lounging” and I can usually come up with something.

Writers: what works for you? Readers: do you like to see author’s notes where they tell you about the history behind the book?

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