Two New Books to Celebrate: Spies in the American Revolution for Kids and the 10.10 Poetry Anthology

[Note: I wrote the following before learning of the death of my friend, April Pulley Sayre. If you didn't see my post about her Wednesday, I hope you'll take a look.] 

This week I'm happy to celebrate two new book releases. The first, Spies in the American Revolution for Kids by former TeachingAuthor Carla Killough McClafferty, released on 11/2/21. The second, 10.10 Poetry Anthology: Celebrating 10 in 10 Different Ways, edited by Bridget Magee, includes three poems I wrote! You can read one of those poems at the end of this post. 

I invited Carla to share a bit about her new book. Here's what she had to say:   

My newest book Spies in the American Revolution for Kids (Rockridge Press), covers another facet of history that is little known by most people. I enjoyed the research of seeking out primary source documents like letters and codes to pull this true story together. To research spies is tricky. Most spies didn’t write down on a document that they are spies for fear of being arrested, tried, and hung as a spy. But still there is a paper trail. And as a researcher, I am a determined bloodhound for accurate source material. I followed the trail. And it was fascinating.

I’ve written about George Washington in several different books, and he is part of this story also. Washington is famous for many things. I think his role as spymaster should be one of them. He understood how nearly impossible it would be for American patriots to win a war against England, the most powerful military nation in the world. He knew America would need to find ways to gain advantages whenever possible. And that meant espionage.

Soldiers as well as civilian men and women volunteered to be spies. They secretly gathered information while hoping they didn’t get caught and killed by the British. They devised all sorts of methods to deliver vital information about troop movements, numbers, weapons, ships, and food supplies. They used clever ways to communicate including all sorts of codes. They used amazing gadgets like invisible ink, dead drops, intercepting mail, and secret messages of all sorts. Without exception, every single spy risked their lives over and over again.

In this book, I cover the Culper Spy Ring, made famous in the television series, Turn: Washington's Spies. Benjamin Tallmadge recruited a trusted circle of people he knew from his home town of Setauket, on Long Island. The ring created a complex system of gathering and sharing information right under the noses of the British army who occupied their town. Their vital information was forwarded immediately to General Washington. Tallmadge created a secret code system that kept their identities safe. Even after the war was over, and for the rest of his life, Tallmadge never revealed the identities of his friends who worked as spies.  Below are pages from the code book created by Benjamin Tallmadge for use by the Culver spy ring.

The stories I write about in Spies in the American Revolution for Kids give us glimpses of incredible bravery. Men like Enoch Crosby who worked as a double agent. Over and over, he infiltrated enemy groups, learned their secrets, and got word out which resulted in their arrests. Lydia Darrah eavesdropped on plans discussed by British officers’ and smuggled that information to the patriots under the buttons of her son’s coat. Allan McLean, a dashing leader, seemed to have no fear when he disguised himself and went into the enemy camp. McLean somehow escaped capture again and again. Some spies went deep under cover, like James Armistead Lafayette, an enslaved man who worked for General Cornwallis before the battle of Yorktown, and fed information to the patriots. And John Champe who joined the British army so he would capture Benedict Arnold-and the unexpected twist of fate which caused his mission to fail.   

My hope for those who read this book is that they are entertained and gain a deeper understanding of what it took to create this great nation. Many different types of men and women worked as American spies. Without their contributions to the war effort, perhaps the Revolutionary War would have taken even longer than eight years. Or maybe America would not have won the war at all.  

Congratulations, Carla! Your new book sounds intriguing, especially for readers who enjoy nonfiction.

And today, I'm also happy to celebrate Bridget Magee's recent release, 10.10 Poetry Anthology: Celebrating 10 in 10 Different Ways, which includes three of my poems. Some of you may recall that I mentioned in my last post that I've had poems accepted in TWO new anthologies. I don't know yet when the second will be released--I'll share more when I do.

The poems in the 10.10 Poetry Anthology are divided into ten categories, all tied to the word TEN:

1. TENtative
2. TENderness
3. TENacity
4. TEN More Minutes
5. TENsion
6. I Wouldn't Touch That With a TEN-Foot Pole
7. TEN Little Fingers / TEN Little Toes
8. Take TEN
9. TENth _____
10. I TENd To

  My first poem in the collection is in the TENacity section. 

The form for this poem is a variation on the “Definito” form invented by Heidi Mordhorst. My other two poems in the 10.10 Poetry Anthology include an Etheree in the TEN More Minutes section and a free verse poem in the TENsion section. I'm honored to have my work included with that of so many fine poets from around the world.

If you're looking for more poetry, check out this week's Poetry Friday roundup hosted by Matt Forrest Esenwine at Radio, Rhythm & Rhyme. 

Happy writing!
Carmela

My Favorite Post to Celebrate Our 10th Blogiversary

 

This is the closing post to celebrate the ten wonderful years of this blog!   

Happy 10^thBlogiversary to the amazing writers –both past and present-who have been part of TeachingAuthors.com.  They welcomed me into the fold four years ago and I’ve enjoyed getting to know each one of them.  Soon I’ll be giving up my post as a TA, so I’d like to thank my fellow TAs and our readers for making this blog space so special for me.  

I’m closing out the series on our favorite posts.  During the time I’ve been a TA I was working on my latest book, Buried Lives: The Enslaved People of George Washington’s Mount Vernon.  I blogged about the process as I worked on it.  So my favorite blog post was the one I wrote a few days before that happy day when my book was released and available for sale.  

This post from December 14, 2018 was a celebration of completion for my book after more than five years of work.  It is also an effort to shine the spotlight on the lives of the individuals I’d been thinking about and writing about for so long.  In this post, I write about how I want to reader to emotionally connect with these real life people.  

For me, it takes a while to move on to a different project once my book is finished.  It is almost like taking your child to kindergarten on the first day of school.   You know it is a happy day and you should be glad that a new phase of life is beginning-but it is hard to let go.  

It is time for me to let go and figure out what project to tackle next . . .   

Carla Killough McClafferty

Mentor Text from Master Storytellers

I’m finishing up our TeachingAuthors series on mentor texts.  It has been insightful to read the entries from my fellow TAs.  

Naturally, the books that I’ve considered mentor texts are all nonfiction books.  Writing nonfiction is not about stringing together a bunch of facts.  It is about curating an endless number of facts, distilling them in a meaningful way that tells a powerful true story like it has never been told before.  

In a way every nonfiction book I’ve ever read has been a mentor text.  If I read a paragraph that is particularly striking, I reread it and consider how the author got the information across.  But here I will point out a couple of authors and give examples from the books.  

One of the authors that I have long admired is Russell Freedman (who passed away about a year ago).  His books are serious but never boring.  For example in the Newberry medal winning book Lincoln: A Photobiography, the first paragraph of the book says, 

“Abraham Lincoln wasn’t the sort of man who could lose himself in a crowd.  After all, he stood six feet four inches tall, and to top it off, he wore a high silk hat.”   

These first two sentences give us a vivid picture of the man along with great facts.  

In one of Freedman’s picture books, The Adventures of Marco Polo, he begins the book this way: 

“As Marco Polo lay dying, friends and relatives gathered anxiously by his bedside and begged him to confess.”  

In all of Freedman’s books, he carries the reader along with the serious-but-never-boring story.  

Another author who was well-known for his fiction, but wrote nonfiction with equal success:  Sid Fleischman (he passed away in 2010). Years ago Mr. Fleischman was a speaker at our SCBWI conference and I had the honor of driving him to the airport. I’ve never met a more polished and kind gentleman, nor one that was as humble as this very successful author of many books.  I will never forget his graciousness to one and all.  His books were like the man himself, brilliant and funny without even trying to be.  At every turn, the texts of his books are witty and engaging.  For example, the first paragraph of The Trouble Begins at 8: A Life of Mark Twain in the Wild, Wild West:  

“Mark Twain was born fully grown, with a cheap cigar clamped between his teeth.”  

Another example of a creative beginning is Fleischman’s book Sir Charlie Chaplin, The Funniest Man in the World which begins:  

“In the pesky rain on a March Night in 1978, nitwit thieves huddled at the grave of Sir Charlie Chaplin and dug up the body of the world-famous comedian.  They held it for ransom.”   

His text is always accurate, yet entertaining.  

As I write my nonfiction books, I keep in mind the great authors who have gone before me.  I’ve learned from their mentor texts to start each book in a way that hooks the reader.   Then even as I am telling a true story, I’ve got to hold their attention until the very last word on the very last page.   

Carla Killough McClafferty

Where Do I Begin?

The theme of how I start a new writing project comes at the right moment for me because I’m asking myself the same question:  How do I start a new writing project?

First, I’ve got to let go.

My new book has finally been released and I’ve got to move on to another project.  But it isn’t easy to do.  I’ve lived with the enslaved people I wrote about in Buried Lives: The Enslaved People of George Washington’s Mount Vernon for the past five and a half years.  I’ve researched, I've thought deeply, and worked hard to write about them in a meaningful way.  But now a new phase has begun for my book as it faces the world on its own.  It reminds me of the feeling I had when I took my kids to college and left them there.  I knew they were ready to go.  I wanted them to go.  It was time for them to go.  It was hard to let them go-but I did.   

Image from Burst.

Since the first of the year, I’ve been doing as much marketing as possible for Buried Lives-but soon I’ll be at the end of my long list of things to do.  Once those tasks are done, I’ll clean my office.  I'll find a place (though I don't know where) for the piles of papers and books that at this moment look like a tornado has touched down. I need to see a clean desk before I can think seriously about what to do next.  

Because I write long nonfiction, each project is a time commitment of years.  I must be willing to invest that kind of energy—mental, physical, and emotional—to the topic.  For me, I must believe the topic is worth what it will cost me, and that this is the book that I’m supposed to write.  

I sometimes think the books choose me, rather than the other way around.

Yes, I know that sounds melodramatic.  But the truth is that it takes so long to write my deeply researched books, that there won’t be that many books by the end of my career.  I will never be one of those authors whose bios say they have written 200 books.   Therefore the topics I choose to write about are crucial to me.  

So many books, representing so much work!  Image from Burst.

So now that I’m letting go of Buried Lives, what is next for me?  I do have a topic that has been in my mind for a couple of years that might become my next book.  But at this point, the possible topic is only a starting place.  From here, I’ll need to do market research to see what else has been written on the topic.  The next step will be to write a book proposal.  Sounds easy, right?  It isn’t. I do a lot of research in order to understand the topic so I can figure out how a book could work.  I need a fully realized concept for the entire book before beginning to write a book proposal.    

After lots of research, and after I know what the book is really about, I craft the most powerful book proposal I can.  I keep in mind that the proposal is a sales tool.  My goal is for the editor to think—I love this idea!  I want this book on our list! 

The next step is signing a contract.  Once I sign my John Hancock on a contract, I put everything I’ve got into writing that book. 

The process is slow and challenging.  The process is also exhilarating and fulfilling.  

What will be the focus of my next book?  Image from Burst.

Carla Killough McClafferty

The Unseen Foundation of Buried Lives AND Last Day to Enter Book Giveaway

This week’s post is a follow up from last week.  In that post, I was looking forward to the release of Buried Lives: The Enslaved People of George Washington’s Mount Vernon on December 18.  At last the book is officially available for purchase.  Yipppeee!  

TODAY, DECEMBER 21, 2018, IS THE LAST DAY TO ENTER TO WIN A COPY OF BURIED LIVES.  SCROLL DOWN TO SEE THE INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO ENTER AT THE END OF LAST WEEK’S POST.  

But behind every page are countless backstories that no one will ever know.  Sometimes those stories—not meant for the pages of the book—make what is written on the page even deeper and more meaningful.  

Here in this space I’m going to share a few pics and stories that are not in the book.  And some of the stories I don’t have photos for.  But every photo and every story are sub text in the book, even though not in the words I’ve carefully crafted there.  

Many different people at Mount Vernon have helped me in countless ways.  I don’t have photos of most of them.  Mary V. Thompson, the historian at Mount Vernon has always shared her vast knowledge with me with unbelievable generosity that goes beyond her “job” at Mount Vernon.  She has answered hundreds of questions for me along the way.  Another hero of mine at Mount Vernon is Dawn Bonner, Manager of Visual Resources who shared countless images with me as I chose just the right ones. In the end she helped me find many of the stunning images you see in the book.  She too answered hundreds of questions for me about images.  Thank you both from the bottom of my heart.

Here are just of few photos that make up the unseen foundation of Buried Lives.  

  

In the laboratory with Joe Downer, Archeologist and Crew Chief for Mount Vernon's dig in the cemetery of the enslaved.  Thousands of pieces of history have been found at Mount Vernon especially in the areas where the enslaved lived.  Lives of people become real when you touch pieces of dishes, pipes, and pottery they used day to day.  Joe has helped me in a million ways throughout this project.  

I had the opportunity to work with the archeologist to dig in the cemetery.  Me working the soil shaker where a 5000 year old Native American arrowhead was found.  Wow.  I was the second person to touch this in 5000 years!   

Me working a trowel to finish uncovering one of the graves of the enslaved in the cemetery.  I wrote about it on pages 126-127 of the book.  It was a deeply moving experience to uncover grave #67.  No one will ever know who lies buried in this unmarked grave.

Brenda Parker, who portrays Caroline (one of the people highlighted in my book) and Don Francisco (plays the fife at Mount Vernon) came to the cemetery memorial on the days I was working on the dig.  Brenda -who sings like an angel-sang Amazing Grace, and Don accompanied her on the fife.  I cried and cried.  A day I'll never forget.  Thank you dear ones for all you!

One of the wonderful things about this book is adding these two wonderful people in my life as friends.  Thank you Brenda Parker and Don Francisco for your sweetness.  

Having dinner with the amazing Mary V. Thompson, the historian at MV.  And my new friend Zunny Matema (a descendant of Caroline in my book).  Zunny wrote the forward for the book.  What a wonderful circle to complete as a writer.  To write about Caroline, then meet her present day descendant.  What an honor!  

I’ve done all I can to make Buried Lives the best book it can be. I’ve researched it, written it, revised it countless times, wept over it, and prayed over it.   

At last the book is available for readers. 

READY FOR THE WORLD....

Carla Killough McClafferty

Here's the link to the post where you can enter the giveaway.

Book Giveaway and Release of my book, Buried Lives: The Enslaved People of George Washington's Mount Vernon

At last it is time to do the dance of joy and celebrate.  Yippeeeeee, Hallelujah!  My new book Buried Lives: The Enslaved People of George Washington’s Mount Vernon(Holiday House Books) will be released in a few days-on December 18, 2018. 

Released December 18.  New from Holiday House.  STARRED review in Booklist.
Enter the book giveaway at the end of this post for a chance to win a copy of
Buried Lives: The Enslaved People of George Washington's Mount Vernon.

It has been five years in the making.  Now that I think about it, it has been closer to five and a half years since the first idea for this book planted itself firmly in my mind--and more importantly in my heart.  At the risk of sounding melodramatic, when I take on a topic for a book, I live with the people I write about for the rest of my life.  

The people from Buried Lives I’ll carry with me along life’s bumpy road are William Lee (Washington’s valet), Christopher Sheels (the young man who took over as valet), Caroline Branham (housemaid), Peter Hardiman (Caroline’s husband who ran Washington’s mule breeding operation), Oney Judge (Martha Washington’s lady’s maid), and Hercules (chief cook at President’s House in Philadelphia).  Along with these six people, their families join me too. For some of them, I know their mothers, their grandmothers, their aunts, their uncles, their spouse, their sons, and their daughters.

While I’m researching and writing the book, the subjects of my book are never far from my mind.  I think about them as I figure out how to bring their true-life stories to readers in a way that is accurate and entertaining.  I think through the details of their experiences.  I ponder over them.  I put myself in their shoes so to speak-at least as much as possible.  The people I write about must be real to me.  If they aren’t real to me, they will never feel real to my readers--even though they were real people.  

I want my readers to find out what happens to the six people I highlight in my book.  But that’s not all—I want them to feel the hoe in Christopher’s hand when he was a child. I want them to feel the cold as Caroline lights the fires in the house during the winter.  I want them to smell the delicious meals Hercules cooked on the hearth.  I want my readers to see them as real flesh and blood people who had every emotion we have today.  And I want my readers to remember that someone else owned these six people.  In this case, their master was the President of the United States.

Along the way of telling about the lives of these six individuals who were enslaved at Mount Vernon, I weave in Washington’s changing views of slavery through the years.  By 1799, 317 enslaved people lived at Mount Vernon. Washington owned 123 of them, he rented 41, and 153 individuals were owned by Martha’s dower estate.   Near the end of his life, Washington wrote a will that would freed the 123 people he owned.  But neither he nor Martha could free the 153 people that were part of her estate.  This sets up a devastating separation of some families after the deaths of George and Martha Washington.  Readers will find out which of the six were freed and which remained enslaved.

Also part of Buried Lives is the ongoing archaeological dig in the cemetery for the enslaved people of Mount Vernon.  The graves, which are unmarked, are slowly being located and counted—while none of the remains are disturbed. 

In a few days, Buried Lives: The Enslaved People of George Washington’s Mount Vernon will leave my protection.  It will be released into the world to stand on its own.  It is my hope that the book I’ve written will allow six, specific enslaved people from Mount Vernon to step out of the fog of history and stand in the bright light of recognition.  I want my readers to like them as much as I do.   

Carla Killough McClafferty

BOOK GIVEAWAY

Readers, to enter our drawing for a chance to win an autographed copy of Buried Lives: The Enslaved People of George Washington's Mount Vernon, written by Carla Killough use the Rafflecopter widget below. You may enter via 1, 2, or all 3 options.

If you choose option 2, you MUST leave a comment on TODAY'S blog post below or on our TeachingAuthors Facebook page. If you haven't already "liked" our Facebook page, please do so today! 
In your comment, tell us what you'd do with the book if you win our giveaway--keep it for yourself or give it to a young reader?

(If you prefer, you may submit your comment via email to: teachingauthors [at] gmail [dot] com.)

Email subscribers: if you received this post via email, you can click on the Rafflecopter link at the end of this message to access the entry form.

Note: if you submit your comments via email or Facebook, YOU MUST STILL ENTER THE DRAWING VIA THE WIDGET BELOW. The giveaway ends December 21, 2018 and is open to U.S. residents only.

P.S. If you've never entered a Rafflecopter giveaway, here's info on how to enter a Rafflecopter giveaway and the difference between signing in with Facebook vs. with an email address.



a Rafflecopter giveaway

It’s All in the Details

We at TeachingAuthors have been writing about giving thanks, especially as it relates to writing.  

Actually, I’m thankful for writing itself through the ages.  As the author of nonfiction books, I base all of my research on primary source documents.   I’m grateful that for hundreds of years, people have recorded details of their lives. Wealthy and poor people, famous and non famous people, generals and soldiers, mothers and fathers wrote books, letters and diaries that are gold mines of information.    

Not only have people written about their lives through the years, they and their families kept their letters and diaries.  When you write about history today, the details eyewitnesses record can make a nonfiction book come to life.  

To show you how details from life hundreds of years ago gives life to a book, let me give you an example from my new book Buried Lives: The Enslaved People of George Washington’s Mount Vernon.   

My newest book-released December 18, 2018.
NEXT MONTH THIS WILL BE OUR TA BOOK GIVEAWAY.  

Many years after George Washington was President and lived in the capital city of Philadelphia, his step-grandson, George Washington Parke Custis, wrote about those days.  In his memoir titled Recollections and Private Memoirs of Washington, Custis remembered Hercules, the main cook at the President’s House-and a man who was owned and enslaved by George Washington.  Custis was a child at the time and knew Hercules well.  Custis later wrote about how Hercules worked to prepare the weekly state dinner.   I write about Hercules in my book.  I quote from Custis who described Hercules as he worked in the kitchen in Philadelphia. He wrote that while preparing state dinners Hercules: 

“shone in all his splendor . . . . It was surprising the order and discipline that was observed in so bustling a scene.  His underlings flew is all directions to execute his orders, while he . . . seemed to be everywhere at the same moment.”  

George and Martha Washington raised her grandson, George Washington Parke Custis-who later wrote a book about his recollections of his life with Washington.

This detail about Hercules was priceless to me.  I was able to write about Hercules as a gifted chef at the top of his game.  With details like these and others, I hope a reader hears the clang of pots and feel the heat of the fire in the hearth as Hercules cooks.  My book is filled with details from eyewitnesses who wrote about events and I could not have known them any other way.  Using primary sources, I could write about Hercules and put a reader in the room with him more than 200 years later.  

In this scene in Buried Lives, I want contemporary readers to catch a glimpse into the life of Hercules, an enslaved man-who happened to be owned by the President of the United States.  

The written word is powerful.  If used effectively, the details of kitchen long ago can be a meaningful as the sweetest verse of poetry.   

Carla Killough McClafferty

ANNOUNCING THE THE WINNERS OF OUR BOOK GIVEAWAY FOR THE NEWLY REVISED

WRITING PICTURE BOOKS BY ANN PAUL. 

CONGRATULATIONS!  KAITLYN S. AND REBECCA A.

Next Month Our Book Giveaway Will Be:

BURIED LIVES: THE ENSLAVED PEOPLE OF 

GEORGE WASHINGTON'S MOUNT VERNON. 

(Starred Review In Booklist!)  

Learning from Friends

In honor of the start of another school year, we TeachingAuthors have been writing about various ways we “school” ourselves.  As usual, my fellow TAs have written eloquent blogs on this topic in a wide variety of ways.   I’m taking a different direction.  One of the ways I believe we as writers continue to learn is to talk to other writers.   Most of our families don’t quite “get” what we do, or why we do it.  Sometimes I don’t understand it myself.   That is why developing friendships with other writers are critical.  They understand.   

I’ve had the blessing in my life of having a fellow writer in my local area.  Darcy Pattison is a nationally known author, writing teacher, and independent publisher.   Click here for Mims House Books.  We met for the first time many years ago when her first book came out (a picture book), and mine (an adult inspirational) was about to be released.  We got to know each other slowly through our local SCBWI chapter—which Darcy started in our state.   

I was beginning to write my first nonfiction book for young readers in those days.  I bought stacks and stacks of how-to books, which are still in my bookshelf.  I devoured books about character and setting and formatting manuscripts and on and on.  Learning all these things was necessary.  But at some point there comes a time in a writer’s life when you have learned enough about how to write and you need to actually do it.  The next step is what I call: Put your seat in a seat and work.   In some ways that is when your real education as a writer begins. 

As the friendship between Darcy and I grew over the years, so did each of our published books.  (Her list is far longer than mine!)  Our writing styles and the types of books we each write are very different but we have been able to help each other.   The main way I believe we help each other is not in the form of manuscript critique—although we do that for each other.  It is in the way we discuss our work—over countless cups of coffee, phone conversations, emails and texts.  We bounce ideas off each other.  We brainstorm together.  We discuss how to handle various situations that come up in publishing.  We support each other.  We are sad for each other when disappointments come.  And we rejoice with each other when good things happen.   

In the words of E. B. White in Charlotte’s Web:

“It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer.  Charlotte was both.”

My friend Darcy is both.  I look forward to a friendship that lasts for many more years as we learn from each other.  

I hope each writer who reads this blog will find a writing buddy-or maybe a whole group of friends to support them.   

Carla Killough McClafferty

Darcy Pattison and I with our books at the Arkansas Reading Association conference.  

CONGRATULATIONS TO COLLEEN K, the winner of our TA giveaway!! She will receive a copy of Great Morning! Poems for School Leaders and Read Aloudby Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong.  Enjoy the book Colleen K.     

The Seasons of My Books

It is my turn to blog about how the season affects my writing.  The seasons of the year don’t change my writing schedule.  When I’m working on a book I keep plowing onward Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall.  

But I do have different seasons of writing that has nothing to do with the calendar.  I write long nonfiction books that are deeply researched. Each one takes years to research and write.  And in a lot of ways, each book goes through four seasons.  

I’ve written about my upcoming book in the blog space quite a few times.  But just like a mother (and grandmother) I never tire of talking about my “baby” AKA, my new book.  Oh and did I mention that new baby’s name is 

BURIED LIVES: THE ENSLAVED PEOPLE OF 

GEORGE WASHINGTON’S MOUNT VERNON

This book, like all my others, goes through all four seasons before it bursts forth as a fully developed book.  

It goes something like this: 

Spring 

Morguefile.com

Spring is when a new idea pushes its way to the top.  For Buried Lives, that idea was five years ago.  Yes, five.  The idea for this book was fresh and green and exciting.  I wondered if the idea for this book would take hold and grow. There was so much I needed to consider. Could this idea work?  Would it work?  Was there enough primary source material to make it work?   Spring is the time for possibilities.  

 Summer

Morguefile.com

Summer is when the idea has taken root.  The idea turned into a book proposal.  The proposal turned into a contract.  The contract turned into finding a way to make this book actually work.  This is when seed which sprouted in the spring, takes root.  The more I work on the book the deeper the roots go.  For Buried Lives, the long hot days of summer lasted a very long time. It is a complex, difficult topic. Many days I watered the text of this book with tears.  

Fall

Morguefile.com 

Fall is when the idea has been fully executed.  I turned in the completed manuscript.  Then the harvesting begins.  Like my Daddy cut rice during the days of harvest on our farm, editing and revision is about cut, cut, cut.  Then revise, revise, revise.  Editor after editor, reader after reader suggested changes.  This is when my “baby” book starts to walk, then run. Every edit makes it better. Finally, the last edits are done. (Just this week the very, very last edits were done on Buried Lives.)  The harvest is over and the result is a book that is as good as I can possibly make it.  

Winter

Morguefile.com

Winter is when the book is finished.  My editor and I are elated and exhausted.  The book is delivered to the printer.  It is a time of reflection because I know that soon people will read the words I’ve written and rewritten.  I hope reviewers, teachers and readers will like my “baby” and I hope that no one is mean to my darling in a nasty review.  Yet, I know I’ve done all I can do.  Soon I will send my book out into the world to stand alone.  

For me the winter season of the book is when I clean my office and try to get the stacks of research in order and off of my desk.  Then I start working through a to-do list of things around the house I have ignored: cleaning closets, drawers and the garage.  (OK, I still haven’t gotten to the garage!)   Even as I’m relieved to be finished with my book, I start wondering what I should write next.  

During the winter season of my books, a glorious day arrives—like it’s Christmas Day.  A box of books lands on my front porch and I tear it open to see my baby nestled there in paper.   I revel in the sound of opening of a brand new book.   It is a happy day-beyond description really.  The publication date for Buried Lives is December 18, so I should get this happy day of books near the end of November or so.

Spring follows winter, even in the seasons of my books.  When spring comes, I’m ready for a new idea to push its way to the top.  

The front cover of Buried Lives: The Enslaved People of George Washington's Mount Vernon, published by Holiday House, release date December 18, 2018.

Carla Killough McClafferty

When My Work Pesters Me, I Listen

One of the things I love about historic research is that there is always something more to learn. No matter how much I’ve learned about a topic, there is always something deeper, richer, and more complex to know about it.  

I’ve had that experience this week as I’m working to get the final edits done on my book that is coming out this fall titled Buried Lives: The Enslaved People of George Washington’s Mount Vernon, published by Holiday House.  This book is full of all sorts of fascinating information and images.  And though I’ve never done it before like this, I’ve written an introduction and <gasp> even placed images in the introduction.  These amazing, powerful images will pack a punch even before the first word of chapter one.  

It was the caption to one of those images that wouldn’t let me rest this week. 

The caption as I wrote it a while back has been through various readers including my editor countless times, copyeditors, and even managing editors as they read the manuscript. The caption was absolutely fine and fabulous.  

The image on the page is a diagram of a slave ship.  The caption mentioned the transatlantic slave trade and identified the name of the ship and when it was built.  It was a good caption.  It was enough information, especially for the introduction! 

But still that caption pestered me.  My work does that to me-and when it does I pay attention.  

I started wondering…a great thing for a nonfiction author.  Are there any specifics I could add to the caption?  Maybe just a few words if I could find some detail about the ship or the human cargo it carried.

Then it got really interesting.  I found that specific ship on the Voyages: The Transatlantic Slave Trade Database provided by Emory University.   I found out lots of details about this slave ship.  I know who the captain was, who owned the ship, where they picked up the enslaved, where they took them, how many Africans were packed belowdeck, how many were men, women, boys, and girls.  I know the voyage across the Atlantic took 51 wretched days.  I even know how many of them died on the voyage.  

And as if all that wasn’t enough, I discovered that abolitionists in Great Britain used this diagram to show the horrors of the slave trade.  And William Wilberforce, a British politician, used a model of that specific ship when he spoke to Parliament against the slave trade.  

Click here to see the model.

What a fascinating piece of history!

Although there was nothing wrong with the original caption, I knew more about the topic than what it said. And, well I just had to share it. So I emailed my editor suggesting an eleventh hour addition (actually the hour is more like 11:55) for the caption on page 2.   

And my wonderful editor Kelly, agreed with me and found a way to make it work.  

I’m really glad that caption pestered me.  

Carla Killough McClafferty