This is our inaugural question in our First Friday 'ask the authors' session. It's a good one, I think, and raises a favourite topic . . .
From Mac:
I have read six books by Tracy Dunham about Mythmaker and Johnny Two Hats. The way the last one ended called for more books. Has she written more in this series, if not, does she plan to?Thank you.
Read Tracy's detailed response in the comments.
Thank-you Mac for asking our first question. Series are popular at Avalon so along with Tracy's reply perhaps readers could tell us about their favourites and why they like them so much.
1 comment:
Mac, thank you so much for liking the Mythmaker series. This answer is rather involved, so I'll break it down (for my own benefit).
1. I loved writing that series. The research I did was some of the most interesting I've ever done. I made a special trip to the National Museum of the American Indian Washington, D.C., just so I could see the Medicine Lodge Treaty on display. Took my breath away. As someone wiser than I said, history is written by the victors. I wanted to tell the other side. The Medicine Lodge Treaty wrapped up the essence of the story of the Kiowa for me, hence why I used it as my jumping-off point.
2. All of which leads into the last book and the description of the massacre at Wounded Knee. I sobbed and sobbed as I wrote that scene, and in all honesty, it took a lot out of me. With a change in editors at Avalon (not an unusual happening at publishing houses), I ended up with a new editor whose first words to me were "are your books always so depressing?" Well, yeah, that book had some darkness because, gee, horrible things happened to the Native Americans in reality. I'm sure you know what I mean...I'm not sure the editor did, LOL.
3. I started writing a new series of mysteries and some other things, and while I had (and have) plans for Mythmaker to go into the early part of the twentieth century (did you know there was fighting into the 1920s?), I never got back to her. The research is still there, sitting on a shelf. Every now and then I take it down, think "golly, this is good stuff!" and then. . . well, go back to the book on the computer at that moment.
4. You have given me a wake-up call. Time to get out the research and work on an outline for another trip back in time with Mythmaker and Johnny. I miss them. They're good people with good hearts and the type of moral courage I admire.
Have you read On the Terror Trail, another of my Avalon westerns? This book too is based on history, specifically a black federal marshal known for getting his man who was used by Judge Parker of the Indian Territory. I give huge credit to Avalon for publishing that book way back when. Westerns didn't have black heroes when it came out, and I can't tell you the name of the publisher who offered to print it if I made the hero 'white." Avalon had a great deal of courage to print it as I wrote it.
Thank you so very much for your question. All authors love to hear from readers who have enjoyed their books. You've made my day!
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