Shirley descendants recorded Mary's date of birth as 17 February 1762. As I contemplated writing a fictional novel about her life, it occurred to me that she turned thirteen in 1775. That eureka moment led to the question, how would a young teen girl cope with the upheaval of her papa being away, fighting Indians? …
My Dangerous Loyalties Series, is a fictional account of Mary Shirley and her family's lives during the American Revolution. It’s set in Western Virginia shortly before Mary’s real life 13th birthday on February 17, 1775. The Shirley family really did live on 527 acres of Indian Creek land. These posts will reveal their non-fiction story, …
The children, in my young adult historical adventure novel, sleep on straw-stuffed pallets in 1775. A young beta reader expressed confusion. She was picturing the wooded structures boxes sit on--SIGH. What is another word for pallet, or how do I give further details without becoming wordy from a 1st person point of view? In other words, "I lay Charlie on …
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