The Birth of a Novel

In 1934 this young woman bought a small red diary. On the inside cover she wrote, "A line a day or a record of my 1934 doings and thoughts."  These "doings" were mainly her job as a maid for wealthy families in Des Moines, Iowa. 

In 2005, my mother died and I came into possession of her diaries. I read them cover to cover, fascinated with the story unfolding of life in the Great Depression era. A novel set in the 1930s began to grow in my imagination.

I chose Ruth for my main character. Ruth had made an appearance in one of the first chapters of The Long Ride Home, and I always wondered what happened to her. So she told me her story. 

Flight of the Red-winged Blackbird is not my mother's story, but I drew greedily from her diaries for authenticity. Iowa icons mentioned in the book include: the capital, Union and Greenwood Parks, the Italian neighborhood on the south side, Iowa State Fair, the Ledges, and many more. And yes, Ruth works as a maid as my mother did.

Ruth's story, Flight of the Red-winged Blackbird, is now available for preorders on Amazon.