Welcome back to the Extra Edition newsletter! I’m excited to bring you bonus content each month with a special inside look at my novels and the history behind them.
This month, we’re going to take a walk through memory lane, looking at content from when I published my first book, Across Oceans, in 2017. The reason for this?
Sitting at my computer for extended periods of time is difficult right now. About a month ago, I woke up with terrible pain in my back, down my right arm, and into my hand. An MRI showed that I had herniated a disc in my neck which was pinching the nerves. With rest and physical therapy, I’ve been slowly recovering, but it means that what energy I have for typing is being used by my day job. (My main April newsletter was, thankfully, already completed prior to my injury.) You, my Extra Edition readers, are also the first to hear that I’ve decided to push the release of Sparks Fly Upward to August 27, 2024. Rather than stress over trying to complete edits and organize a launch team, I’m choosing to focus on my health. This extra time will also help make Sparks Fly Upward the best possible book it can be. I appreciate any prayers during this time.
My First Post – Dare to Fail
This was my first ever post on July 4, 2017, one month before the release of Across Oceans.
There’s something so beautiful about fireworks: the kaleidoscope of color, each boom’s heart-stopping thrill, and the emotion they convey when displayed against a well-chosen soundtrack. At the same time, they can be terrifying. One misplaced fuse, one ill-timed action, and everything will, quite literally, go up in smoke.
Standing on the edge of achieving a goal can sometimes feel like that – beautiful and thrilling, yet in the same breath, terrifying. One step away from victory and also one step away from disaster. We begin to doubt everything we were so certain of yesterday.
For writers, as we near our novel’s publication date we begin to ask, “What if every review is negative? What if I overlooked an embarrassing grammatical error? What if, despite all my research, I explained every detail inaccurately?” We spend months or years, perhaps decades, crafting what we believe to be an amazing story. We pour a little piece of ourselves onto the paper and risk much to share it with others. Is it worth it?
One summer during college, I apprenticed at Opera Theatre of St. Louis. During one of the most rewarding and educational summers of my life, the most important lesson I learned was said by our technical director during our first apprentice meeting: “Dare to fail.” This phrase has been posted on a little purple sticky note on my desk for over a decade now.
Every goal has a possibility of failure. If we never take chances, we never fail, but we also never succeed. Does this mean we should make reckless decisions? Of course not. We must be smart with our actions, but sometimes breaking out of our comfort zone is the only way to see what we are truly capable of. For introverts, this can be especially difficult, which is why so many of us write our thoughts instead of saying them.
Today is America’s Independence Day, a celebration of people who risked much to achieve much. What if our forefathers never fought for what they believed in? What if our ancestors, from all corners of the world, decided that leaving their country’s familiarity was easier than starting over somewhere new? What if Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, or Abraham Lincoln quit before they began? The United States would look very different from the country we know today.
To quote Thomas Edison, “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”
Fear of the unknown is worth the effort. We may succeed in exactly the way we imagined, or nothing could go according to plan, and it all blows up in our face. But we can sift through the ashes to discover that something even better lies hidden beneath our supposed failures.
So dare to fail. I am. Because sometimes, like fireworks, even explosions are beautiful.
An Interview with Reuben Radford
*Originally a guest post on the History Imagined blog in 2017.
Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Reuben Radford, one of the two lead characters from Across Oceans, a captivating novel of romance, secrets, and unexpected truths set in Edwardian England. For our meeting, I’ve arranged a lunch reservation around the corner from the Fontaine Gazette, the newspaper where Mr. Radford works. I wait until the food arrives before extracting a notebook and pencil from my handbag.
KG: Thank you for taking time out of your busy day to meet with me, Mr. Radford.
RR: Chuckling. We all have to eat, don’t we? It seems odd for you to be interviewing me though. Usually I’m the one who gets to grill the other bloke.
KG: My questions won’t be nearly as trying as the ones you probably ask. Let’s start simple. Where and when were you born?
RR: Easy question, easy answer.Nineteen years ago on the tenth of August 1891 in Fontaine, Hampshire.
KG: Can you tell me a bit about your family?
RR: Well, we’ve lived in Fontaine all our lives. I’ve never even traveled anywhere else, although my parents have visited London several times. They brought home what I imagine are all the best parts of city culture – theatre programs, gramophone records, stacks of books. They haven’t traveled anywhere lately though. In fact, it’s rare that my mother even leaves our house. You see, my younger sister, Mira, died a few years back and our mother took it really hard. Honestly, we all did. Our family never recovered from the blow. Swallows hard. My apologies, can we talk about something else?
KG: Of course. Tell me about your job. You’re a reporter?
RR: Yes. I’ve worked as a features writer at the Gazette for two years now, same as my father before he took over as chief editor of the paper. Honestly, that’s how I managed to come into this position at such a young age. Nepotism at its finest. Don’t think that means I have it easy though. My father’s tough on his writers, myself included. I think a lot of that transferred over to me. No one’s harder on me that I am on myself.
KG: Your parents must be proud of you following in your father’s footsteps.
RR: They were. But, like I said, our family changed when my sister died. Before that, I would have told you my parents were proud of me, but now? Well, let’s just say, given the option, I’m not certain I’m the child they would have chosen to keep around.
KG: So, what’s the worst thing you’ve ever done then?
RR: Blimey, what kind of question is that? Are you honestly expecting me to reveal all my worst nightmares to you? And trust me, I have them, day in and day out I have them. You do not want to know what secrets lurk inside my head. Takes a deep breath Let’s just say I trusted someone I shouldn’t have and failed everyone. Happy with that response?
KG: Not particularly, but I see you’re uncomfortable with the topic, so let’s move on.
RR: Thank you.
KG: Not a problem. Let’s discuss your romantic interests, Mr. Radford. A young handsome gentleman like you must be quite adept with the ladies.
RR: Smiling. That certainly is a change in topic. I wish I could say that I’m as virile as you give me credit for; however, I’ve actually never been with anyone. But I’m hopeful it will happen. Someday soon if I have any say in the matter.
KG: That sly look in your eye says there’s more to this story. Have you already taken a fancy to someone?
RR: There is one woman, Maggie, who I can’t seem to get out of my head. We met last May Day while I was visiting my sister’s grave. She’s beautiful, spontaneous, and has one sassy mouth on her. She made up all these incredible tales about people in the cemetery, people she had never met, simply because she believes everyone deserves a good story to their lives. I’ve met all the daughters of my parents’ friends and, trust me, she’s not like a single one of them. In hindsight, I wish I hadn’t agreed to meet onlyon May Day every year after that.
KG: Only one day each year? Why would you propose such an arrangement?
RR: Maggie devised it, not me. But, like a fool, I agreed. I’ve been trying to devise excuses to run into her since then, however even with more proximity, I doubt I’ll convince her to give me a chance. She’s against the concept of marriage. Almost like she sees falling in love as a sign of weakness.
KG: Then why are you bothering to catch Maggie’s eye?
RR: Because that kind of thinking is mental. Forgive me, but I’ve seen what real love looks like and it’s amazing. My parents had it once. My father danced my mother dizzy across our living room. He’d kiss her full on and embarrass my sister and I, red from our teeth to our ears. Every night he told her he loved her, and my mother never lied to my father because she cherished him. That’s the kind of love I’m searching for. It’s rare, but it’s not impossible. Eventually, I hope to show Maggie just that.
KG: But your sister’s death ruined even your parents’ marriage, didn’t it?
RR: He grabs my notebook. Isn’t there something else in here we could talk about? Why yes, look at that, ‘Who are your favorite writers?’ Ask me that one.
KG: I steal the notebook back. Who’s giving the interview here? Very well, Mr. Radford, who are your favorite writers?
RR: I’m fairly diverse when it comes to novels. I’ve read a bit of anything and everything, but I’m drawn to the works of H.G. Wells above any other. The Time Machine in particular always makes me believe in impossible things. I think it’s why I enjoy what I do. Words, even if only in a news article, give people knowledge and hope, just like my favorite books give to me. Maybe I’ll even write a novel of my own someday.
KG: What advice would you give your readers?
RR: Blimey, what could I say? I need my own life in order before I can tell anyone else how to live theirs. But when the time comes, I could tell them how I know that life can be a completely miserable thing, but it won’t always be that way. Yes, that’s what I would tell them. Time changes things. And I’m waiting for it to change me.
Purchase Across Oceans – Now available in eBook, paperback, and audiobook.
Until next month, happy reading!
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam
Kelsey
Purchase signed copies of my books: kelseygietl.com
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