#Interview with @ElaineCougler, #Author of The Loyalist's Wife

About the Author:

Author's Amazon Page

Elaine Cougler is the award-winning author of historical novels about the lives of settlers in the Thirteen Colonies who remained loyal to Britain during the American Revolution. She uses the backdrop of the conflict for page-turning fictional tales where the main characters face torn loyalties, danger and personal conflicts. Her Loyalist trilogy comprises The Loyalist’s Wife, The Loyalist’s Luck and The Loyalist Legacy, all available on Amazon.

Her latest work is The Man Behind the Marathons: How Ron Calhoun Helped Terry Fox and Other Heroes Make Millions for Charity. Byron native, Ronald G. Calhoun, was the chair of the Canadian Cancer Society team who managed the Marathon of Hope, Terry Fox’s run in 1980. Ron also managed the Jesse’s Journey walk across Ontario and later across Canada, as well as Steve Fonyo’s Journey For Lives and the blind Ken McColm’s Incredible Journey across Canada. Ron’s honours are many and well deserved. Elaine is delighted and humbled to be the author of this important book, a different kind of Canadian history.

Elaine leads writing workshops and speaks about her books to many groups. Through her website she writes a blog about the writing and reading world and more. She lives in Ontario with her husband. They have two grown children.

Elaine on the Web:
Website * Facebook * Twitter

Interview with Elaine Cougler

When did you first realize that you wanted to be a writer/ a storyteller?

For many years I was living the dream of great husband, wonderful kids, a teaching job that I loved and extracurricular outlets for my singing. After I left teaching my adult son said to me, “Is there anything you wish you had done in your life?” “Write a book!” I said without thinking. I had always loved writing essays, stories, take-offs, etc. but I had never thought of becoming a writer. A week after that scene with my son I went into the Borders store in Hilton Head and bought a book: “How to Write and Sell Your First Novel.” I’ve never looked back.

What inspires you to write?

Ordinary people can be absolutely amazing when faced with extreme challenges. That theme pervades all my books and keeps me interested in telling the stories of real or fictional characters who exemplify it. Also holding a finished book in my hands gives a unique satisfaction, unlike any other. And those books are part of my legacy.

How did you come up with the idea for your current story?

I knew my family history came from Loyalists (those loyal to Britain in the American Revolution) and I thought it would be fun to learn more about that time and imagine what my ancestors might have faced then.

Are there some stories tucked away in some drawer that were written before and never saw the light of the day?

When I first started down this writing road, I joined groups, went to conferences and read many books on writing. They all seemed to say to start with short stories. I did that—wrote about 15—but they did not thrill me. I suppose they were okay, but the novel was for me. Since short stories are so different from novels, I decided I might as well start with an historical fiction novel. After all, that genre was what I had loved to read all my life. Surely some of the how-to information had sunk in by osmosis.

Tell us about your writing process.

I get an idea. I research the history. I come up with characters whom I can paint into the history. I start writing. I carry details at the bottom of my document, so I won’t forget them, and I use them when it’s appropriate. Every chapter has to have a hook at the end, so the reader wants to keep going. The stakes increase for the main character(s). I know I’ve written something really good when tears run down my cheeks as I write a particularly poignant scene for my characters. One such scene is in The Loyalist’s Wife where the heroine’s little boy falls into a deep hole in the earth and is stuck. I cried for that one.

What is your favorite scene in the book? Why?

The happy scenes that relieve the tension are my favorite. As Anne Rice said, I like to make it bad for my characters and then make it worse. But the scenes where something wonderful happens feel so good that my heart sings. I don’t want to describe any of those times because they will give away the story. Just let it be known that I love writing both the suspenseful scenes and the relief of tension scenes.

Did any of your characters inherit some of your own quirks?

What an interesting question! I’ve made Lucy brave and honest. She speaks out when needed and she survives being left on her own to look after their farm 10 miles from the nearest neighbor when John leaves to fight for the British. I like to think I’d be that brave but I’m not so sure. I did give John the chin dimple my father had!

What is your most interesting writing quirk?

I love to write dialogue and make the characters seem so real they walk right out of the book and sit at my table. I like to use that technique sparingly so that the dialogue is a real treat for the reader. Is that a quirk? Or just something I’ve learned.

Do you read? Who are your favorite authors and how have they influenced your writing style?

A children’s author by the name of Jean Little wrote Listen for the Singing. I remember sitting on my porch one summer, closing the book on the last page, and feeling tears run down my face. I just wanted to be able to write like her. Another idol was Margaret Laurence who wrote many books, but I taught The Stone Angel to my senior high school English class. Laurence’s work spoke to me as a young woman. I could really identify with her characters. I like Hemingway’s sparse style. I admire the way Sharon Kay Penman can hold my interest through multiple characters over 900 pages so that I am sad when I finish the book.

What is the best piece of advice you have received, as a writer, to date?

I think that Anne Rice bit to which I alluded earlier has been pivotal. Her words always remind me to think of what the reader needs in order to keep interested. I also like the advice given by many to catch the reader right out of the gate. That first sentence has to intrigue the reader so that he/she wants to meet this character and learn more. That is crucial.

What is the best piece of advice you would give to someone that wants to get into writing?

Learn all you can, listen to everyone’s ideas about writing, read all you can. Then have the courage to forge your own path. Our brains are all different and we all write for different reasons. Write the stories that speak to you, that make you happy. That is where satisfaction will be found.

What would be the Dream Cast for your book if it was to be turned into a movie?

I would love to have my Loyalist trilogy made into a movie or television series. There are lots of battles and scenes in both the John chapters and the Lucy chapters. I see those two characters in my mind’s eye as sure as I sit across the breakfast table from my husband every morning. What I cannot do is list characters to play John and Lucy as I just never remember actors’ names. I even tried writing a script for this trilogy but discovered it is not my thing. I’ll stick to writing the books.

If you were to be stranded on the famous deserted island, what three things would you carry?

I’d like to say my cell phone, but reception might be a problem. Paper. I’d need paper and a pen. A fine point one that never runs out of ink. And I’d like to bring my husband as he is the best half of me. I couldn’t carry him, though.

How do you spend your free time? Do you have a favorite place to go and unwind?

Reading, walking, jigsaw puzzles, swimming, and time with friends and family. All of these are my life. In these COVID-19 times some of this is difficult if not impossible. To unwind I love to go out for a meal and have someone else do the cooking. It’s fun to just sit and talk while my food is prepared for me.

Can you share with us something off your bucket list?

I want to take several trips but one that really appeals is to go to Northern Ireland and explore it thoroughly, then take a ferry from the Glens of Antrim over to Scotland and explore it, too, by car.

Tell us three fun facts about yourself.

- I am doing a great job of developing my very own COVID-19 haircut!
- I come from a family of 9 boys and 4 girls, 13 of us!
- I have a terrific Bits and Bites recipe that we make up for taking on all our car trips.

What do you have in store next for your readers?

The project that I’m making great strides on just now is a prequel to the Loyalist trilogy. It is untitled but deals with Lucy’s early family life in Boston. How did a printer, his wife and daughter decide which side to favor—the Sons of Liberty or those loyal to England?

Is there anything else you’d like to share with your readers?

I just signed up for my next speaking gig which we hope will take place in London ON in 2021. Meanwhile I’m working on getting my fourth book The Man Behind the Marathons up on ACX/Audible. It is taking a bit of time as their site is very busy. That will mean all 4 of my books are available in print, Kindle, Kobo, and audio book.
Readers are lucky these days as they can lose themselves and their worries in books!

About the Book:

Check out the Book on Amazon

When American colonists resort to war against Britain and her colonial attitudes, a young couple caught in the crossfire must find a way to survive. Pioneers in the wilds of New York State, John and Lucy face a bitter separation and the fear of losing everything, even their lives, when he joins Butler’s Rangers to fight for the King and leaves her to care for their isolated farm. As the war in the Americas ramps up, ruffians roam the colonies looking to snap up Loyalist land. Alone, pregnant, and fearing John is dead, Lucy must fight with every weapon she has.

With vivid scenes of desperation, heroism, and personal angst, Elaine Cougler takes us back to the beginnings of one great country and the planting of Loyalist seeds for another. The Loyalist’s Wife transcends the fighting between nations to show us the individual cost of such battles.

Giveaway: