tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post3804678253154447816..comments2024-01-12T11:26:35.176-05:00Comments on Working Stiffs: Why I Live in the PastWorking Stiffshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03270595837074553752noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-6248092558394984692008-10-07T10:09:00.000-04:002008-10-07T10:09:00.000-04:00Great responses, guys! Keep 'em going.It's great ...Great responses, guys! Keep 'em going.<BR/><BR/>It's great to hear that so many people are drawn to World War II (and to know that I'm not alone in my obsession).<BR/><BR/>KathyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-89082078912353820742008-10-07T09:52:00.000-04:002008-10-07T09:52:00.000-04:00I cringed for all of you when he started his quest...I cringed for all of you when he started his question, but I love your description of his wind-up!<BR/><BR/>I'm toying with a historical fiction idea because I'm fascinated with the time period (Chicago in the late 19th century) and want an excuse to explore it more.<BR/><BR/>I read historical fiction for two reasons:<BR/><BR/>1) As you said, it's true that people are people and haven't changed all that much over time. It is fun to see historical people (even fictional ones) buck the Pleasantville stereotypes and be "real".<BR/><BR/>2) I can't ever experience those worlds in person, but having a writer take me back in time is a great alternative.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-62606510263280787532008-10-07T08:57:00.000-04:002008-10-07T08:57:00.000-04:00What everyone else said.I don't write historicals,...What everyone else said.<BR/><BR/>I don't write historicals, although there's a historical mystery in each of my books; I just don't go back in time to it. The contemporary heroine figures it out. If I were to write something actually historical, it'd be WWII. I've always been fascinated by it. My parents were children in occupied Europe, and where I come from, 'The' War was alive and well thirty years later, when I was a kid. We tend to think of wartime as... well, wartime, with everything relating in some way to the war, but it's interesting to me that people still lived normal lives, for the most part. They graduated school, went to work, met and fell in love, got married, had babies, cheated on their spouses, died for reasons other than fighting the enemy... <BR/><BR/>Anyway, that's what I'd write about. <BR/><BR/>And I'm not going to Bouchercon, either. If anyone's in the Nashville area, come see me at the Southern Festival of Books this weekend.Jennahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01442754671445893599noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-3869461078484311172008-10-07T08:01:00.000-04:002008-10-07T08:01:00.000-04:00I love anything historical, especially the Civil W...I love anything historical, especially the Civil War or WWII. <BR/><BR/>Did anyone watch The War when it was on PBS? I was amazed at how much the public didn't know about the war, especially about the extent of casualties. And people at home made such huge sacrifices. Sadly, I don't think people today would be willing to do the same.Joyce Tremelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00498392016497131719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-35022642405932972582008-10-07T07:01:00.000-04:002008-10-07T07:01:00.000-04:00I think there's something in there about "The more...I think there's something in there about "The more things change, the more they stay the same." Somehow, finding out how people did something in a different time or do something in a different country helps me understand how they solved the same problems that I'm/ we're having now, and the pluses and minuses of those solutions. <BR/><BR/>Not sure that makes much sense, but it's the best I can explain it, at least this early in the morning. :-)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33226151.post-79177512229102596452008-10-07T06:34:00.000-04:002008-10-07T06:34:00.000-04:00Interesting question, Kathy. And interesting respo...Interesting question, Kathy. And interesting response to the guy in the audience (there's one of those in every crowd).<BR/><BR/>I know I like seeing how people survived the war during the 40s when I read your book. I catch myself thinking, "things haven't gotten THAT bad yet." But you're right...it's gratifying to see how strong we can be in the face of adversity and still survive and go on to prosper. In a sense, we already know how it ends. Not the mystery, but life overall.<BR/><BR/>Have fun in Texas!Annettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02755947919433555176noreply@blogger.com