How much work does your title do to take readers into the story?Visit Charles B. Fancher's website.
My initial title for what would become Red Clay was Felix, a holdover from my original intent to write a narrative nonfiction book about my great-grandfather, a young boy when he and his enslaved family were emancipated at the end of the Civil War and how he overcame great odds to mature, achieve a measure of success, and provide a strong foundation for future generations.
When I decided to write a historical novel instead, it became clear that the story was about a lot more than just one man; it was about a place and time, a culture, and the people who lived through one of the most tumultuous periods in American history: the last months of the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the dawning of the Jim Crow era.
Regardless of race, religion, or social status, one thing bound all of the region’s inhabitants together—the land—especially the red clay soil, which was also symbolic of the blood spilled on battlefields, blood oozed from wounds inflicted by the overseers’ whips, and blood running through the veins of families across generations. The character Felix remained at the center of the story, but...[read on]
The Page 69 Test: Red Clay.
Q&A with Charles B. Fancher.
--Marshal Zeringue