Don't we all love a good story? I love to read them and I love to write them. When it comes to story characters, specifically fictional characters, I like characters who are either quite "good" at their core or all the way "bad" at their core. Why spend our time reading about lukewarm people? If I could emulate an author in character development, it would be the Scottish author, George MacDonald. Never read any of his novels? A good start would be The Fisherman's Lady. Of course the setting for a good story is of equal importance - the sea, the moors (*shiver, shiver*) of England, the Arabian desert, the rain-forest, the Congo, or anywhere in America the Beautiful! I wrote my first historical fiction novel based on the true story of my mother's family living in an era and location that was not so beautiful, even though it was in America. To me, the family personified the American spirit of survival in the toughest of times. If you would like to read about Chloe May and the Whitehurst family, simply click the title below.