Thanks for joining me today, Stephenia. We’re going to start with a little flight of fancy. How would you finish these sentences?

If I could assign one household task to the fairies forever, it would be…

Cleaning bathrooms

Oh, amen!

If I could only eat one type of fruit for the rest of my life, I would pick…

Apples. Apple pie, apple turnovers, apple tarts…

Yum!

If I could say one thing to my younger self, it would be…

Normal is just another word for average. Never strive to be average.

Oh, I like that!

If I could have one superpower, it would be…

Portals. So I can open one to anywhere in the world and see as many places as I would like.

You and my youngest daughter both!

When I was a child, I wanted to be a…

Veterinarian

My ideal place to read would be… 

Under a palm tree in Hawaii on a bed hammock overlooking the ocean.

Nice!

Okay, so let’s get down to business. Most of your novels are set during or just after the Civil War. What is it about the Civil War era that captivates your writer’s imagination?

The women of that era went through very difficult times. Families were divided, husbands and sons were gone, and all of a sudden they had to step up and become nurses, caregivers, workers, managers, and a number of other things. This turbulent time tested their faith and their strength, and I believe that makes good soil for a story. Missing Mercy, however, steps out of that time and gave me a chance to work in a different era – one where there was no threat of cannon fire!

Missing Mercy is set a generation after the Civil War. What are some of the biggest changes that have happened during that generation?

Even one generation out meant a lot of new research. What did they wear? How did the travel? What current issues were they facing? I was fascinated with the change from the hoop skirts to the bustles. I’ve always liked wearing my big hoop skirt dresses to events, but I don’t see myself ever wearing one of those big bustles!

Missing Mercy features a Black heroine. What were some of the challenges you faced when writing from her point of view, and how did you tackle them?

Writing outside of one’s own ethnicity can be daunting. I wanted to get the characters right, and I wanted to avoid any inadvertent offenses. I’m grateful for some wonderful authors who performed a sensitivity read for me. For the most part, though, it was difficult writing the prejudices against Mercy. I think she is such a great character. She’s strong, smart, and feisty. Having to write people treating her so poorly just because of her physical appearance was really difficult.

How much of Mercy’s story is based in fact, and how much came straight from your imagination?

Most of my stories are heavily based on historical figures and actual historical events. Missing Mercy, however, was not. This one pretty much all came out of my head. Another reason I think this one was a challenge for me to write.

You’ve written other novels about the Ironwood Plantation. Where does this story fit with your other novels?

This is a unique series because of the way the books flow. Book one (The Whistle Walk) is set during the Civil War. Book two (Heir of Hope) is like a split-time story where a modern heroine, Emily, inherits the plantation and finds her Civil War ancestor’s diary hidden in the attic. You get the modern story as well as the Civil War era diary entries. Missing Mercy opens with a prologue from Emily. She’s in the attic at Ironwood again and finds another diary. This one belongs to Faith Harper, Lydia’s daughter from book one. So Missing Mercy goes back to Ironwood in 1887 and features the two daughters from the two heroines in book one. Each of these books can be read entirely on their own, or in any order. But they are generationally related, and all take place at Ironwood Plantation.

Do you have a favourite scene from this novel?

Yes, I do. But I can’t tell you what it is. I’m sorry! It happens near the end and I don’t want to spoil it! Let’s just say Mercy has a moment that is inspired by the “This is me” song from The Greatest Showman soundtrack.

Will we be seeing more from Ironwood Plantation in the future?

This will probably be the last Ironwood book. There’s an opening for a western story with Faith’s brother, and another story with Emily’s great aunt (who Emily inherits Ironwood from) but the timeline starts to get pretty messy, so I think this will be the final book. Then again, I didn’t plan on writing Missing Mercy until so many of my readers asked for another Ironwood book, so who knows?

Thanks for chatting with me today, Stephenia!