First book still going strong: Trooper Down! Life and Death on the Highway Patrol

My first nonfiction book, full of anonymous police stories, remains one of the most popular topics on my website. Police officers from around the country have contacted me since the hardback first appeared more than 20 years ago, to tell me it still conveys what it’s like to be a highway patrol officer on a day-to-day basis regardless of the state in which they work. And that was the purpose of writing a book about police stories – to incorporate one state agency (the North Carolina Highway Patrol) that exemplified officers everywhere, in all types of law enforcement.

Trooper Down! was republished in paperback (Pocket Books) in 1991 and has since been adopted by some criminal justice departments as required reading. In addition, sons and daughters of officers featured in the police stories that were considering a career in law enforcement say the book helped guide them in their occupational choices.

The Police Officers of Trooper Down!

All of which is very gratifying, but it is the police officers themselves who “wrote the book,” by allowing me entry into their world and sharing their true stories on the job. With a signed wavier in hand – I accompanied them at my own risk – I rode along day and night, from the mountains of western North Carolina to the seashore at the Outer Banks, listening, watching, learning, and never once forgetting that truth remains stranger than fiction. Their police stories are strange at times, yet very real.

The Sacrifices as Told in Trooper Down! police stories:

I interviewed families who had lost police officers in the line of duty: a mother who, when she heard the footsteps of someone at her door late at night, somehow knew that her officer son had been killed; the fiancée that learned just before her wedding that her soon-to-be-husband wasn’t coming home; the wife who never failed to tell her police officer husband that she loved him, just in case. As a widow, she said, those three words brought her comfort.

Did You Know?

Since this police stories book was published, some things have changed within the highway patrol organization and some things have not.

• James J. Kilpatrick, syndicated Washington columnist and grammarian, wrote the foreword for Trooper Down! Considered a strong advocate of police officers, he also appeared on “60 Minutes,” and his news stint was eventually parodied on “Saturday Night Live.”
• As of 2006, only 2.3 percent of the NC Highway Patrol police officers were women, compared with less than one percent when Trooper Down! was first published in 1988. Yet their police stories still resonant with readers.
• In South Carolina, a mere 2.9 percent of highway police officers are female.
• In Virginia, 5.5 percent of police troopers are women.
• Nationwide, it is estimated that women comprise only 12 percent of all police officers – not a great deal of progress in 20-plus years.
• Among the worst years on record for police officers killed in the line of duty on the NC Highway Patrol: 1985 when Giles Harmon, Ray Worley, and Bobby Lee Coggins were all killed on routine stops within a six-month period of each other. Their police stories are grippingly told in Trooper Down! from which the title of the book was taken.
• U.S. Senator Terry Sanford called Trooper Down! a police officer book that merits a read by anyone who cares about how our civil liberties are protected through “one of the nation’s most elite law enforcement agencies.”

It’s been more than ten years since I lost my youngest son, Shane, who died of severe aplastic anemia at the age of 19 after an 18-month illness. Since then, I have picked myself up; reshaped my life; moved beyond the savage awfulness of raw grief. I laugh and smile again, don’t study his self-portrait each time I walk past; don’t obsess about what I could and could not have done differently as his mother and primary caretaker. I have two surviving sons, and five grandchildren who bring me joy. And so, I am blessed.

And yet…I pick up a copy of Gifts from Shane, the book I wrote about him and the process of grieving the loss of a child; flip through the pages where he comes to life again, this special, special boy, and sometimes find myself in tears again, missing him, missing all that he was, and all that he could have been.

Why I wrote Gifts from Shane – Grieving the loss of a child

One of the important things I learned from the loss of my son was that people grieve in many different ways. Some withdraw; others drown their sorrows in drink, work, or drugs. Some engage in uncharacteristic behavior. Some turn to their faith or other forms of support. I chose to write, to put words on paper that would help me understand what happened, process the grief of losing a child, and share with others that – incredibly – there is something good in even the worst thing that can happen to a parent.

Author Thomas Wolfe called the loss of a child “that most terrible wound,” and it is that – a wound that never fully heals. You just learn to walk with it; to make it part of your past, your present, and your future. I also wanted people to know Shane, really know him, what incredible insights he possessed; what intangible, remarkable gifts he left behind, and that he taught me more than I could ever teach him.

Winston Groom, author of Forrest Gump

I wrote to Winston Groom, explaining there was a “real life Forrest Gump,” when I learned Groom was staying in Cashiers, NC, only about 60 miles from Asheville. In the letter of introduction, I asked if he would consider writing the book’s foreword. Groom’s own book had led to the highly successful film Forrest Gump, which was one of Shane’s all-time favorite movies. In about two weeks, Groom’s secretary graciously called me and said that her employer would be happy to take a look at the manuscript. It was as simple as that: I asked; he answered. And once he read the manuscript, he said yes. In the foreword, he said “many parents find it therapeutic to write about the loss of a child; to somehow share their grief with others. But this is a story far deeper, and far more profound. It is a tale of triumph and tragedy that at times elates; at times gives one chills.” I am eternally grateful to Winston Groom for his time and interest in Gifts From Shane, and for his innate understanding of what the loss of a child does to a parent, and to all human beings.

Surprisingly, even many of those who work in healthcare services today are not aware that deep in the heart of the Appalachian Mountain is where the first rural midwife school in America began. The year was 1925 and the woman at the helm of this remarkable nonprofit organization was Mary Breckinridge, a socialite by class; an activist and reformer by nature. In the nonfiction book, The Frontier Nursing Service; Contributions to Southern Appalachian Studies published by McFarland in 2009, the stories of Breckinridge and her merry band of British nurse-midwives is told in very human terms.

From Socialite to Activist – Mary Breckinridge

Born into wealth, Mary Breckinridge could have easily devoted her life to social outings and elitist parties. Instead, she chose to find the highest infant mortality rate in the U.S. and reverse it. With family ties in eastern Kentucky, the Appalachian region seemed a logical place to start. In 1925, Mary Breckinridge set off on horseback to explore the area, one of the poorest parts of America, and it was there, in a dot-on-the-map place called Hyden, KY that she stumbled across what would eventually serve as the headquarters of the Frontier Nursing Service: America’s First Rural Nurse-Midwife Service and School.

What Mary Breckinridge Intended

Mary Breckinridge had no intention of remaining in eastern Kentucky. But once the Frontier Service Nursing was established in 1925, and she had enlisted the help of British nurse-midwives to expand the healthcare organization, there was no turning back.

Breckinridge would end up spending her entire life at the Frontier Nursing Service, living in a two-story log home and directing the work of the trained nurse-midwives. She was active until well into her eighties, and when she died in 1965, her room and the artifacts surrounding the history of the FNS remained. Today, the FNS is a national historic site and a quaint Bed & Breakfast, located in Hyden, Kentucky, population 300.

The book: The Frontier Nursing Service Nursing (McFarland, 2009)

Told through the amazing personal accounts of the women who rode on horseback throughout a 700-mile region between 1928 and 1965, the Frontier Nursing book is full of human interest stories about the healthcare provided to women and their families in a time and a place when most could not afford even a trip to the doctor. Most of the recollections were based on more than 185 oral histories made available to the author by the University of Kentucky Library Special Archives Collection in Lexington, Kentucky.

Among the many true stories:

• Why children believed that nurses brought the babies on horseback; hence the term “Saddlebag Babies.”
• How the FNS struggled to gain acceptance and credibility in a region that was well-known for its mistrust of “outsiders.”
• How proper British midwives were enticed to come to the poorest part of America, ride a horse, and learn the language and customs of a people they could barely comprehend.
• The critical role that horses played in getting the nurse-midwives to their destination – literally saving lives in the process
• Why Mary Breckinridge loved animals almost as she loved people
• How and why couriers played such an important part in the success of the FNS
• Overcoming financial hardships and wartime deprivation as needs rose and resources fell
• How natural disasters affected not just the region, but the work of the Frontier Nursing Service
• How, in the end, progress wrought changes – both good and bad – to the Frontier Nursing Service

When I began my writing career more than 25 years ago, I would have given anything to have a mentor, a bit of free advice, a few sound tips for writers, even a shoulder to cry on when the going got tough. And it will get tough. There will be days and moments when you’ll look up from your computer and realize, ‘what the hell was I thinking, trying to make a living at this stuff?’

Writing is only half the battle. The other half is figuring out what to do with all those little gems. And I don’t just mean getting them published. I mean actually earning a living, breathing wage from all that brain-drain that has led up to the hard-earned title of “freelance writer”.

Here’s a sampling of what I hope will help you in your quest for the writing life. These are tips for writers I wish someone had shared with me:

• Tips for Selling Your Story – do you want to write for magazines and trade journals? With print on decline and cuts in editorial staff, it’s a hard nut to crack these days, but there are ways and means. You’ve got to do some homework first, and be willing to try, try again. I have some tips and shortcuts for writers that might make your ride a little smoother. I am still in learning mode with social media, but we can cover that too.
• Truth or Consequences Tip? Fiction or non? Just what type of writer are you anyway? Do you like to make up stories or does research get you excited? Are you a generalist or a specialist? One clue is to take a look at what you gravitate to when you read. I’ve been a nonfiction reader all my life, even love the smell of a library (except for that dude in the corner), and think research is right up there with chocolate and red wine (both of which I really love). So, duh, nonfiction writing is my thing. Doesn’t mean I don’t or won’t give fiction a run, but so far everything I’ve produced and published has been fact, not fiction. Go figure.
• Tips for Getting Your Book Published – admit it, you have a book in you, possibly dozens. But how to get from point A (your great idea) to point Z (your name on the slick shiny cover). Lots to do in-between, and if you don’t know the steps you can waste a ton of blood, sweat, and tears not to mention talent. I have a number of tips for writers interested in the book publishing process.
• How to Write a Book Proposal – ditto all of the above about getting your book published. If it’s nonfiction, you sell your IDEA first, not your entire book. And you do that through a tried- and-true formula with a book proposal. Not as bad as it sounds, once you learn a few tips, such as what to leave in and leave out and, oh, that other little thing – how to beat the competition. Selling your fiction book is a little bit hard. But like all things that come with time, patience, and practice, it can be done.
• Tips for Making a Living as a Freelance Writer – Are you nuts? All right already. Writers write – right? I can tell you what worked for me; what didn’t; the joys, the heartaches, and the major whoppers I made along the way. Plus all the nuts and bolts type things I wish someone had offered me these tips when I started writing. More than likely, I’ll learn something new as well. And that, my friends, is one of many things that continue to make the writing life worthwhile; that, and a little cash in the bank.

Tips, however, are only valuable when they are applied. Through my blogs entries, you’ll find the answers to many of the questions raised, and together, we can figure out what makes the Writing Life work, and what doesn’t.

Determine first if you want to work full-time or part-time. If full-time, do you have enough funds to get you through the first few months while you are establishing yourself, and those dry spells in-between once you begin to sell?

Ask yourself: Am I a generalist or a specialist? Generalists can cover a wide variety of topics, while specialists can zero in on their niche and offer credibility. Don’t think you have any specialties? Do you like to garden? Lettered in a sport during school? Know a great deal about genealogy? Begin with your special interests, learn as much as you can, and pitch your in-depth knowledge to an editor.

Contact me for more tips and guides including tools of the trade.

Most nonfiction writers, sooner or later, must interview a real person about their subjects. Some interviews are fun and breezy, others a social and professional nightmare. Proper interviewing techniques require careful preparation and more practice than you might think. What makes a good interview and what constitutes a dud? And how do you deal with spur-of-the-moment problems you did not anticipate?

Contact me for more tips and guides including some well-worn techniques, ways to avoid trouble, and what to do when your subject just, well…sits there.

First of all, learn your audience and the right market to address. Request writer guidelines from any publication you plan to approach. The guidelines will give you the demographics of their market (age, gender, income levels, interests, etc) and give you some idea of editorial direction. Don’t make the beginner’s writers mistake that any good story will sell to any good publication. Wrong! Know your market, know your reader, and pitch your ideas accordingly.

Contact me for more tips and guides including how to do your homework before you pitch your ideas.

One of the most common errors that writers make is not providing a slant to their story. They want to pitch general ideas rather than honing in a very specific angle. And that’s a major turnoff to editors, who deal with hundreds of story ideas. Separate yourself from the pack by carefully constructing your story’s theme to an idea that you can explain in ten seconds or less.

Contact me for more tips and guides including a fun exercise in finding a specific slant – and multiplying your story ideas for additional sales.

OK. So you’ve got this great idea and you just know it will make a best-selling book; even a movie (few writers can resist the movie-thing temptation, myself included). But before you write that first word just after “Chapter One” there are certain things you must do. Think query before the article, job before the house, horse before the cart, etc. You need a book proposal – selling the book concept rather than the book itself. (Fiction books are a different animal as most publishers prefer to see the entire manuscript. Not so with nonfiction material). Be grateful for the time, headache, and heartache a proposal can save you. Think of it as practice for your book – which you can keep producing as your proposal wends its way to the right publisher.

Contact me for more guidance on changing your great idea into a great book (and maybe even a movie).