SAFE THUS FAR Is Coming Soon!

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote that I had sent my novel to beta readers. Their feedback is now in (thank you, betas!), and I am busy polishing the text in response to their comments.

In general, their feedback was positive, so I am on track to finish up the book in the next few weeks.

I’ve had the title set in my head for several months now, but I’ve never posted it on this blog before. So, the title is Safe Thus Far.

I’ve struggled more with the subtitle, but finally landed on Searching for Truth in Civil War Oregon.

I also struggled, as I always do, with the back cover blurb for Safe Thus Far. After parsing through it a few times with my critique group, it reads:

Sixteen-year-old Will McDougall has completed the education available to him in the 1864 frontier town of Oregon City, and his future is uncertain. Then he learns his family’s darkest secret—a secret his parents have concealed since his birth.

Devastated by this deception, Will runs away with a friend. The boys become mule packers for a militia unit exploring the untamed wilderness of Southern Oregon.

Against the backdrop of the Civil War, unfamiliar Army rules, and encounters with indigenous tribes, Will seeks to understand himself and his family’s past . . . and to find his way home.

This past year I’ve written several posts about the history behind Safe Thus Far. Here are some of the more significant historical posts:

• Researching Historical Fiction: The Owyhee Expedition
• Colonel Charles Drew and the 1864 Treaty With the Klamath Indian Tribes
• William S. Ladd: Tycoon in 1860s Oregon
• Byron Pengra and the Oregon Central Military Road
• Steamboat Competition on the Willamette River in the 1860s
• Fort Boise
• Abigail Scott Duniway: First Suffragette in Oregon

And here, at long last, is the cover of Safe Thus Far:

Stay tuned for the publication date!

P.S. WordPress tells me this is my 950th post!