How a technical writer became a historical fiction novelist

March 12, 2025

Or, what the heck was I thinking? There are no numbered steps or bullet points in novels!

I devoured historical fiction and historical mysteries on nights and weekends as a way to escape from writing about computer software during the workday.

In all that time, it never occurred to me that I could write a novel. And then another one. Until...

The first glimmers of inspiration came from Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, an Australian TV series set in 1929 that often includes WWI-related characters and storylines in the episodes.

The lady private investigator was an ambulance driver for the Belgians in WWI.

All of the supporting male characters fought in WWI.

Despite being a History major in college, I had only a fuzzy knowledge of US participation in WWI, and no idea the Australians fought anywhere except Gallipoli in WWI.

I would discover Americans and Australians have a long history together.

The first thing I learned was Americans fought with Australians in two pivotal battles during WWI.

US General John J. “Black Jack” Pershing reluctantly allowed two divisions of US troops to fight with Commonwealth soldiers.

The first time Americans fought in WWI was with the Australians at the Battle of Hamel on July 4, 1917. The battle lasted 93 minutes. The Australian general, John Monash, commanding the July 4 battle purposely chose that date to encourage the inexperienced Americans.

Photo source: Australian War Memorial, AWM E02690 American and Australian troops dug in together during the Battle of Hamel. 04 July 1918.*

The second time Americans fought with Australians was the Battle of Saint Quentin Canal in late September 1918.

This battle lasted a lot longer than 93 minutes, but it knocked the Germans back enough to affect their eventual surrender in November 1918.

As I poked around the internet to learn more about Australian involvement in WWI, I found this photo of Australian Lance Corporal John MacQuarrie.

His uniform is so new that he doesn’t even have his battalion’s color patch on the sleeve yet. His boots are still shiny. His puttees aren’t caked in mud.

Photo source: Australian War Memorial, AWM-H06117 Portrait of 5858 Lance Corporal John McQuarrie, 17TH Battalion, Killed In Action 1917-04-15.*

The hope, enthusiasm, and good faith that “it would all be over by Christmas” is clearly evident in the smile and salutes.

I fell head over heels in love with this photo. I first saw this photo at least five years ago and I’m still head over heels in love with it.

The soldier became Joe Parker.

The toddler became his two-year-old son Sam.

I also learned that although WWI began in September 1914, the US didn’t enter it until April 1917.

In the interim, thousands of young Americans volunteered for the French and Belgians as ambulance drivers, pilots, aid workers, and nurses.

The American Hospital in Paris turned its facility and personnel over to the French government to treat French causalities.

Sophie is one of the nurses at the hospital. She lives with a fellow nurse who is married to a Frenchman and who has a young son named Jean-Luc.

Pastel portrait of American nurse Harriet Woods Eoff by French-Swiss artist Eugene Burnand from his 104 Pastel Portraits First World War "Military Types"*

At that point, I knew Joe and Sophie had to meet somehow, become friends, and share the wartime burdens they faced.

The Germans occupied Villers-Bretonneux in the Somme Valley until three Australian battalions attacked from the north and took it back on April 25, 1918. This was one of the battles Joe fought in.

Photo source: Australian War Memorial, AWM E02193 Four unidentified soldiers inspect the ruins of Villers-Bretonneux, April 1918.*

April 25 is a sacred date for Australians – it marks their utter defeat at Gallipoli three years earlier.

By this point, Joe was 27 years old, a first lieutenant with plenty of responsibility and experience in difficult situations. Knowing how important it was to win this battle, he did what was necessary in the "fog of war" while he and his men cleared the town of Germans afterward.

Joe’s actions during the battle for Villers-Bretonneux, took a tremendous toll on his conscience and his psyche and became the source of his most enduring trauma.

But he can’t tell anyone, not even Sophie.

By this point in my WWI research, I knew what I wanted to write about.

A chance meeting between an Australian soldier and an American nurse.

A spark between them that they cannot indulge except in friendship and correspondence.

A decade-long separation. A joyous reunion.

When they return to France 20 years later after they first met, Joe must finally face his wartime demons, not knowing whether Sophie will still love him when she knows his secrets.

As horrifying as the battles were, there are so many stories of redemption and love that I wanted to write one of my own with the characters I’d dreamt up.

And that's how a technical writer started thinking she could write historical fiction. There's more, but that's for another post.

*All AWM photos and the Burnand illustration are in the public domain.