Debut novelist Lacy Fewer chats with me today about her historical fiction (1900-1925) book, Yankeeland.
Bio:
Lacy Fewer is a native of Dublin, Ireland. A graduate of University College Dublin, she has enjoyed a career in banking and finance. Following her passion for storytelling, she has shifted her focus to writing. Yankeeland is her debut novel and was inspired by the discovery of her grandaunt’s letters, which haunted her. She lives in Meath with her husband and children.
Welcome, Lacy. Please tell us about your debut release.
Fiercely independent and passionate, Brigid feels hindered by her family and the strict society of her small Irish town in the early 1900’s.
Brigid and her cousin Molly, who is more like a sister, dream of a new life in the seemingly unlimited land of opportunity they call Yankeeland—America.
Brigid gets her chance when she emigrates with her husband Ben and her brother James, while Molly stays in Ireland. But when Brigid’s quest to have a child leads her to seek unconventional help, her mental stability is questioned. She is soon caught up in a patriarchal medical establishment she has little power to fight.
The new life Brigid dreamed of in America is about to takes a drastic turn.
Decades later Brigid’s grandniece discovers a sack full of letters between the two cousins. She unravels the story and vows to tell the tale of what really happened to Brigid in Yankeeland.
What inspired you to write this book?
The tragedy of the secrets which were contained in the contents of their correspondence. Not only were the lives of those who wrote the letters impacted but also the lives of the future generations. It was time to interrupt the story.
Excerpt from Yankeeland:
Prologue:
I could never have known that fate had handpicked me that beautiful midweek East Coast morning. Sitting on the floor, two large black sacks sat by my side. I was told I could do as I wished with them, as they had brought nothing but sadness to the previous finder.
The bags, you see, held their story.
Closing my eyes, inhaling the smells of the past, I smiled as they enveloped me.
I had always carried a passion for a story; no doubt the lure was the escapism. A great lover of history, I held a particular fascination with my own. With each envelope their lives shed their shadows, their truth no longer needing to hide.
The “To whom it may concern” from the parish priest attesting to their character. The agent’s receipt for the first-class passage aboard the Lusitania, postcards from across Europe, the travels of a chaperone. Snapshots of somber, gray, distinguished, and disheveled-looking people. Attorney letters, doctor’s reports, state of California police testimonies. Bundle after bundle, so carefully preserved.
Time stood still as I sat on the basement floor watching the purposeful feet of the passersby as they rushed about their day through the small casement windows that ran along the top of the wall. The beams of the sun caught the dust of the past.
I had never been in a basement office. I had never been in a Brownstone. Warm, comforting mahogany furniture was placed thoughtfully throughout the main floor, heavy Irish lace curtains dressing the windows and tables. A Waterford crystal chandelier hung in pride of place above the dining table, a wedding gift from Granny in Ireland. A staircase that went up and then down again dominated the center of the home, an ornate lamp on the post of the banister. It all seemed like a grand hotel.
I took the obligatory photographs; it would not do to arrive home without pictures of this home few had visited before me.
Cosseted in the coziness of the basement, I sat on the floor, the contents of the bags spread across the checkered carpet. I was in my happy place. Lost in their story—my story.
Piecing it all together with each envelope, discovering the people and the places. I was humbled and ecstatic that it was I who was seeing some of these letters for the first time since they had been penned.
I was undeterred by his mumbling. “All that stuff. Don’t know why she ever kept it.”
I just thanked every lucky star that she had. But these papers led to so many questions: who had been the chaperone to young Lady Doyne? Who was “fond cousin Molly”? Why had James disappeared?
I sensed an uncomfortable familiarity catching me unawares as I opened and read the letters written and sealed all those years ago, some of which were never posted, never sent to fond cousin Molly. What had happened?
The generations of pain overwhelmed me.
A pain that was familiar.
I grieved for a life lived of the unspoken word.
That is just how it was.
What exciting project are you working on next?
I am really excited to be working on my next novel which is a fictional account of one girl’s journey as she navigates modern day ‘Humbugs’—the many and varied routes to healing in today’s world. It is filled with lots of fun encounters alongside heartbreak in the search to find peace in a life that has hit a speedbump. Ireland is renowned for healing and like any industry it has incredible people who support this journey and it has those that exploit a person at their most vulnerable.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
In the moments following my first reader 5-star review!
I had always wanted to write. Early 1990’s Ireland did not quite support a school leaver following her dream. Two unsuccessful attempts to study Journalism, led to a successful career in Finance. Satiating my first love with voracious reading, becoming quite the raconteur. I always knew this book would be written whilst life got in the way. I had seen it for years, I just needed to do the work in between. Decision time loomed and the usual practicalities were a constant internal debate. I toed and froed until early one morning I was shaken out of my sleep. knowing instinctively it was Brigid shaking me out of my indecision. Not the easiest explanation when making a life changing decision, I took the leap of faith.
During my time in finance whilst life got in the way, I used every opportunity to share my love of both the written and spoken word, working on articles in various finance publications and always being the no.1 storyteller. Yankeeland is my debut novel, finding my sense of place-I know that there will be many more to come.
As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A journalist. I was fascinated with how the written word provided escapism into other worlds where life always worked out ok in the end. I was a huge fan of all Maeve Binchy work, reading her books in my teens gave me a window into what life could be like.
Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your workday like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
Yes, I am full-time writing since I left my career in finance, mid 2022. I am an ‘all or nothing’ kind of person. When I commit to something, I do so with absolute dedication. It has always been this way for me, I guess it was as a result of being the youngest child in a family of six children who had to fight to have her voice heard. Yankeeland has been with me since 1993 when the contents of my grandaunt’s estate found me that September Boston morning. I had researched various aspects of the story in the intervening years, in between numerous house-moves, marriage and having three children not to mention a demanding career in the corporate world of finance.
I have not for one moment looked back and am deliriously happily in my office at present doing 10 hour days, 7 days a week as I master all aspects of the literary world. I am a perfectionist and it has been hugely rewarding immersing myself in all aspects of the publishing and marketing journey. I love learning and I love understanding this industry from the grass roots up. It is important to me to understand the mechanics behind the various decisions that are required.
What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
Scene setting—writing Yankeeland as a work of historical fiction required me to immerse myself into the period in which I was writing. I did this by playing music not only from the period but music that was specific to the region I was writing about. Purchasing various antique artefacts, postcards, pictures, journals, magazines and books which I surrounded myself with immersing myself in every aspect of life in the early 1900’s. As Yankeeland is based on True Events, it was important for me to honor the real lives of the character’s in Yankeeland and to do so I meticulously researched every aspect of their journey staying as close as possible to the facts.
I had many occasions where hours would have passed that seemed like moments, until modern day life would jolt me back to reality. I had numerous experiences that were at times unexplainable where I felt supported on this journey.
Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
I am a connector, I am a doer, I say what I see. Forever grateful and positive in equal measure. I make myself smile, fun always finds me. My three children are my greatest gift in life, all that I do is for them.
My advice is to get out of your own way, be curious about the incredible people you interact with and you will discover the truth in the six degrees of separation.
Never walk past a behaviour you do not accept, don’t pull up the ladder behind you and if it is the right thing to do, do it.
Being human is to make mistakes, there is no such thing as a perfect life.
It can be a comfort to go hand in hand so when you find good people, hold on tight.
Be kind.