PHOTO: Laura C. Rader seated at her antique piano, surrounded by books and the North Carolina forest visible through the window behind her.
Exploring Heritage And Human Resilience Through Historical Fiction
Laura C. Rader discusses tracing her ancestors, writing Hatfield 1677, balancing historical accuracy with storytelling, and exploring human nature while honouring multiple perspectives in her debut historical fiction novel.
Laura C. Rader has always been drawn to the intersection of history and human experience. From her early days exploring genealogy in the libraries of California to her three-decade career as a history and English teacher, she has cultivated a remarkable ability to breathe life into the past. Her debut novel, Hatfield 1677, is a testament to that dedication—a narrative built on the real-life experiences of her ninth great-grandparents, capturing both the fragility and resilience of those who lived through extraordinary times.
In Hatfield 1677, Laura demonstrates a keen sensitivity to the complexities of human emotion and historical circumstance. Benjamin’s guilt, Martha’s resilience, and the leadership of Ashpelon are not merely fictional constructs; they are the results of careful study, empathetic imagination, and an understanding of human nature informed by a lifetime of observation and a degree in psychology. Her writing honours the historical record while allowing readers to inhabit the intimate, often painful, realities of her characters’ lives.
Relocating from the sunny landscapes of southern California to the forests of North Carolina has further shaped her narrative lens. The vivid cycles of seasons, the quietude of snow-covered nights, and the vibrant growth of spring and summer all inform her descriptions, adding a rich sensory depth to the historical settings she recreates.
Laura’s work is not only a journey into her family history but a reflection on the ethical responsibility of telling history with nuance. By embracing multiple perspectives, including those of Native peoples often overlooked in colonial narratives, she crafts a story that is both compelling and conscientious—a novel that resonates far beyond the events it depicts.
Laura C. Rader masterfully combines meticulous historical research with deeply human storytelling, creating vivid, emotionally resonant narratives that captivate and enlighten readers.
What first drew you to the story of your ninth great-grandparents and made you decide to turn it into a novel?
I became interested in genealogy in the early 1990s. My pre-Internet research took place at the Carlsbad, CA, library, which has a whole floor devoted to genealogical research. Tracing the Waite surname, I found a remarkable story in a 19th-century book A History of Hatfield, Massachusetts, in Three Parts, by Wells, Daniel White and Reuben Field Wells. It was the story of Benjamin and Martha Waite, her captivity, and his quest to rescue her. I confirmed that they were my ancestors and decided the story should be a novel. I started writing it in 1994, but set it aside in 1995 and didn’t return to it until I retired in 2020.
How did you balance the need for historical accuracy with the demands of dramatic storytelling?
I was able to stick quite closely to the historical people, places, and events, as the actual story was very compelling. I had to alter some timelines slightly, choose the best place to begin, and completely imagine conversations and many character attributes and emotions, as well as physical descriptions, choosing what to embellish and what to cut based on the arcs of the story and characters and the themes I wanted to convey. Most of the Native Americans, other than Ashpelon, were invented, and although Ben and Martha’s relations and friends existed, some names were changed, and most interactions between them were invented.
“I became interested in genealogy in the early 1990s and discovered my ninth great-grandparents’ remarkable story.” – Laura C. Rader
Which archives or primary sources proved most valuable when reconstructing the 1677 raid and subsequent captivity?
One of the captives, Quentin Stockwell, recorded his experiences when he returned home. (Stockwell, Quintin. Narrative of the Captivity of Quintin Stockwell—Indian Captivities, Published by the Eminent Dr. Increase Mather, in the Year 1684.) Other valuable primary sources were the letters exchanged between the governors of the colonies of Massachusetts Bay, Plymouth Colony, New York, and French Canada (Quebec), and Ben’s letter home to his kin, from Papers Concerning the Attack on Hatfield and Deerfield by a Party of Indians From Canada September Nineteenth, 1677. Here is a link to my bibliography: https://lcrwriter.com/2024/05/27/bibliography-for-hatfield-1677/
Did you feel any ethical responsibility to portray King Philip’s War differently from the standard colonial narratives you encountered?
Yes. As soon as I learned that the colonists had initiated a massacre of their local tribe prior to the attack on their town of Hatfield, MA, I wanted to embrace both sides of the conflict. In fact, my publisher, Holly Kammier of Acorn Publishing, made hiring a sensitivity reader a requirement for publication.
How did your background in psychology shape the way you wrote Benjamin’s guilt, Martha’s resilience, and Ashpelon’s leadership?
I like to think that my degree and a lifetime of real-life relationships contribute to my understanding of human nature. I guess I also resurrected some archetypes – the hero with a fatal flaw, seeking redemption; the woman who discovers her inner strength when put to the test; the leader who is devoted to his people. I also placed myself in each character’s shoes, and dug deep to discover what I would have felt and done in their place.
“I had to alter some timelines slightly and completely imagine conversations to bring the story to life.” – Laura C. Rader
What was the most surprising fact you uncovered about Algonquian diplomacy or Puritan military tactics that never made it into the finished book?
Many things, but what stood out to me was that both the Puritans and the Algonquians were brutal warriors, slaughtering infants and children and scalping and dismembering their adversaries, and I held back on including that. It was just too horrific to write.
Now that you’ve relocated from California to North Carolina, has the change of landscape influenced the way you imagine or write historical settings?
I lived in San Diego County, which is basically a desert. I have now experienced living where the temperature on winter nights drops well below freezing, where I can watch leaves and snow fall, and where the seasons change so dramatically. California forests are predominantly evergreen, whereas in North Carolina and most of the eastern US, they are mixed, and the spring and summer underlayer of annual growth is phenomenally vigorous.
What practical advice would you give to other debut historical-fiction authors who are trying to weave family genealogy into a compelling narrative?
Remember that characters must be fully dimensional people, and human emotions are essentially universal, but their expression and repression depend on the culture and the era. As someone once said, historical fiction must be more than just modern-day people in historical dress. Do your research and bring your characters to life.
“My degree and a lifetime of real-life relationships contribute to my understanding of human nature.” – Laura C. Rader
