From Family to Fiction by L. E. Denton

  It all started in 1998.

  I was at a critical point in my life. I had lost several family members and was stricken with the finality of human existence. How long, really, did one have to share the bounty of family? The gatherings during holiday time and the intimate conversations drive us to be better people? At the age of 43, my own frailty became evident.

  My favorite aunt had started a quest to find out about the people that had come before her. Who were they? Where did they live? What occupied their time? What stories had been saved to explain their existence and the meaning of their lives? She shared her journey to the past with me. I was hooked.

  Just as the computer age began, I used the new technology available and started my own quest. With a degree in Secondary Education and a history major, I used the intellectual tools I had acquired to dig deep into the lives of my ancestors. The stories I found were intriguing. These were not just names on a chart, with their births and deaths recorded, but real people with real struggles. I found that some even had an impact on world events!

  I found the stories of my sixth great grand-uncle, Evan Shelby, and his son, Isaac Shelby, fascinating. I discovered that these two men had planned together one of the greatest victories of the American Revolution – the Battle of King’s Mountain. Using the information I found, I wrote a novel, “Crossing the Blue Ridge: A Tale of King’s Mountain.” In it, I explore how those hardy pioneers were able to overcome a well-trained Tory force and win one of the most unlikely triumphs in American history.

  We should never be afraid to explore the trials and travails of those who came before us. There are stories to be found and new worlds to explore. Get digging!