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Q: Why did you decide to make your heroes B-17 pilots?

A: Walt and Allie's story was brewing for a while, and I knew he was a pilot. Then I saw a special on the History Channel about the Eighth Air Force, and I was moved by the stories of what those men endured. Plus I loved the British backdrop. In addition, my great-uncle, Roderick Stewart (yes, the original Rod Stewart), had been a B-17 pilot. Uncle Rod flew a B-17 under the Golden Gate Bridge (obviously against regulations) and flew into Pearl Harbor during the Japanese attack in a squadron of twelve B-17s. He went on to fly missions from Australia with the 7th and the 19th Bomb Groups, and then served as a squadron commander with the 94th Bomb Group in England. I based the career of Walt's brother, Jack, loosely on my great-uncle's career.

Q: How did you do your historical research?

A: I started off with some basic texts on World War II to remind myself of everything I'd forgotten since high school. Man, that was a lot! First I read everything pertinent on the shelves of my local library. I found bibliographies helpful to point me to great resources—some appeared in multiple bibliographies or just had intriguing titles. For free, my local library can obtain books from other libraries in the county, and for a small fee, they'll locate books throughout the nation—one of my favorite books came from the Library of Congress. Very cool. And some of my favorite books (including a reprint of the B-17 flight manual) came from online historic aviation sites.

Of course the internet was vital. I found great historic maps of Riverside and Bedford, complete combat chronologies of the Eighth Air Force, and oral histories of flight nurses.

For atmosphere, nothing beats being there. Every time the B-17s come to our local airport, I stroll through to smell the oil, feel the metal, and realize just how cramped those men were. I was also blessed with an opportunity to visit England and Germany, and to walk the ground my characters walked.

A: Yes and no. In 1907, the US Army formed the Aeronautical Division, which became the Aviation Section in 1914, and the Air Corps in 1926. The Army Air Corps was officially renamed the Army Air Forces on June 21, 1941, less than six months before the US entered WWII. However, the Air Corps term was still used informally. The US Air Force officially separated from the Army in 1947. (source: Craven, Wesley F. & Cate, James L. "The Army Air Forces in World War II: Volume One; Plans and Early Operations; September 1939 to August 1942." Washington DC: Office of Air Force History, 1948.)

Q. In A Distant Melody, which places and people are real - and which are fictional?

A: All towns mentioned are real as was the 306th Bombardment Group, and I've tried to incorporate as many true details as possible. However, because the towns are populated by fictional people, I created fictional businesses for them to own or work at. Likewise, all the churches are fictional except St. Paul's in Bedford, England. The only real-life person who appears in A Distant Melody is Col. Frank Armstrong, commanding officer of the 306th. Other real-life people mentioned include Generals Spaatz, Eaker, and Longfellow, Colonel Overacker, Lt. John McKee, and Sgt. "Snuffy" Smith. My only regret is the necessity of "bumping" real-life heroes to make room for my fictional bomber crewmen.

Q: In A Memory Between Us, which places and people are real—and which are fictional?

A: All towns are real, and so are the Army hospitals, the 94th Bombardment Group, and the 815th Medical Air Evacuation Squadron. All health care characters are fictional, and I changed a real date for the 815th to fit my story timeline—they didn’t actually arrive in England until March 20, 1944. Due to Jack’s high rank, I had to include real-life commanders in the 94th as characters—Col. Frederick Castle and Lt. Col. Louis Thorup. I hope I did these outstanding men justice. Other real-life people mentioned in the book are Col. John Moore, Brig. Gen. David Grant, Gen. Henry H. “Hap” Arnold, Col. Curtis LeMay, Maj. Gen. James “Jimmy” Doolittle, Lt. William Cely, Brig. Gen. Russ Wilson, Col. Charles Dougher, Gen. Paul Hawley, and barber Mr. Noia.

Q: In Blue Skies Tomorrow, which places and people are real—and which are fictional?

A: All towns are real, as was the 94th Bombardment Group. In Antioch, I did create fictional businesses and churches for my characters. Real life townspeople mentioned in the story include Dr. Dozier and Dr. Libbey, attorney Matthew Ward, and police officer Robin Mandeville. Carmen Dragon did come from Antioch, and he received the Oscar for his orchestration of 1944’s Cover Girl (on the marquee on the book cover). El Campanil Theatre (pictured on the cover) is real and has been beautifully restored. You can see pictures at http://www.elcampaniltheatre.org. In the Port Chicago story line, all characters are fictional except for Thurgood Marshall (future Supreme Court justice) and Adm. Carleton Wright. Real life Eighth Air Force personnel include Col. Charles Dougher, Brig. Gen. Frederick Castle, chaplain William Miller, and Big Band leader Maj. Glenn Miller.

Q: Is the Port Chicago story real?

A: Yes, the story of the explosion, the work stoppage, and the mutiny trial is real, although all characters are fictional. The explosion killed 320 men in the largest home front disaster of World War II (I used the figure of 322 men in the novel, because that was the number reported in the press at the time). Carver Jones is entirely fictitious, but his case is based on two men who had medical excuses for refusing to work but were convicted of mutiny. For a thorough examination of the case, please read Robert Allen’s excellent The Port Chicago Mutiny (Berkeley: Heyday Books, 2006).

Q: The story about Col. Elliot Roosevelt’s dog and Seaman Leon LeRoy—is that real?

A: Yep. I found the story in Time Capsule 1945, which contains excerpts from Time Magazine. Of course I had to use it. I found the rest of the details in the Antioch Ledger, and wrote a blog post about it.

*Note: Walt’s plane in A Distant Melody, and Jack’s plane Sunrise Serenade in A Memory Between Us are both B-17Fs, which lack the chin turret designated by #2 in the diagram above. Jack’s other planes are B-17G models as above.