Today’s podcast episode is a Book Award Winner episode, where we get to know a writer who won the NAIWE Book Award.
Leslie Simmons won the 2024 Book Award for her book Red Clay, Running Waters in the Genre Fiction category.
Leslie Simmons writes Historical Fiction about people in the center of defining moments in American history. Her debut novel, Red Clay, Running Waters uses the power of story to explore how a past we didn’t live shapes the lives we live today.
Leslie grew up in Philadelphia, following in the footsteps of the founding fathers. A lifelong reader and lover of all things historical, she is fascinated by the lessor known lives of those who changed history. After decades of research into the Cherokee, Indian Removal, the Ridge family, and the Antebellum Era, Leslie followed a path marked by serendipities to the book she knew she had to write.
Here is a preview of today’s discussion:
When did you first have the idea for this book? And what inspired you to actually write this book?
Curiosity about one old house — the Ridge House in Fayetteville, Arkansas — led me on a journey spanning forty years, a journey into an era of American History I knew little about, It was a journey into the lives of the Ridge family — once prominent members of the Cherokee Nation – who lived at the center of the forced removal of Native peoples from their homelands.
I discovered the house that had intrigued me once belonged to a White woman married to a Cherokee man. I also learned that most Cherokee considered the woman’s husband a traitor, responsible, in part, for the Trail of Tears. A marriage between a White woman and a Red man certainly wasn’t common before the 1830’s, even if the house did lay close to the border of the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma. And just what was it that had led her husband, once considered the hope of his nation, to go down the treacherous path to his alleged treason?
My assumptions were mightily challenged by what I learned. As I trawled through the records, and the story revealed itself, the phrase ‘past is prologue’ flashed like a neon sign in front of me. This modest house in the center of a historic Ozark town, and its previous occupants, had me wondering – ‘What happened to them?’, ‘How had John Ridge gained his historical reputation?’, ‘How had the Trail of Tears happen?’.
Understanding the conflicts, betrayals, and good intentions gone wrong of the Antebellum Era surfaced parallels to the politics and social issues of my own times. I was intrigued, especially since I found myself taking a very different point of view on the Ridges and how their lives unfolded. I knew I wanted to uncover their side of a story, one that remained untold, and to show how a past we didn’t live shaped our lives today.
Please describe one of your favorite characters from your book.
All the characters in Red Clay Running Waters are historical figures, so there were some constraints on how I portrayed them, driven by the demands of authenticity,
Of course, the main characters in this story hold my heart the most, especially John Ridge. I fell in love with John through his own words in the historical record, but I came to love all those whose lives he touched. I carry them still in my thoughts.
Outside of the main ones, however, Patrick Dempsey stands out as a favorite, despite his relatively minor role. His name is mentioned only once in historical record; he became a more important figure in John’s story through my own fictional creation, so perhaps that investment in character creation led to his favored status. Even though I had nothing to go on I had a clear vision of him from the start, his wit, energy and the part he needed to play. I had fun with him, even although he has a fairly serious part in events. I love his perspectives, his cynical humor, and his devotion to his friendship with John. He was a fantastic vehicle for plot points and reflection.
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