Beulah Land-A Young Adult Novel by Nancy Stewart

Violette Sinclair was always in my heart. She emerged almost fully-formed after the untimely death of my cousin Jill, who faced many obstacles as a lesbian teen. In weaving the narratives of these two powerful women’s lives together, I found they had a comparable tale to tell; one of torment, betrayal, and redemption.

I am speaking of my debut Young Adult novel, Beulah Land, published by Interlude Press, November 17, 2017. As the first year of publication nears, I'd like to revisit not only the book but the reasons why I wrote it. 

Violette (Vi,) Sinclair, a seventeen-year-old young woman, calls the Missouri Ozarks home. It is where her family has lived for two-hundred years. But Vi wonders how long she will stay alive in her own hometown. 

With help from her only friend, Junior, Vi unravels a mystery that puts her in conflict with a vicious tormentor, a dog fight syndicate, and her own mother. Vi's experience galvanizes her strength as she struggles to survive in a place where a person can wake up dead simply because of who she is.

It is my hope that readers find this book not only entertaining but uplifting, and hopeful. Violette is not a victim. She is victorious. But the journey from potential victim to victorious woman is harrowing and rife with many dangers. 

The manuscript won First Place at the State of Florida Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators in 2015. The book, in pre-publishing, won two Five Star Awards (Foreword Reviews and NetGalley.) 

Beulah Land: Young Adult Novel by Nancy Stewart

How does a seventeen-year-old gay girl survive life in the Missouri Ozarks, where every day can be a threat to her existence? My debut Young Adult novel, Beulah Land, tells that very story.

Violette Sinclair, a smart, ambitious young woman, wants to be a veterinarian like her boss, Claire Campbell. She plans to leave raw and threatening Bucktown, Missouri as soon as possible and never come back.

Her only friend is Junior McKenna, the local high school football star. Together, they begin a saga that leads them through their rural world of family feuds, dog-fighting, and the very real threat of  Vi's being murdered. This is a place where someone who doesn't fit in could wake up dead.

Vi and Junior decide to do whatever it takes to rid Bucktown of Dale Woodbine. The tale takes the two on a journey of self-awareness, and personal growth, and ultimately, of redemption.

This book, in a real way, took me on a journey as well. It began after the death of a much-loved cousin who died too soon from a rare cancer. Although the book is fiction, there are threads of a family story woven throughout the pages.

My cousin was a lesbian and as such, was made to feel unworthy by some people in general and a few family members in particular, including her mother. At Jill's Celebration of Life party, the novel came to me almost fully formed. I began writing it the minute I returned home.

The book, in many ways, was cathartic to write. It led me down a winding path of childhood, through warrens of memories that I had not visited in many years. In doing so, I was able to see the past that had eluded me, and writing it brought it into sharp focus.

My wish from my heart to yours is that you enjoy the book and, if you pick up a piece of wisdom here and there, so much the better. Happy reading!

Signal Hill School Days

A walk down memory lane today, dear reader.  But the message is much more important than a bit of self indulgence.  In this age of disrespect for one's school and for schooling in general, I'll speak of the inspiration my elementary school, Signal Hill School, was and still is for me. 

Signal Hill School
Photo from a painting by Marjorie Smith

Signal Hill, a public school and the only one in the district, was built in 1909 for an expanding population of families wishing to live close to the bluffs formed by the Mississippi River, on the Illinois side, with Missouri on the other.  The school, even in its earliest days, enjoyed a reputation of excellence.

My father attended Signal Hill, and both my parents wanted me to have the same experience he had there.  And that's where my love affair with learning began in earnest.

That quest for learning is an intangible thing and, coupled with curiosity, is a life changer.  How do we make the intangible, tangible?  The teachers then, as today, were paramount.  Almost to a person, and whether I liked them or not, they demanded respect, and their expectations for us were high.  And most importantly, these expectations were consistent, never wavering and usually fair. 

Nancy at Age Nine
(Newspaper Article Photo)

As I progressed through Signal Hill, I clearly remember that absolute quest for knowledge continued to grow, and it was always satisfied by being in the classroom, listening to the teachers, reading  books that were assigned, joining in quality discussions and being in the moment of the experience at hand.  For me, those moments grew exponentially into a love of learning that has taken me to this moment.

No apologies for high rhetoric here.  Signal Hill gave me tools with which to live my life, both structurally and academically, as these two components work together.  In conducting my professional life and raising my three sons far away from Signal Hill School, the spectre of those days returns again and again as a model for excellence.  I try to reflect its standards in the fabric of my life. 

 I want to thank Signal Hill School for trying to do the best for each child, knowing there were, as with anything, some failures along the way.  But there were many more successes, and for that I salute you.