I’m writing an article or book report about you. Where can I get the information I need?
Click all the buttons, and you'll find answers to the most frequently asked questions. Especially take a look at About Lois.
Check the acknowledgment pages at the end of each novel for clues about how I put together a story. Two novels will be especially helpful: Disaster on Windy Hill for my family background and how my experiences helped me write the Adventures of the Northwoods series and Escape into the Night for how my husband Roy thought up the idea for the Riverboat Adventures. The acknowledgment pages in each of the five Viking Quest novels give some insight about how I put a novel together. The last in the series, The Raider's Promise, tells the most.
Your school or local public library may have some of the reference books in which I'm listed:
Who's Who in Writers, Editors, and Poets, December Press, 3rd Edition, 4th Edition
International Authors and Writers Who's Who, 14th Edition
You'll find the longest articles in these:
Contemporary Authors, vol. 57-60, Gale Research Co.
Something About the Author, vols. 22, 91, and 130, Gale Research Co. Vol. 91 and 130 also give further resources.
Wisconsin West magazine, April, 1996
Q&A
How many books have you written?
38 books and 14 updated editions. My work has been translated into 12 languages.
How old were you when you started writing your first book?
9½. One warm spring day I was especially naughty and my mother decided that I needed to understand I could never do that again. She knew that if she sent me to my room, I’d just read a book, and that wasn’t punishment. So she asked me to clean the leaves out of the barberry bushes at the front of our house.
The thorns on the bushes made it a prickly, miserable job. As I stopped working and sat down on the sidewalk, the church bell in our small town of Scandia, MN, began to ring. As the long tolls rang out across the countryside, I knew that someone had died. Each long toll stood for a year in the life of that person. I counted, 89, 90, 91. Then the bell stopped.
I thought, What a long time for a person to live. I wonder what that person left behind. I wonder what I’ll leave behind. I knew that if I could ever write a book that’s what I wanted to do.
That night I went upstairs after supper and started working on my first book. For a long time I kept working every night. Years later, after much rewriting, I finally finished that book as The Runaway Clown, the eighth novel in the Adventures of the Northwoods series.
I’ve written a book report on your novel The Midnight Rescue (Riverboat Adventures).
It was one of the best books I have read in my life. I liked how much detail you put
in the book. Where did you get all of your inspiration? Do you know your books make
me feel like I’m there?
When I was writing the Riverboat Adventures my husband and I traveled up and down the Mississippi River. We prayed, asking the Lord to give us his stops and starts. We stopped in towns along the way, researched those areas, and asked questions. Sometimes we met people we could have missed by just one minute or two. The newspaper articles and books I read helped me find details. People I interviewed gave me answers about ways to do things. For instance, I asked an elderly gentleman, How can I have a wagon break down at exactly the right spot? But be able to fix the wagon again quickly? From reading The Midnight Rescue, you know the answer, don’t you?
Would I need to be able to travel a lot in order to write novels?
No! When I started writing the Adventures of the Northwoods novels I talked with my neighbors and friends—the people who lived right around me. With the seventh novel in that series, Grandpa’s Stolen Treasure, I researched in Duluth, MN, one of our favorite vacation destinations. From what I learned about researching there, I went on to other areas in our region. Then before writing the Riverboat Adventures I learned all I could about national history in 1857. For writing the Viking Quest novels I studied and researched international history. I could never possibly have given you an world view if I hadn’t learned the importance of beginning in my home area, then building on that.
How do you make me feel that I know your characters?
I show their feelings. I especially try to show feelings that are like ones that you have.
I’m glad that you put God in your books. Why do you do that?
Because I enjoy knowing him and want to learn more about him. I’ve discovered that he loves to help both my characters and me.
Plot. What is it?
My story plan. The twists and turns. This happens because that happened. A plot should help a story begin, have a middle that builds up to a high point, a moment of choice that helps the main character win over something difficult, and the ending.
About Race for Freedom (Riverboat Adventures): The lesson that God is our real protector in this book makes me feel safe. Thank you for writing this book.
Thank you for telling me how you feel. I also like to remember that God is my Protector. It’s fun to know, isn’t it?
About the Northwoods novels: Does Kate ever marry Erik?
I’ll never tell!
When I need to write something I find it hard to get started. What should I do?
A number of you have told me that you'd like to be a writer. Maybe you've noticed that in the Riverboat Adventures Caleb feels the same way. Whether you become a full-time writer as I am or just need help with your schoolwork, here's a tip. Often the hardest part about writing is getting started.
When you get an idea or an assignment, think about what you want to say. Read about your topic if you can. Seek out people in your town or neighborhood who can help you write about your topic. Make a brief outline for non-fiction topics. For a story brainstorm for ideas about what you’d like to see happen. [If you attend one of my workshops I’ll show you how to to brainstorm and organize your plan.]
Then, when you start writing, try to write as fast as you can without stopping to make corrections. Once you have your ideas on paper, go back to see if your thoughts are in the best order. Check your spelling and rewrite your sentences until they're the best you can possibly make them.
What is your favorite book?
The Bible.
I mean, the favorite book that you have written?
Usually it’s the one I’ve just finished. It still feel I’m part of the lives of my characters. I’m so involved with them that I feel that I want to keep getting to know them better. When I finished writing The Viking Quest series I kept procrastinating about turning in The Raider’s Promise. I knew I couldn’t write about Libby and her brother, about Mikkel, and all my other great Viking Quest friends.
What can you tell me about a History Day project?
When 14-year-old Hannah wanted to do a project for History Day, she remembered reading about Elijah Lovejoy in the Riverboat Adventures. Hannah lives in Minnesota, and in addition to reading primary and secondary resources, she researched websites and e-mailed places in Maine, Missouri, and Illinois. Then she wrote and memorized her presentation, using three characters—a narrator, Mrs. Lovejoy, and a schoolgirl. In addition to competing in her own school, Hannah won regionals, and made it to state competition!
When I asked if I could tell about her project on this website, Hannah said, “I encourage everyone to do History Day. It’s fun, and you learn a lot without even thinking it is learning! Plus, you have a good opportunity to do what you do for the glory of God. Even it you don’t mention him in your project, the work you do can point people to him.”
Big Congratulations, Hannah! We’re proud of you!
Photo: Hannah with her terrific Mom and Dad.
Hannah wore this dress for her presentation and added
a shawl or bonnet when she changed characters.
Do you keep a journal?
Yes. It helps me keep track of my ideas and develop them. For years I’ve kept a journal, starting way back when I was in college. If you’re interested in a combo book about making choices and keeping a journal, I’ve made that possible for you in Girl Talk.
Sorry, guys, not for you!
After I had written a number of Northwoods novels, I went back to a journal I had kept in college. This is what I had said: "I want to write about people who have the ability to overcome obstacles in their lives. How the answer is God. Not God in a wishy-washy way, but God with strength and purpose and power." Isn't it fun to know that the Lord helped me do that, even though I had forgotten about my prayer?
