Why a book set during Prohibition?
The era was a curious blend of lawlessness, flourishing cultural and technological development, and gilded extravagance.
Every novel I’ve written represents a new challenge for me, often a stylistic or tonal departure from what I’ve written before. My forthcoming historical fiction novel, Black Cordite, White Snow, is no different. Here, I’ve resolved to write a noir-ish crime novel set in the first few years of Prohibition. Why? Because I’m fascinated by that era and all its trappings, which I consider to be largely underrepresented in popular literature today.
Some of the aspects of the genre I find most compelling:
Its proximity to WWI, the first truly global conflict, wherein we witnessed vast leaps forward in mechanization, the adoption of new military technologies (tanks, aircraft), and the confluence of old and new warfare strategies (Civil War-era charges facing overlapping fields of fire from belt-fed machine guns, for instance).
The unprecedented sweep of invasive legislation via the 18th Amendment (1919) —coincidentally authored by Minnesotan Congressman Andrew Volstead—and the subsequent widespread disregard for said legislation that gave rise to an illicit industry of bootlegging and organized crime.
The ratification of the 19th Amendment (1920) guaranteeing women’s suffrage and signaling the beginning of an era of female empowerment.
Groundbreaking technological developments in film/entertainment, architecture, communication, automobiles, and more.
The freakin’ attire. People simply dressed better back then. Jaunty hats, classy suits, elegant dresses, it all screamed tasteful refinement.
It’s a lot to pack all of these fascinating aspects of an era into a novel in a way that doesn’t read like a textbook, but I think I’ve succeeded with Black Cordite, White Snow. I can’t wait for you to read it.