Today in Writing History August 31, 1908: Armenian-American writer William Saroyan was born. He won the Pulitzer Prize for drama in 1940 and the Academy Award for best screenplay for his story, “The Human Comedy.” Saroyan was born in Fresno, California, but spent several of his early years in an orphanage in Oakland. He was later reunited with family in Fresno. Many of his early stories were about Armenian farm workers, during the Depression, in California’s San Joaquin Valley.
LOVELY, UNIQUELY VOICED novel tells the story of Victor, a teenage emigré from China whose diagnosis of Hansen’s Disease (then known as leprosy) sends him to a government sanitarium in Louisiana. Beautiful writing, unforgettable characters. A MINUS
Today in Labor History August 30, 1948: Fred Hampton revolutionary activist and chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party was born. He founded the antiracist, anti-class Rainbow Coalition, a prominent multicultural political organization that included Black Panthers, Young Patriots (which organized poor whites), and the Young Lords (which organized Hispanics), and an alliance among major Chicago street gangs to help them end infighting and work for social change. In December 1969, the Chicago police & FBI drugged Hampton, shot him and killed him in his bed during a predawn raid. They sprayed more than 90 gunshots throughout his apartment. They also killed Black Panther Mark Clark and wounded several others. In January 1970, a jury concluded that Hampton's and Clark's deaths were justifiable homicides.
Stephen King refers to Hampton in his novel “11/22/63” (2012). In that book, a character suggests that if you could travel back in time to prevent John F. Kennedy's assassination, it could have a ripple effect that also prevented Hampton's assassination.
Today in History August 30, 1797: Mary Shelley, English novelist and playwright was born. She is most famous for her novel, “Frankenstein.” However, she wrote several other novels, including the historical novels Valperga (1823) and Perkin Warbeck (1830), the apocalyptic novel The Last Man (1826). She married the romantic poet, Percy Bysshe Shelly. Her father was the early anarchist philosopher, William Godwin. And her mother, Mary Wollstonecraft, was a writer and a feminist activist. Mary Shelley was a political radical throughout her life, influenced by the anarchism of her father.
Today in Labor History August 30, 1800: Gabriel Prosser postponed his planned slave rebellion in Richmond, Virginia. The authorities still arrested and executed him, along with 20 others. While the revolt never occurred, it was the one event that most directly confronted the founding fathers with the enormous gulf between their ideal of liberty and their sleazy accommodations to slavery. It led to a rash of new legislation curtailing the rights of free African Americans, as well as laws prohibiting the education and hiring out of enslaved black people. Richmond, at the time of the planned revolt, was a black-majority town, with 39% of its residents being enslaved. There was a community whipping post, where people were brutalized publicly. There was also a growing number of free black people in Richmond, due in part to the influence of abolitionist Quakers and Methodists, as well as numerous refugees from the Haitian Revolution, a few years prior. The goal of the uprising was to completely end slavery in Virginia by holding Virginia's Governor, James Monroe, hostage to negotiate for their freedom. In 2007, Governor Tim Kaine informally pardoned Gabriel.
Arna Bontemps, a member of the Harlem Rennaisance, wrote Black Thunder (1936), a historical novel based on Gabriel's Rebellion. Alex Haley mentions it in his book, Roots. Barbara Chase-Riboud writes about it in her 1979 novel, Sally Hemings. And "Gabriel, the Musical" was produced in Richmond Virginia in 2022, with libretto by Jerold Solomon, Foster Solomon and Ron Klipp, and Music & Lyrics by Ron Klipp.
Today in Labor History August 30, 1813: The Fort Mims massacre took place during the Creek War. The Red Sticks faction of the Creek Nation, under the command of head warriors Peter McQueen and William Weatherford, stormed Fort Mims and defeated the militia garrison. Afterward, they massacred nearly all the remaining Creek métis, white settlers, and militia at the fort. Their victory spread panic throughout the Southeast. Settlers fled. Thousands of whites fled their settlements for Mobile, which struggled to accommodate them. The Red Stick victory was one of the greatest Native American victories. They were facilitated by the fact that Federal troops were bogged down at the northern front of the War of 1812. However, local state militias, commanded by Major General Andrew Jackson and allied with Cherokees, ultimately defeated the Red Sticks Creek faction at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend, ending the Creek War.
The Fort Mims massacre is cited in Gone with the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell. Grandma Fontaine shares her memories of seeing her entire family murdered in the Creek uprising following the massacre as a lesson to Scarlett.
Check out this excerpt from the first interlude of my novel, Below the Heavens - JiangXi.
I have the entirety of the novel published on Royal Road for free. I'm actively publishing the second novel of the series as well! You can find the link to both in my bio.
Check out this audio excerpt from the first chapter of my novel, Below the Heavens - JiangXi.
I have the entirety of the novel published on Royal Road for free. I'm actively publishing the second novel of the series as well! You can find the link to both in my bio.
EVOCATIVE “WEIRD WEST” novel set in a desolate mining town where a prospector’s orphan dreams of better things and of mysterious, powerful beings high in the mountains. Intriguing! SOLID B
The second Alternate Futures podcast episode is now live. I chat with Edwin Rydberg on the use of generative AI in the creative fields, and the importance of the poetic mind. We also discuss generational acceptance of AI, generative AI as a window into the human mind, and what should be considered in a test for self-awareness. podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/... #scifi#novel@bookstadon#alternatefutures#ai#generativeAI
LUSH, ATMOSPHERIC, CLEVER novel captures the mystique of Golden Age Hollywood—as well as the sleaze and scandal behind the scenes—through the eyes of an actress turned gossip columnist. B PLUS
UNLIKELY ALLIANCES, FRIENDSHIPS, and even love link the Black and Jewish residents of a hardscrabble neighborhood in 1930s Pennsylvania. Luminous, magical novel is infused with hope and generosity of spirit. A MINUS
Today in Labor History August 22, 1791: Encouraged by the French and American revolutions, Toussaint Louverture led over 100,000 Haitian slaves in a revolt against the French. They were ultimately successful, making Haiti the first black republic in the world. The US refused recognition of Haiti until 1865, as a result of pressure from Southern slaveholders. The French demanded $21 billion In today’s dollars) in reparations for the losses to the former slaveholders, in exchange for peace and recognition of Haiti as an independent nation. The debt was financed through French banks and the U.S. bank, Citibank. The Haitians finally paid it off in 1947. However, the huge interest payments for their independence debt, and the debt incurred through the corruption of the Duvalier dynasty, have made Haiti one of the poorest nations in the western hemisphere. Prior to independence, Haiti was the richest and most productive of all of Europe’s colonies.
The best book I’ve read on the Haitian Revolution is “The Black Jacobins,” by Trinidadian socialist C.L.R. James. Cuban writer Alejo Carpentier explores the revolution in his novel, “The Kingdom of This World” (1949). You can read more about Toussaint Louverture and the slave uprising in Madison Smartt Bell’s trilogy called “All Souls' Rising” (1995) and Isabel Allende’s 2010 novel, “Island Beneath the Sea.”
Today in Labor History August 21, 1920: Ongoing violence by coal operators and their paid goons in the southern coalfields of West Virginia led to a three-hour gun battle between striking miners and guards that left six dead. 500 Federal troops were sent in not only to quell the fighting, but to ensure that scabs were able to get to and from the mines. A General Strike was threatened if the troops did not cease their strikebreaking activities. This was just 3 months after the Matewan Massacre, in which the miners drove out the seemingly invincible Baldwin-Felts private police force, with the help of their ally, Sheriff Sid Hatfield. 1 year later, Sheriff Hatfield was gunned down on the steps of the courthouse by surviving members of the Baldwin-Felts Agency. News spread and miners began arming themselves, leading to the Battle of Blair Mountain, the largest armed insurrection since the Civil War and the largest labor uprising in U.S. history. Over 100 people were killed in the 5-day battle, including 3 army soldiers and up to 20 Baldwin-Felts detectives. Nearly 1,000 people were arrested. 1 million rounds were fired. And the government dropped bombs from aircraft on the miners, only the second time in history that the government bombed its own citizens (the first being the pogrom against African American residents of Tulsa, during the so-called Tulsa Riots).
The Battle of Blair Mountain is depicted in Storming Heaven (Denise Giardina, 1987), Blair Mountain (Jonathan Lynn, 2006), and Carla Rising (Topper Sherwood, 2015). And the Matewan Massacre is brilliantly portrayed in John Sayles’s film, “Matewan.”
Today in Labor History August 21, 1680: Pueblo Indians captured Santa Fe from the Spanish. The Pueblo Revolt was an uprising against the Spanish colonizers in the province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México. The Pueblos killed 400 Spaniards and drove the remaining 2,000 settlers out of the province. However, the Spaniards reconquered New Mexico 12 years later. One cause of the revolt was the Spaniard’s attempt to destroy the Pueblo religion and ban their traditional dances and kachina dolls.
The Pueblo Revolt has been depicted in numerous fictional accounts, many of which were written by native and Pueblo authors. Clara Natonabah, Nolan Eskeets & Ariel Antone, from the Santa Fe Indian School Spoken Word Team, wrote and performed "Po'pay" in 2010. In 2005, Native Voices at the Autry produced “Kino and Teresa,” a Pueblo recreation of “Romeo and Juliet,” written by Taos Pueblo playwright James Lujan. La Compañía de Teatro de Albuquerque produced the bilingual play “Casi Hermanos,” written by Ramon Flores and James Lujan, in 1995. Even Star Trek got into the game, with references to the Pueblo Revolt in their "Journey's End" episode. The rebel leader, Po’pay, was depicted in Willa Cather’s “Death Comes for the Arch Bishop” and in Aldous Huxley’s “Brave New World.”
Today in Labor History August 21, 1831: Nat Turner launched a 2-day slave revolt in Virginia. They killed over 50 whites. In response, scores of African-Americans were lynched, including many who did not participate in the revolt. Turner survived in hiding for more than two months. Mobs & militias killed around 120 enslaved and free African Americans. In the aftermath, state legislatures passed new laws prohibiting education of free and enslaved black people and restricted the civil liberties for free blacks.
The rebellion is referenced in “Narrative of the Life of Henry Box Brown.” Thomas R. Gray wrote an 1831 pamphlet, “The Confessions of Nat Turner,” based on his jailhouse interview with Turner. Harriet Beecher Stowe referenced Turner's Confessions in her 1855 novel “Dred: A Tale of the Great Dismal Swamp.” Harriet Jacobs, an escaped slave, refers to the pogrom against blacks following Turner's rebellion in her 1861 classic, “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl.” In the 1990s, Tupac Shakur honored Turner with a cross tattoo on his back "EXODUS 1831."
Today in Labor History August 19, 1916: Strikebreakers attacked and beat picketing IWW strikers in Everett, Washington. The police refused to intervene, claiming it was federal jurisdiction. However, when the strikers retaliated, they arrested the strikers. Vigilante attacks on IWW picketers and speakers escalated and continued for months. In October, vigilantes forced many of the strikers to run a gauntlet, violently beating them in the process. The brutality culminated in the Everett massacre on November 5, when Wobblies (IWW members) sailed over from Seattle to support the strikers. The sheriff called out to them as they docked, “Who is your leader?” And the Wobblies yelled back, “We all are!” The sheriff told them they couldn’t dock. One of the Wobblies said, “Like hell we can’t!” And then a mob of over 200 vigilantes opened fire on them. As a result, seven died and 50 were wounded. John Dos Passos portrays these events in his USA Trilogy.
Check out this excerpt from my first full novel, Below the Heavens - JiangXi!
It is fully published and can be accessed for free on Royal Road, and I've just started publishing the second novel, ZhiXia, which is a direct continuation of the first book.
Today in Labor History August 18, 1812: Lady Ludd led the Luddite Corn Market riot of women and boys in Leeds, England. Luddites also rioted in Sheffield against flour and meal sellers. England was suffering huge food shortages and inflation at the time, in part because of the War of 1812, which had started in June, and the ongoing Napoleonic wars. Additionally, new technological innovations were allowing mill owners to replace many of their employees with machines. In response, Luddites would destroy looms and other equipment. To try and get control over these worker outrages, the British authorities made illegal oath-taking punishable by death in July 1812. And they also empowered magistrates to forcibly enter private homes to search for weapons. They also stationed thousands of troops in areas where rioting and looting had occurred over the summer.
“Shirley” (1849), Charlotte Bronte’s second novel, takes place in Yorkshire, 1811-1812, during the Luddite uprisings. It was originally published under the pseudonym, Currer Bell. The novel opens with a ruthless mill owner waiting for the delivery of new, cost-saving equipment that will allow him to fire many of his workers, but Luddites destroy the equipment before it reaches him. As a result of the novel’s popularity, Shirley became a popular female name. Prior to this, it was mostly a male name.