Welcome!
I want to extend my thanks to the Sweethearts of the West blog for inviting me
to be a regular contributor. I decided as an introductory post, I would share
some of my localities for my writing.
I've noticed quite a few authors set
their stories in their home states. I have not always done so. In fact, my two
most recent books which are part of a multi-author series are set primarily
between St. Joseph, Missouri and Salina, Kansas. However, many of my stories
are set in my home state which happens to be...
California!
California has every element found
in other western localities including all forms of cattle ranching, mining and lawless desparados.
Here is a little tour of my neck of the woods, and where I may easily drive to
take pictures of regions that become the settings for many of my books.
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| Pastureland just west of the foothills and Mariposa |
I live in Merced County, which bills
itself as "The Gateway to Yosemite." The southern tip of the Mother
Lode region is found in Mariposa about an hour's drive to the east of where I
live. Mariposa has a wonderful Gold Rush museum with mining equipment.
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| Muller used in the amalgamation process of separating gold from rock |
Another hour or so beyond that is
Yosemite National Park, one of my favorite places to visit.
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| Yosemite Falls |
Over the hill (and through some
lovely scenery) is Lee Vining and Mono Lake.
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| Mono Lake as seen from north of Lee Vining |
The cover of the second book in the series, A Resurrected Heart, includes my photo of the rooftops of current-day Lundy with Mt.
Scowden in the background. The May Lundy Mine was on Mt. Scowden. This book has nothing to do with
the resurrection associated with Easter. However, in 1884, it took place on
April 5th in Lundy and marked a very different type of celebration.
As I continue to travel north on
Highway 395, I eventually reach the Mono County seat of Bridgeport. It is in a
region that originally was known as Big Meadows, which prompted the title of my
first book in the series, Big Meadows Valentine. That book
covered the first week in January, 1884 through Valentine’s Day. It is also the
region where the later books in the series (so far) are set. The photo of the
cattle grazing in Big Meadows was reminiscent of the herds on the Caldwell
Ranch.
After turning west on Highway 108, I
cross Sonora Pass, a road in use at the time my series takes place. In fact,
Mr. Leavitt who constructed the Leavitt House in Bridgeport originally owned a
stagecoach stop along this highway.
After a cross the summit of the
Sierra Nevada Mountains at Sonora Pass, I eventually get to the 49er gold rush
town of Sonora. Less than five miles to the north is another favorite setting
for some of my books: Columbia, which started as Hildreth’s Diggings in 1851.
Columbia is now a state park. Every
effort has been made to preserve the buildings to provide an authentic idea of
what the town looked like in the days of the gold rush until the end of the
century.
As much as I enjoy writing
books set in other states such as Kansas and Colorado (another favorite “go-to”
state since I have children and grandchildren living there), I have found the
opportunities for locating varied and interesting settings for my historical western novels very close to home in California. The possibilities are as
great and endless as the state's beautiful scenery.
And what I have shared today is all within a day trip
driving to the east of my home in central California. We’ll talk about the great
novel settings in the other directions from my home another time.
About Zina
Abbott:
Zina
Abbott is the pen name used by Robyn Echols for her historical
novels. A member of Women Writing the West and Western Writers of America,
she currently lives with her husband in California near the “Gateway to
Yosemite.” When she is not piecing together novel plots, she pieces together
quilt blocks.
Connect with Zina Abbott:
