Author Barbara Taylor will discuss how her love of family lore and interest in research led her to write three (and counting!) historical fiction novels set in Scranton, PA. She’ll tell the family story that kicked off her writing journey and talk about the ways in which interviews, newspaper articles, diaries, housekeeping guides, medical books, city directories and even the Sears catalogue helped to inform her work. Audience questions are welcome.
Born and raised in Scranton, Barbara sets her novels in the hometown she loves. She populates her stories with miners, evangelists, vaudevillians, gangsters, prostitutes, and a seer or two. Publishers Weekly named her first book, Sing in the Morning, Cry at Night, a Best Book of Summer, 2014. The Historical Novel Society described her latest work, Rain Breaks No Bones, as “… everything a reader could want in a family saga.”
Barbara Taylor attended the University of Scranton where she received a BA in English and an MS in education. She taught English in the Pocono Mountain School District for thirty-one years. In the latter part of her career, she returned to graduate school, this time to Wilkes University, and earned an MFA in creative writing. Signed copies of her three novels will be available for sale after the program.
The program is free and open to the public and will be followed by light refreshments. Thank you to the Historical Society’s Business Partner, Olsommer-Clark Insurance Group, for sponsoring this event.
