William Lavender

William Lavender, a man of many talents, studied music composition in college, and spent a long time writing musical scores for films before turning to writing historical fiction. Most recently he published two "young adult" novels: JUST JANE (Harcourt-Brace & Scholastic editions) tells the story of Jane Prentice, a young English girl sent to live in South Carolina in 1776, who is forced to choose between her in-bred English loyalties and her newfound American "Patriot" friends and family. AFTERSHOCKS (Harcourt-Brace) centers on young Jessie Wainwright's double quest -- to become one of the first women doctors, and to find her lost sister amid the rubble of the devastating San Francisco earthquake and fire of 1906. Both titles, edited by leading YA editor Karen Grove, are available via Amazon. Before writing about Jane Prentice and Jessie Wainwright, Lavender authored several other historical novels. The first, CHINABERRY, was a best-seller chronicling the life, loves and scandals of a plantation family before and during the Civil War. Forbidden black-white romance lies at the heart of this dramatic story. Lavender also published a trilogy called THE HARGRAVE JOURNALS, chronicling the adventures of several generations of a family on American frontier. The three exciting books are: CHILDREN OF THE RIVER, JOURNEY TO QUIET WATERS and FIELDS ABOVE THE SEA. All the above titles are available via Amazon. Lavender and his wife, Mary (his lead researcher) published a much-cited article on the little-known but highly dramatic story of the women who fought -- to the point of imprisonment, hunger strikes, and forced-feeding -- to secure American womens' right to the vote, prior to final victory in 1920 (appeared in AMERICAN HISTORY magazine, October 2003 at http://www.historynet.com/suffragists-storm-over-washington-dc-in-1917.htm#hide) Lavender's much-beloved children's musical play, THE INVISIBLE PEOPLE, has been produced over 60 times and is available through Dramatic Publishing Company (http://www.dramaticpublishing.com/p2442/The-Invisible-People-%28musical%29/product_info.html) Mr. Lavender's top piece of advice for everyone -- read! Read lots of books, and then read some more. It will turn out to be the smartest thing you ever did.