Interview with Anne Newton Walther, Author of "Loss of Innocence"

Anne Newton Walther is a published author and lecturer who has a background in history and psychology and heads a divorce and career-counseling firm.She was raised in Virginia and now lives in San Francisco where she and her husband raised their five children. She has made frequent appearances on "Oprah Winfrey," CNN's "Sonja Live," Cable Network's "Attitudes," NBC's "Jenny Jones" and countless other local television and radio interview shows in the U.S. and Canada as one of the leading authorities on the subject of divorce. Her book, "Divorce Hangover," deals successfully with the emotional aftereffects of divorce. Today, however, she is here to talk to us about her historical fiction.Tyler: Thank you, Anne, for joining me today. To begin, would you tell our readers a little bit about your new novel "Loss of Innocence" and its historical setting and plot?Anne: Thank you, Tyler. "LOSS OF INNOCENCE" is a historical novel about the French Revolution. Its time frame begins with the fall of the Bastille and ends with the execution of Marie Antoinette. It's a story packed full of intrigue, betrayal and romance. The action takes place in the picturesque Bordeaux valley, the lavish court of Versailles and the dark, dangerous streets of Paris. The Revolution is not a backdrop to the story. It IS the story and the historical and fictitious characters play out the events that lead the revolution from the high road of lofty principles down into chaos and violence.Tyler: I understand "Loss of Innocence" is a sequel to your earlier book "A Time of Treason" where you first introduced the main character, the French Countess Eugenie Devereaux. How is this second book different from the first, and do you recommend people first read "A Time of Treason"?Anne: Yes, Tyler, "LOSS OF INNOCENCE" is the sequel to "A TIME FOR TREASON." Each book stands magnificently on its own. Both deal with revolution: "A TIME FOR TREASON": The American Revolution; "LOSS OF INNOCENCE": The French Revolution. "Treason" takes place at the brink of our revolution. "Innocence" plunges into the midst of the revolution. Several characters (Eugenie Devereux is the French spy in the first and a revolutionary in the second) are in both stories. Both books are driven by a little known historical event. Interesting, in both cases, it's a conspiracy, a PLOT. I always think it's best to read things in order, but in this case, it's not necessary, more fun, but not necessary.Tyler: Anne, what made you decide to write about this time period?Anne: I grew up loving history. History is a story of different places, times and people. And who doesn't love a story? "A TIME FOR TREASON" was triggered by my love for the island of Bermuda. When I discovered that a group of Bermudians conspired with American patriots to affect the successful outcome of our revolution, I snapped it up and ran with it. As I put the period at the end of the last sentence of "Treason," I knew Eugenie was not finished. She had more adventures to go. Serendipity struck again. I stumbled on the plot between the Americans and the French in one of my historical periodicals and "LOSS OF INNOCENCE" was born. It was not so much the time period, as it was another revolution for Eugenie. The French Revolution is abundantly fascinating, though; look at all the works that have recently come out about it.Tyler: Many famous novels, including "A Tale of Two Cities" and "The Scarlet Pimpernel" have been set during the French Revolution. Were you influenced by any specific books or films while writing "Loss of Innocence"?Anne: I loved reading both of those books as a child. I'm delighted that the recent books, films and programs, set in that period, are abounding which shows that there's a strong audience for this period of history, but, no, they didn't influence the writing of my book. In the case of each one of them, they emphasized a specific and different angle of that period as does "LOSS OF INNOCENCE."Tyler: Anne, would you expand on what you mean by "a different angle" of the period? Both of the novels I mentioned were written by English writers. Is your novel seen for example from the French perspective or some other perspective?Anne: In "LOSS OF INNOCENCE", the central character, Eugenie Devereux, a French countess, is the lightening rod of the plot. The story is told from her perspective. She is a revolutionary and believes devoutly in the principles of liberty, equality and brotherhood and continues to do so even as she watches the course of the revolution deteriorate into a power grab, violence, anarchy and ultimately a full-fledged blood bath. She realizes that it would be political suicide for France if Marie Antoinette were executed because the European coalition, led by the queen's Austrian royal family, would invade France and tear it apart. To avoid this disaster, Eugenie joins the conspiracy to rescue the queen, and spirit her across the Atlantic to the Pennsylvania town being built expressly as a sanctuary for her.Tyler: Am I right in guessing the novel is sympathetic toward the French royalty and nobility? Obviously, the Countess Devereux was chosen because she was a character in your previous book, but why did you decide to write the book as a sequel and not leave her out and write it from the perspective of a French peasant or a clergyman or someone from one of the other French estates?Anne: No, the book is not sympathetic toward the French royalty or the nobility. Eugenie represents the many members of the aristocracy that favored and supported a revolution in France that set out to establish a new social order that espoused equality for all the French citizens not the overthrow of the Monarchy or a "reign of terror" that, in the end, massacred peasants, clergymen, bourgeoisie, royals and aristocrats, alike. Eugenie is the thread that connects the two revolutions. She is one of the "haves" who has the most to lose in the new world order she so deeply believes in. It is this very duality that creates the tension in the book and makes the story so powerful, unique and very human.Tyler: I'm always interested, Anne, in whether a story is told in first or third person. Which did you choose for "Loss of Innocence" and why?Anne: "LOSS OF INNOCENCE" is told in the third person because the action takes place in different locations following different members of the cast. If it were in the first person, the action could only occur where that person was and the depth, breadth and richness of the story would not be possible.Tyler: You said earlier the book is based on an actual historical plot to help the French Royal family escape to the United States, possibly to set up its own court there. Would you tell us a little more about this historical basis?Anne: Yes, this is an actual historical plot. I mentioned it earlier, but it can't be emphasized enough. It's one of the things that makes this book and story unique. The plot involves Americans led by Robert Morris and French nobles, themselves revolutionaries, who believe it's a political necessity to save the French monarchy and are willing to risk their lives to do it. There are still ruins of the town named "Azilum" that this group built for Marie Antoinette on the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania.Tyler: Most people, of course, will know that Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette both went to their deaths at the guillotine, so I'm assuming no one will read the book without having some idea of how it will end. What still makes the book interesting even if the plot is sort of given away?Anne: Excellent question! What makes this book unique and a fascinating read is that the reader gets the inside scoop. The reader becomes intimately acquainted with the players in the drama: Marie Antoinette, Louis XVI, Lafayette, Robespierre, just to name a few. The reader witnesses the brutal, shocking events that hurl this people, this society, this revolution away from the dreams and lofty principles of The American Revolution into a cataclysmic, all out power grab and blood bath of monstrous proportions. Yes, we know that Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI do not escape the guillotine, but we're mesmerized by the who's, the what's, the how's, and the why's that brought them to their bitter end. And we're touched by the glimpses of humanity that still manage to exist in that incomprehensible violence.Tyler: Anne, what do you most enjoy about writing historical fiction?Anne: I do have a passion for history which, let me add, came not from the schoolroom but from my parents' library, loaded as it was with biographies and history. Historical fiction is a wonderful vehicle for readers to learn the hard facts of history amplified or softened by the antics of the fictional characters. The fiction element sugarcoats the pill, so to speak. It allows me to bring history to an audience that otherwise would miss out on the tremendous entertainment and information that history offers.Tyler: That's very true, Anne, and I think even when historical fiction deviates a bit from the truth, it makes people interested in finding out the truth and becoming more interested in history. What advice would you give to others who want to write historical fiction? What difficulties might they encounter?Anne: Pick a period, person or event that you're fascinated with and passionate about. You're going to spend a lot of time there, so you'd better pick something that keeps you excited. I recommend you pick someone or something that's fairly familiar, but come at it from a new angle, not the same old, same old. There are usually difficulties in any project. It's my nature not to look for them. What's a difficulty for one isn't for another. Plus, you could be looking in one direction for some difficulty someone told you about and be blind-sided from an entirely different direction. I say, plunge into your project and go for it.Tyler: I mentioned that you are well known as an expert on divorce and have published a highly successful book, "Divorce Hangover," on the subject. Do you feel your interests in divorce and fiction have anything in common--does one fuel or release the tension from the other?Anne: It seems I have a fascination for "change." Divorce is a change, a revolution, if you will, a pervasive change on a personal level. That's not to say that national revolutions don't affect the individual person on a personal level or that divorce doesn't impact the friends, family and other elements outside of the divorcing parties. They do. The ripple effect is there. It's a matter of degree. I have a lot of leeway with my fictitious characters, I have a lot of fun creating them and pushing them around. This certainly is not the case with the facts of history or the clients in my practice.Tyler: Anne, do you have any plans for us to meet Countess Devereux again?Anne: I imagine Eugenie will let me know. She's always up to something. I can't let that cat out of the bag just quite yet.Tyler: Thank you again for joining me today, Anne. Before we go, would you give our readers your website address and tell them what other information they can find there about your books?Anne: Thank you, Tyler, for the great interview. You really managed to cover a lot of territory and at the same time get to the important specifics. My website is www. annewalther.com. It's loaded with information about all my books and growing all the time. Marie Antoinette even has her own blog. I love visitors to my site and love to hear suggestions of what I should add. So, come aboard.Tyler: Marie Antoinette has a blog? That's something I'll definitely have to check out. Thank you again, Anne, for joining me today. I hope you and the Countess Devereux have many more adventures together. dr seuss book collection