Today we’d like to introduce you to Peggy Scholberg
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Two years ago, my husband and I attended a meeting of the World War II (WW2) Battlefield Tour group, before joining their 20th tour to Europe. I showed the leader, a retired Army Colonel, the nearly four-inch-thick typed pages of my mother’s story of her time serving in the Army in WW2, during which she also met my father. The Colonel handed me a card, smiled, and said, “Meet with this person.” Dutifully, I contacted the name shown on the card, an editor and author. Suddenly, the adventure had begun. I was on my way to getting my mother’s story published.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I have had no formal training in writing. In fact, when my editor asked me: “Fiction or non-fiction?”, I really wasn’t sure how to answer. Suddenly faced with this enormous project, I knew I needed training. I watched several on-line programs, listened to author interviews, and read books. In the end, it was Stephen King’s book titled, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, which I found most helpful. I listened to it over and over as he most clearly summarized a lot of basic writing concepts.
After hearing many authors say, “I must write.” I understood there really are “natural born writers.” I’ve always been good with numbers, but certainly not with words. In learning more about writing fiction, I realized I had to focus on a few strengths: I can tell a good story, and I can complete a research project. I decided I would develop weekly goals and firmly stick with them. Even when I was completely overwhelmed, I would at least be able to make some progress.
At one low point, I considered asking someone else to complete this project. Yet I kept coming back to the fact that I vividly recalled her stories. She claimed to have changed some names and places and, therefore, called it fiction, but I know these stories to be true. I knew which events brought tears to her eyes and which had the most meaning to her. I knew my father’s views of the war, too. It simply had to be me to complete this. There was no way out. I appreciated my editor often reminding me I had undertaken an extensive project, and that I could—and would —complete it.
While plowing through my mother’s pages, I needed to stick to her terminology and style, all reflective of the times. As an example, she referred to the female characters as “girls” and not “women.” Some situations she described might be very surprising—and possibly unpleasant—to readers. Now, many have commented just how “authentic” her story seems to be.
The original title of the book was in French, The Angel of the Smile or L’ange au Sourire. I had to agree that this title, while loaded with meaning to her, didn’t give a potential reader an idea of what the book was all about. I found an old memo she had written about the book where she described it as the story of five girls in a world at war too big to comprehend. Girls in a World at War better captured what the book was about.
My husband was a big help with this project. Together, we retraced my parents’ European travels. We had lengthy discussions on how to make sure key historical events in the book were understandable and accurate. He had known my mother and recalled her telling him of her experiences in working with the German Prisoners of War (PWs). We both enjoyed my mother’s sense of humor and often reread out loud some specific excerpts from the book, with much laughter.
My editor was capable and very committed to help me write the very best book possible. I cannot imagine going through the writing process questioning your editor, waiting for them, and wondering about their sincerity. She also invited me to join a local group, Women of Words, or WOW, that help support each other and share information about writing. I attended regularly to soak up as much information as possible.
I worked with a local publisher rather than considering a large publishing house. I just couldn’t hand off my mother’s story to someone that might want to make changes or suggest a title I might not agree with. Luckily, Kirk House Publishers, in Burnsville, came highly recommended, with many years of experience and extensive knowledge of the publishing industry. I also found help from several talented members of the WOW group and the Berean Baptist Church Book clubs, all who offered valuable help. Soon I found I was proud to be part of a large group of individuals that supported small local businesses.
My mother grew up in an affluent family in Libertyville, Illinois, just outside of Chicago. Summers were spent on lake Michigan on family sailboats and yachts. At 16, she traveled to Europe on a German propaganda tour on the Nor-Deutcher-Lloyd line that included Ireland, England, Belgium, France, Switzerland, and Germany. A highlight of the tour was attending the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, where she watched Jesse Owens win gold medals. This trip was not directly referenced in her draft. However, she often told others about performing the ‘Olympic Salute,’ that was being transformed into the ‘Hitler Salute’ during the Olympics, which she captured in videos. She also gained a unique perspective on Hitler and his transformation of Germany. In Girls in a World at War, I could add her trip to the Olympics as a prologue, as a backdrop to her story.
Sketches were included in the original manuscript. However, knowing nothing about the artist, I could not get approval to include them in the book. On our recent battlefield tour to France, artist David Geister, a fellow participant with a passion for history, offered to redo the drawings. He did this and provided a map that illustrated key locations in France for the story.
Initially, I estimated it might take just a few months to work on this project. I laugh at that now as obviously I did not know what I was getting myself into. It turned out to be a solid two-year endeavor, and that was starting with a manuscript that had already been written. My admiration for writers has certainly increased.
I still marvel that my mother typed up all these pages so long ago that others might learn of her experiences in the Army in WW2. I am continuously astonished, and grateful, for all the veterans and others who stepped up to serve, doing as they often said, “what needed to be done.”
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Now retired after working as a Pharmacy Manager
We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
–you can choose from the obstacles–
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.authorpeggyscholberg.com/
- Facebook: Author Peggy Scholberg
