During this week, as the editing has been progressing toward its inevitable conclusion, I received an email that stopped me in my tracks.
More about this later...
The original idea I had regarding my attempts at writing a book was to combine my interest in RMS Titanic and the unique situation of one, Arthur Gordon McCrae, an Australian whose story has intrigued me for many, many years. It was going to be a factual account of events and could be used as a reference for those who, like me, had interest in the fact that Arthur McCrae was the only Australian whose body was recovered form the Atlantic eight days after the disaster in April, 1912.
When I set off from the gates of Sydney Grammar on my journey it became obvious to me, very early on, that to merely write a serious account of Arthur would be to miss the entire point of his character. From the research I undertook, his sense of adventure became more and more appealing to me, and like my own journey, he was a young man filled with excitement of other lands and with interest in people and other cultures. At that point I made the decision to write a novel. A novel of intrigue and suspense that would do justice to that adventurous spirit and, I hope, respect to him as an individual.
My love of writing originated with one teacher I had during my years at school. Her name was Mrs Rintel and she gave to me a love of words and an understanding of the importance of literature on society and the powerful influence it can have... both for the positive and negative. She cared about her students and had a profound affect on my own ability to teach. She coached me on her own time and since leaving school - as often is the case, former students loose contact as they make their own way in the world. From time to time you wonder how they are and what they are up to and if they ever realise how important an impact they have had on your own views of the world and your place within it.
That was twenty years ago...
I cannot begin to write of how I felt when, following the publication in the 'Omnibus' (above), which contained an article about '209 A Story', I received an email from my former teacher congratulating me on my achievements thus far. I was incredibly happy to have received word from her... but... there was more to this email than even I thought possible and it is the pure essence of what I have tried to include in my writing.
Mrs Rintel informed me of something that surprised me beyond belief and proved to me that my decision to write the novel was a correct one.
In 1841, there was a baby boy born on a ship bound for Australia from England. The baby's mother died following the birth and the father of the baby did not have a secure position nor a place to live upon his arrival in the colony of Victoria. Georgiana McCrae (Arthur's Grandmother) offered the bereaved man, to take care of the child until he was established. Accepting the offer, this child then lived with the McCrae's until he was fourteen years of age. Through my previous research I was aware of this being the situation.
The email I received informed me that this boy was in actual fact, Mrs Rintel's great-great-grandfather.
So, now as I start the final proof reading before publication, I am settled in my decision...
Have a nice week.
Cheers
Steven
