File this under you research bookmarks. I can’t emphasize enough the merits of doing great dialogue and nailing the time and characters in your novel through it. The subtlest of things can accomplish that. For OP-DEC, I used German. For Blue I referenced relevant events. Etymology dictionaries are available on line. Do we mess up? Sure. But, I’m going to post as many resources on this blog as I can to help all who care to read these posts with their research. That’s what I went to school to learn to do and I’m going to share that with my readers.
10 Interesting Facts About World War II That You Might Not Know – WAR HISTORY ONLINE
War History online is a great resource to start your next war based novel, or even non-fiction work. I love the articles they post and this one caught my eye back in December. It made me a bit nostalgic for OP-DEC: Operation Deceit and helped to fuel that fire I need to write the sequel. It’s the little things…
10 Interesting Facts About World War II That You Might Not Know – WAR HISTORY ONLINE
New Book Looks at Philadelphia Pastor Who Spied for Nazis
The story of espionage is as old as military history. The clandestine services weren’t always so respected however. I speculate that had the German forces and their leaders agreed to the importance of spy work, World War II would have come out vastly different. Thanks be to whatever reasoning they had, that they thought the way they did. I recommend David Khan‘s Hitler’s Spies as a read on that topic.
Another interesting point about World War II spies…They were all over the United States. I remember teachers, and even textbooks, touting American invulnerability; that no enemy had set foot on American Soil since – what was it? The French and India War. Technically, the Civil War should hold that title if we’re not including enemies in secret service. This can easily be proven wrong by anyone studying up on World War I and World War II. Both wars served the States a goodly helping of enemy eyes on American soil. Helluva Town: The Story of New York City During World War II by Richard Goldstein reminds us of the round up of ‘suspect aliens’ moments following the attack on Pear Harbor: Italian, German and Japanese. Goldstein tells us how they were detained and why in the city of New York.
If you like detail on who and how, you’ll love this article which talks about the Philadelphia pastor who spied for Nazis. And, you can read more about him from the Lutheran Quarterly.
Picture of the Rev. Carl Krepper, while serving at Frieden’s (or Peace) Lutheran Church in Philadelphia in 1917.
It’s Official! K. Williams Will Author Sequel to OP-DEC – OP-GHO: Operation Ghost
It’s official! I’ve been researching and writing the sequel to OP-DEC: Operation Deceit all summer and fall. I have one more book that I absolutely want to get read before I continue. Have you read OP-DEC yet? If not, the rest of this is going to be a bit of spoiler…
OP-GHO: Operation Ghost
*Spoilers* *Spoilers* *Spoilers* *Spoilers* *Spoilers* *Spoilers*
The sequel will be named OP-GHO: Operation Ghost. Readers will continue in the Second World War era of espionage with their anti-hero Carsten Reiniger, as he returns State side to continue his intelligence work. Claire Healey is left wondering about her beau, and just who does he work for, the British or the Germans?
The sinister underbelly that is Reiniger’s secret world seethes into the posh life of New York. More than a few eyebrows are raised, most especially those of Special Agent Jimmy O’Donnell and his boss, the head of FBI Operation NY, Percy Foxworth. O’Donnell’s had his eye on Claire since they were children, and he sees an opportunity to play rescuer and steal her away from his rival.
Working in the shadows to sniff out his friend’s allegiance, British Agent Nigel Gray plays all sides until he can secure Carsten for the Allies – or at least be assured that he is already one of them. Not even his boss John Bevan is talking.
A series of events, including an assassination attempt on Reinger at the Cocoanut Grove in Boston, the very night of the tragic fire that killed hundreds, leads Gray to believe his younger counterpart isn’t all he seems. Feeling sorry for Claire, and concerned he’s been taken in by the greatest spy the world has ever seen, Gray works to bring Reiniger in to unpack his secrets and force a defection. If he doesn’t close the deal quickly, all may be lost.
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About K. Williams:
K attended the State University of New York at Morrisville, majoring in the Biological Sciences, and then continued with English and Historical studies at the University at Albany, home of the New York State Writer’s Institute, gaining her Bachelor’s Degree. While attending UA, K interned with the 13th Moon Feminist Literary Magazine, bridging her interests in social movements and art. At the same time, K’s first book project, Blue Honor, was underway. Blue Honor originated as a creative final project and independent study, regarding the civil war, which places fictional characters into a non-fictional realm, to display the social realities of the time. Topics include gender limitations, racial disparities, and the trauma of war. Now, Blue is both a full-length novel and an adapted spec. Learn more here.