Author of Fortune’s Frenzy: A California Gold Rush Odyssey
Hi, my name is Eilene and I write history and biography. When I was in 6th grade, I fancied myself a fiction writer (the gateway drug?). This came out in the form of a short horror story I wrote about Dale, the boy I’d had a crush on since 3rd grade.
(One of my proudest moments up to then was beating Dale in the final round of the 3rd-grade spelling bee. My spelling skills have declined ever since.)
You can see the story here. The reason the paper is so crinkled is that Dale was not amused by my creative efforts. He wadded up my little masterpiece and threw it at me—always a critic.
After that, I turned my efforts toward keeping a diary, a habit I’ve retained, off and on, to the present day. My earliest diaries are actually quite amusing. (excerpts coming!)
Nowadays, my diaries are primarily about preserving a record of my (unremarkable) daily life. It’s so easy to forget when so much has been crammed into my head for so many years!
I also like to do morning pages, introduced to me by Julia Cameron in The Artist’s Way. I usually do a bit of reading before putting pen to paper: current news, a poem, philosophy, essays, and/or book chapters.
Rarely do I hit three written pages (Cameron’s prescribed amount). Usually it’s just two, or one…or none. But these jottings help me come up with ideas for newsletters and short pieces.
If you’d like to read the pithy essays that come out of my morning pages, you can subscribe to my monthly newsletter. In them you will find life stories, event news, genealogy and writing tips, and more! Past issues are available on the subscribe page.
You can learn more About me or My Books. Learn more in Reviews and Interviews. The My Reads page is where I post book reviews and a few other items. I also have a Blog site where I’ve been writing on a wide range of subjects since 2018. Finally, I am also a public speaker. Learn more on my Presentations page.
Available Now
Don’t miss this true story about desperately poor Indiana farmers using shady financing to make their way to California during the gold rush, and the devastating impacts to their families and their futures.
Fortune’s Frenzy relates previously untold aspects of the gold rush: how the wealthy took advantage of gold fever by offering usurious loans, and how the cold calculus of transporting people to California became a deadly game for profit.
ISBN 978-1493070060
Eilene Lyon 