Interview date: 10 October 2022
Like many of her generation, Lynn Doxon knew her father served in the army during World War II, but he seldom talked about it. As she began to research genealogy and family stories she wanted to know more. What she learned led her to write this novel. Although it is a work of fiction, it generally follows her father's experience in the early years of the war. This, and the two books to follow, tell the story of many of that generation, now known as the Greatest Generation.
After years of nonfiction writing, including books, newspaper and magazine articles, and scholarly publications this is Lynn's first full-length novel, although she has several other works planned to follow this one.
Lynn lives in the midst of an urban food forest in Albuquerque, NM with her husband, her 98-year-old mother, the three youngest of her six children, and a large collection of animals.
How did you find out about MWSA?
I first learned of the MWSA when I joined the Southwest Writers Association in 2019. They were in the midst of a joint conference with the MWSA. Unfortunately, I joined just a few days too late to attend the conference. Had I been able to attend I am sure it would have shortened the learning curve involved in writing the book.
What was your inspiration for Ninety Day Wonder?
It is based on my father's experience in World War II. The timeline deviates somewhat from his actual experience because he spent much more time in the United States training AAA units before going to the Pacific, he was an antiaircraft artillery officer, he was very interested in the development of radar and at least part of the time he was Executive Officer of his battery. In reality, his assignments and even his battalion changed over time, but I did not include those changes in the novel because it could get confusing. In the novel, he meets Sarah Gale. Many people have asked me if Sarah Gale is my mother. She is not. My parents did not meet until 1948.
The book includes some realistic hallucinations Gene has. What is that all about?
It is a way to get a bit more family history in the book without talking about the long history of military men in the family. I think Major General Arthur St. Clair is one of my more interesting ancestors and I have him appear in Gene's hallucinations. In each case, Gene learns something that is useful to him in his 1940s experience, and I get to highlight a bit of the Revolutionary war, too.
What is a Ninety Day Wonder?
At the beginning of World War II, the US army was much too small to fight a war on two fronts, let alone on the numerous islands of the Pacific. They quickly drafted large numbers of men and needed officers to lead them. They selected men, generally somewhat more mature and generally with a college education and sent them to a ninety-day training session, commissioning them as second lieutenants at the end of that training. These were the ninety-day wonders. Often experienced sergeants would be placed under these new, briefly trained lieutenants. In the best case, they worked together to effectively lead the troops. In the worst case, there was resentment and a lack of respect. As the series continues I try to show both sides.
You have mentioned a series. What do the next books cover?
At this time I am working on the second book, which will cover Gene's experience of island hopping across the Pacific and fighting for control of different islands. By the end of that book, most of the Japanese warplanes have been destroyed, the US army has landed in the Philippines and there is much less need for antiaircraft artillery. The final book in the series takes place in the Philippines and Japan as Gene becomes the commander of a company of MPs, repatriates POWs, and takes part in the occupation.
What have you learned from writing this novel that you wish you had known when you started?
I discovered that it is much harder to write fiction than it is to write nonfiction. In my nonfiction and memoir books, I simply had to write what I knew. Fiction is about creating characters and a setting that will grab the reader's interest and weaving them into a story that pulls the reader along. On top of that, in historical fiction, you have to make the history as accurate as possible. I had to add points of conflict that did not really exist in my father's life, leave out things that would only be of interest to me or my family, and keep everything moving forward. Years of research went into the book, and the research continues as I write the second one.