Vanishing Woman Out on Kindle

Vanishing Woman Out on Kindle

The Vanishing Woman is now available on Kindle. The novel is based on the true story of Ellen Craft, a slave who escaped in 1848 by pretending to be an ailing white man. Her husband William posed as her slave as they made their way from Macon to Savannah to...

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Meet the Vanishing Woman–in Real Life

Meet the Vanishing Woman–in Real Life

When actress Jennifer Goran showed me a picture of her mother, I was immediately struck by the uncanny resemblance to Ellen Craft, heroine of my new novel, The Vanishing Woman. This amazing similarity was confirmation that Jenny is the right person to play the part of...

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Crossing the Jordan–in Ohio

Crossing the Jordan–in Ohio

To many abolitionists, the Ohio River was the North's Jordan River, providing access to the Promised Land. The Ohio River was the dividing line between North and South, making it an important crossing point for escaped slaves in the Underground Railroad. It is also...

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The Museum That Changed My Life

The Museum That Changed My Life

In a little over a week, I will be returning to the museum that altered my writing career and led to my passion--writing historical novels. On Saturday, November 17, at 1 p.m., I will be speaking about Henry "Box" Brown and Ellen Craft at the National Underground...

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‘The Vanishing Woman’ is off the Press!

‘The Vanishing Woman’ is off the Press!

My new novel, The Vanishing Woman, has just come off the press--although I haven't received my copies just yet. The Vanishing Woman is based on the incredible true story of Ellen Craft, a light-skinned slave who escaped in 1848 by posing as a white man. She couldn't...

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Henry’s Freedom Box

Henry’s Freedom Box

Caldecott Honor Book Joins The Disappearing Man in Canton Festivities I first came across Henry Brown's incredible story while visiting Cincinnati for the premiere of the VeggieTales movie, The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything. At the time, I was a VeggieTales writer,...

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The New Abolitionists

The New Abolitionists

Going Out on a Limb to Stop a Fast-Growing Crime: Modern Slavery   Miller McKim would never forget the day that a Richmond shoemaker named Samuel Smith showed up at his Philadelphia office with a most improbable proposal. He wanted to ship a human being--a slave...

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The Ohio Underground

The Ohio Underground

Canton, Ohio, Embraces The Disappearing Man There's something about Ohio. Cincinnati, Ohio, is home of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, where I first discovered the story of Henry "Box" Brown and his incredible escape from slavery. Now, Canton,...

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History by the Slice