A reader recently asked me what was the inspiration for my SMUGGLERS IN PARADISE series. This might be a good topic to talk about in a couple of blog posts.
I’ll start with book one – GAME OF WIT AND CHANCE: BEGINNINGS. This story is best described as a family saga using passion and tragedy to set the stage for conflict and family turmoil.
My inspiration for this story is complex and comes from multiple directions. Here are just a couple of significant thoughts.
The two primary settings, Portland in the US and Zambales in the Philippines are both beautiful places in their own right and have strong connections to the ocean or the sea. I chose Portland because it reminds me of my home state of Minnesota, but has a International port, which I wanted for this story. I chose the Philippines because I spent a lot of time in various Asian countries when I worked for a multinational company before repotting myself as a writer. I have good friends in the Philippines and think the landscape, seascape, and people are fascinating.
The timeline for the story spans significant parts of two generations of the Ramos family and surrounds the end of World War II. My great uncle Floyd was a prisoner of war for thirty-three months in a Japanese camp on the island of Corregidor in the Philippine Islands. This small island is in Manila Bay and was the last Philippine island to surrender to the Japanese.
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