The Adventures of Patience Byrd

The Adventures of Patience Byrd

In Hollow Earth

Way back when I was a kid, my third grade teacher told me I was going to be a writer one day. I don’t believe she thought it would be when I was in my 70s. So, in order to write the creative non-fiction, The WWII Chain Letter Gang I knew I had to learn to write. I took many home courses – those from The Great Courses, by reading books on the subject, by attending internet courses, reading internet articles, and by subscribing to a magazine, Writer’s Digest. This magazine alone taught me plenty about how to write a book, especially a non-fiction one, the dos and don’ts, and everything else.

It was in one article where I was challenged, as an author, to write the first sentence of a book that a reader would be eager to pick up off a shelf in a bookstore, take it home to find out all about the protagonist, how he or she overcame a problem. So, I did. This is it:

Admiral Byrd’s great-granddaughter aimed her aircraft directly at the jagged opening in the South Pole, determined to prove that her ancestor had successfully discovered what had been known for centuries as Hollow Earth.

Now, here’s the strange thing about that sentence: It intrigued me so much that even I, the writer of that sentence, wanted to know what happened to her. But there was no book to buy. It didn’t exist. So, I had to write it. And I did. It excited me so much, it took me one month to write each book! And now the trilogy is in the hands of the same proofreader. I have written my first fiction book(s).

I was always interested in Rear Adm. Byrd. Doing my research for the Patience Byrd book, I learned that he was on board for the signing of the peace agreement in the Pacific seas with Admiral Nimitz at the end of World War II. (Also, I found a photo with him depicted.) I learned that it was this very admiral who sent Adm. Byrd down to the South Pole for the infamous High Jump mission. And why? Well, the reasons are many. Again, through my research, I learned much about him.

Patience Byrd wanted to find where her great grandfather landed his airplane. He wrote in his diary he entered the Inner Earth through the North Pole and met with people at Crystal City. He stated that one could fly from one pole to the next. This was right after WWII. He was muted by the government, told never to speak of his findings. So, Patience decided she was going to enter at the South Pole and proceed up to the North Pole and find Crystal City. That’s where her adventures begin.

Oh, did I forget to tell you that Patience brought along Perry, her Shiba Inu? He kind of was her co-pilot. Her beloved little dog shared all her exploits with her.