Inside the Mind - David M. McGowan

I am proud of the country I was born to and within which I live but how this country came to be is generally presented in our schools in a manner that is as boring and un-entertaining as possible. I believe if there was more entertainment involved more people would know the history and the value of that history and the county’s presence. As a result, I wright what I call “enlightening entertainment”. More people would understand the development, exploration and discoveries of North America if they understood the contributions of the Hudson’s Bay Company, the North West Company and the American Fur Company. However, because today’s entertainment is often focused on areas or events that were inconsequential or perhaps didn’t happen, then that becomes what many understand and believe and then make decisions in their own life that put them on the wrong path.

I can’t say that any one story is the most important part of any legacy that I might leave. I can say that there is at least something, and sometimes more than one thing, that is an important part of what I’m trying to present. Important aspects of all stories, once combined, can explain what I am about. For example, the financial success of “Hank James” (as portrayed in “The Great Liquor War” and “Homesteader: Finding Sharon”) can be explained by his hard work, empathy, concern for others, tenacity, luck, refusal to stop moving and recognition of resources available. We also learn that there are good and bad everywhere, that some impediments to your development can open doors in other areas. The reader is also able to see that the greatest heroes of the past where not every day and always heroes but sometimes made serious mistakes. The Good is not always good nor is the Bad always bad.

When people in the Western Hemisphere and most of Europe along with many other parts of the world say or hear “the West” or “the Old West” they think of a “B” western movie or lead actor or perhaps a US state west of Kansas or Missouri. I would like to create a time where half of them think of Banff or Calgary Alberta. The many gold rushes in Central British Columbia or raising cattle and horses in the Chilcotin Country. Perhaps to simply understanding that the first European to view the Pacific Ocean by crossing the continent north of Panama was working for and exploring for a privately held trading company.

Yes, to both questions. I’ve had a variety of experiences and have used knowledge gained there in some of my stories. For example a common practice in the mountains is to build a cache of goods and supplies for later use either at a permanent or long term camp site or for use on an oft travelled trail. These caches are usually ten feet or more off the ground to save these supplies from the ravages of wildlife (primarily bears, wolves and coyotes). They may be no more than a floor or platform but are sometimes a log cabin high in the trees. I’ve never read mention of such in historical fiction or westerns and have included them in two of my stories.

I generally make up some kind of a title so I can save it and find it in my computer. However in many cases I’m aware this title will have to be changed when I’m finished. The stories usually take on a life of their own and become something I had not intended when I wrote the first paragraph. “The Great Liquor War” was “Liquor Laws” in the beginning. “Jake’s Justice” started off with that title and turned out to be close to my original idea but the title became "The Making of Jake McTavish"

Historical fiction or a “Western” with a focus on Canada. I enjoy reading good stories from the west but have found very few sited in Canada. Two or perhaps three writers have done excellent work with fiction on the Canadian West and that work is as entertaining as any in the world. Except for those few, however much of it is very hard to read, misleading and inaccurate. There are billions of western novels out there but very few from “the North West Territories” or “the Colony of British Columbia.” I also enjoy peppering my stories with historical facts to show that history can be entertaining if one realizes that the "facts" aren't that important but the people are and they created those facts --- or historical events.