Why MisGuided?

Being around Mackinac Island means being around history.

Jim and I have been asked a few times lately why we picked Fort Mackinac as the setting for our newest Mackinac Island novel, and it’s a good question. The first novel, “The Dockporter,” was set in a world we knew well. Both Jim and I worked as dockporters on Mackinac Island, so we understood that life intimately. The backstory of that novel is also interesting—it was originally a film script I intended to shoot with my brother Scott on Mackinac Island. But time passed, I moved to the Philippines and when COVID hit, turning it into a novel was the natural evolution. 

Backstory

“Somewhere in Crime” grew out of my experiences in the summer of 1979 during the filming of “Somewhere in Time.” Both Jim and I love the movie, even though it’s a bit corny, because so many people we know were involved in the film. I was 11 at the time of the filming, and seeing Hollywood come to Mackinac was just about the coolest thing I’d ever seen—life-changing, even. So, that experience, combined with what both Jim and I feel is one of the best titles ever, “Somewhere in Crime,” made that novel a no-brainer. The perfect prequel. We added on some Wendigo, mixed in a little cold case murder, and BLAMO, we were good to go.

With those two eras in Jack’s life covered—the paperboy era during the summer of 1979 and the dockporter era during the summer of 1989—it seemed obvious that we should pick an era in between. Jim was a guide at Fort Mackinac for one summer, shooting muskets and telling yarns, and I worked at the Fort Tea Room for three summers as a busboy under the best boss ever, the unforgettable Jan Sposito.

Co-author Jim Bolone shooting a musket. MisGuided indeed.

The combination of those work experiences came together to make “MisGuided.”

What if Jack was stuck at a dead-end job as a busboy, not old enough to get his coveted porter job yet because he’s only 16? Then he somehow gets recruited to become a guide at Fort Mackinac, even though he is totally unqualified. He meets characters, and antics ensue. It seemed like a natural progression. It just … might … work!

Personally, I’m a huge history buff. Even though our main characters spend most of their time subverting it, the real stories of Mackinac Island are at the core. It’s a story about Jack's search for something meaningful. Something that connects him to the place he loves.

My mom wrote two chapters of this fantastic book

Surrounded by History

When I was growing up and working at the fort, my mom Kathryn/Kathy/Kate, (she morphed her name depending on the era), was the head of public relations for the Mackinac Island State Park. I spent a lot of time in those back offices as she cooked up schemes and press events (the Welcome launch and the Mackinac Associates were both under her wildly creative tenure). She also wrote two chapters of Mackinac: The Gathering Place.

My mom Kate McVeigh accepting a small bribe from Governor William Milliken to help get the Welcome sailing. It was a different era. :)

While there, I got the chance to meet legends like David Armour, Eugene T. Peterson, and a young Phil Porter, along with many other extremely big-brained, amazing historians. It stayed with me. In a different life, I think I would have wanted to go in that direction. My big sister Amy wrote The Insider’s Guide to Mackinac Island, so that era was surrounded by creative stimulation.

Jim and I decided to combine all those elements into our storytelling stew, which is why this book is called “Misguided.”

Yeah, Jack’s a guide. But he’s also Jack. So he’s MisGuided.

Get it?

As we’ve said, we’re working hard to get it into the Island Bookstore by mid-July. In early July, it will also be available for order on Amazon.

Moving to Substack

You’ll notice that we are moving our newsletter to Substack. Most of you are already subscribed, but if you’re not, just click subscribe below, and you’ll always be on the list when we send out new cool stuff. You do not have to pay! That’s just part of the Substack model. Maybe someday this will evolve into a new source of worthy fiction, but for now, everything is free.

We hope this update gives you a good sense of where we are with *MisGuided* and why we’re so excited about it. We’re pouring our hearts into this one, and we can’t wait to share it with you.

Thanks for being part of this journey with us!

Ride on!