Robert Moss interviewed about The Firekeeper

Glens Falls, NY paper The Post Star recently interviewed author Robert Moss about his book, The Firekeeper. Moss talks about his inspiration to write the book:

Before beginning the book, Moss, a native of Australia who moved to Chatham (NY) in 1986, said he knew little about the colonial history of New York. He happened upon a volume of "Sir William Johnson Papers" in the local history section at a used bookstore in Albany.

"I didn’t know anything about William Johnson until I laid my hands on that fat, blue volume. My hand fell on the book, and I opened it at random," Moss said.

Read the entire interview for more on this epic piece of historical fiction, based on the extraordinary story of Sir William Johnson and the author's dreams of a Mohawk “woman of power” who lived three centuries ago.

Spring into...Fall?

So we're finally enjoying some consistently mild and sunny spring weather in Albany, and that can only mean one thing here at the Press...time to start focusing on the upcoming fall '09 titles. Yup, we're working hard on the fall catalog, which should drop by the first week of May. After that, we'll be working on getting the deluxe, interactive online edition uploaded to our website for your viewing pleasure as well.

So think spring...but also keep an eye out for information on our books for the upcoming fall season, including Robert Moss's novel, The Firekeeper, Richard Selzer's "lost" novel, Knife Song Korea, and a book on that little concert they put together down in Woodstock all those years ago. We hear it was a big deal.

Origins of The Firekeeper

Robert Moss has posted an essay on his blog about the inception of his novel, The Firekeeper: A Narrative of the New York Frontier.

The Firekeeper is an epic adventure based on the extraordinary historical story of Sir William Johnson and also Robert's dreams of a Mohawk "woman of power" who lived three centuries ago.

On his blog, Robert explores his personal reasons for writing the book and shows how it is not only the story of a native people’s struggle for survival, but also an examination of how "dreaming can bring the soul back home."

A new edition of The Firekeeper will be published by SUNY Press in trade paperback in July.