I’ve been tagged by Susan Keogh, author of The Jack Mallory Chronicles, to participate in the Meet My Main Character blog hop. In this latest game of tag for historical fiction authors on the blogosphere, we introduce the main character of our work in progress or soon to be published novel. So here goes –

What is the name of your character? Is he/she fictional or an historic person?

My story has a strong romantic element so there are two main characters, Mike Keegan and Ellen Corrigan. Both characters are fictional but the background to the story is inspired by real events two decades before the year in which the story is set.

When and where is the story set?

It’s set in County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland during the penultimate year of World War II. Although the county remained part of Britain when Ireland gained its independence more than two decades previously, it experienced the war in a very different way than the rest of Britain did.

What should we know about him/her?

Mike Keegan is an American infantryman who is in County Fermanagh to train for combat. His mother grew up in the county but would never talk to him about her life in Northern Ireland. He wants to know more about her past and why she refuses to talk about it. He wants to get these answers before he is shipped out to a European battlefield.

Ellen Corrigan is the eldest daughter of a local farmer. She yearns for greater freedom: a job away from the farm instead of being her mother’s right hand. The arrival of the American troops adds excitement to her life but an unpleasant encounter with a serviceman leaves her wary of them.

What is the main conflict? What messes up his/her life?

Mike discovers that a malicious ghost is somehow connected to his mother’s past. It latches on to him, endangering his growing relationship with Ellen and physically threatening him and those closest to him.

Ellen wrestles with her feelings for Mike and her worries about the relationship, struggling to overcome her distrust of American servicemen and her fear of the supernatural force that Mike has unleashed.

What is the personal goal of the character?

Before he is shipped out to fight Mike wants to solve the mystery of the vengeful ghost and prevent it doing any more damage. He hopes this will clear the way for him to win Ellen’s trust and love.

Ellen must decide what she wants from life and love.

Is there a working title for this novel, and can we read more about it?

The working title of the novella is The Elusive Enemy. It is in the first draft stage so there is no other information available yet.

When can we expect the book to be published?

It will depend whether I decide to self-publish it or approach a traditional publisher. If I go it on my own then it should be in print sometime between Halloween and Christmas 2014. If I go in search of a publisher then the decision will be out of my hands. Either way I’ll let readers know how things are developing.

Thanks for reading about my latest book-in-progress. I’ll keep you up to date on how it’s progressing during the coming months. Meanwhile I have tagged four authors to follow me; they will post about their main characters about a week from now. Click on their names to visit their blogs:

Louise Charles, author of The Duke’s Shadow

Vanessa Couchman, author of The House At Zaronza

John Eliot, author of The Good Doctor

E M Powell, author of The Blood of the Fifth Knight