Linda T Kepner Web Site

Amazon link to this book

Author web site: www.gggoncarovs.com

GUNTIS (BUSCH) GONCAROVS

    Linda decided to give Busch a couple extra months as her Web Guest in thanks for all the help he gave her at the New England Authors Expo.

   If you like hard sf with a steampunk twist, you’ll like Guntis (Busch) Goncarovs’s writing. Except it’s real.  Busch applies a fictional pen to historical events that have never been explained adequately.
    Linda first met Goncarovs at the New England Authors Expo, where she happened to mention that she had graduated from Eisenhower College.  He floored her by saying, "…in Seneca Falls, New York. I was born at the Seneca Falls Hospital."
    Busch loves historical research, especially into things scientific. He was intrigued to learn that the Confederate States of America had created a submarine during the Civil War.  This was the core of "Convergence of Valor," Busch’s historical tale of the creation and destruction of the first effective military submarine.  His most recent book, "Secrecy and Gamesmanship," has two historical themes – the creation of the government entity that eventually became the Secret Service, and the non-recognition of the Buffalo Soldiers.
    Goncarovs is an independently published author and presenter living in Deerfield, New Hampshire.

What do I call my writing? "Historical fiction" is what most recognize (HiFi) – Novelized History is a better description. I've seen the term Faction thrown out there, but not clearly recognized as a genre.

I've got several irons in the fire,so to speak. In the HiFi realm, the emergence of the Panama Canal (can never have too much TR, you know). Most of my present focus is the effort to complete a family history, in particular, my mother's trek through WWII as a teenaged girl chased from her homeland in Eastern Europe. I'm also cogitating on a more traditional HiFi focused on my American hometown, Seneca Falls, New York. I haven't quite developed a full story arc for this one, just some rogue thoughts scribbled in a file.

I'm proud of Convergence of Valor, a story about the Civil War Submarine, the HL Hunley. My latest, Secrecy and Gamesmanship, I think is the best written to date (so yes, I'm getting better with age, experience, and the help from other authors).

I've been writing since high school. I'm thinking it was an escape, a way to express myself outside of bookwork. Looking back at some of what I wrote back then, I found it was pretty lame, but it was a start. The bug bit to get the family history documented struck a bit later, which started the novel writing in earnest.

Linda, you asked about the confidentiality of my previous employment at a nuclear reactor, but mentioning it is not an issue. Some of the stuff I did can't be discussed in too much detail, but my focus was water chemistry for the reactor. Actually, I did some pretty cool stuff and used some pretty sophistocated equipment over the years. Radiochemistry – being able to interpret the energy lines for radioactive elements (like fingerprints) to determine fuel clad condition and activated contaminants.

My book research always starts with internet searches on the time period. JSTOR.org is a primary source, military and government sites for some details (typically leads), and biographies. My library trips help me dig into the biographies and historical references, and those that can't be found in libraries can typically be found in used bookstores. I use Wikipedia at times, but usually only to reveal some references. Convergence – half of the sailors were European, not Comfederates, and one had no history that could be verified – in fact, disappeared for three critical years of the sub development. Havana's Secret – Kaiser Wilhelm II actually had commissioned an invasion plan against the US prior to the Spanish American War, the Maine's Executive Officer, Richard Wainwright, ran the Navy's spy organization before he was assigned to the Maine. Secrecy and Gamesmanship – Kaiser Wilhem II had revised his invasion plan for the US, and somehow "obtained" Simon Lake's submarine design without the inventor's knowledge, then built his WW I fleet of submarines on that design.

How I set my writing goals depends on the stage of the project. When actually writing/creating, I shoot for 2000 words a night. When in development, I try to dedicate 3 to 4 hours to research, plotting direction, and so on.  I'm proud of having been asked by several historical societies and military museums to be keynote speaker at their events.

I spent time with the restoration team working on the Hunley in Charleston. While visiting, I had some great detailed discussions with the historians on location while inspecting the recovered submarine. I have traveled to Latvia and spent time with my mother retracing the trek from her birthplace to Riga, where they escaped the invading Soviets.

I'm presently retired after 40 years at several different nuclear power stations, writing and living in the wilds of New Hampshire. Three daughters are off making their mark in medicine and law with eight grandchildren. I have adopted a rescue husky/hound mix in the last year to fill the void left by the passing of a sixteen year old collie mix. I still enjoy playing pick-up ice hockey to stay in shape and tend to terrestrial and aquatic gardens when the snow has left the scene.