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WORK TITLE: Dangerous Dreams
WORK NOTES:
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WEBSITE: http://www.mikerhynard.com/
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RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Married; children: daughter.
EDUCATION:Attended Air Force Academy.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Author, rancher, and test pilot; instructor, Air Force test pilot school.
MIILITARY:Served as operational fighter pilot, U.S. Air Force.
WRITINGS
Also author of reports for technical publications.
SIDELIGHTS
Mike Rhynard is a pilot, and instructor who earned his experience as a writer with stories written in high school and college. Later he composed reports and studies of the aircraft he operated as a test pilot in the Air Force’s aeronautics program, and he served as a technical writing instructor at the Air Force’s test pilot school. Today he writes whenever he can make time in his busy schedule as a pilot and rancher in the Rocky Mountains of Montana. “I’ve never had the luxury of being able to write full time,” he said in an author’s question-and-answer found on his home page, the Mike Rhynard website. “My entire literary ‘career’ has been a catch-as-catch-can experience, accomplished whenever I could steal moments from my day jobs of being an aerospace consultant and running a cattle ranch. Such required (requires) a great deal of discipline, but I’m blessed with a fair amount of that, so I try to rise early in the morning and get in three or four hours of writing before the work day begins. However, most of my plot and scene formation come at the end of the day.”
Rhynard’s historical novel Dangerous Dreams: A Story of the Lost Colony of Roanoke is set in the late 1580s after the establishment of and English colony on an island off the coast of what is now North Carolina. “Emily Colman,” explained a Publishers Weekly reviewer, “is one of the 117 English colonists left behind after Gov. John White sails back to England.” The colonists expect White to return in a few months with supplies but an impending war with Spain delays his return for several years. Famously, when White did return to the Americas, he found the Roanoke settlement abandoned, with no sign of the colonists. Emily Colman’s story tells the fate of some of the colonists as seen through the eyes—and dreams–of modern-day psychologist Allie O’Shay. Allie becomes caught up in Emily’s story and, as Emily ventures further and further into perilous territory, Allie finds herself in danger as well.
Critics in general enjoyed Dangerous Dreams. “As an adult historical fiction, it’s a fascinating fictional “filling out” of the real mystery surrounding the second group of European settlers to try and establish a colony on American shores in the late 1500s,” wrote a reviewer for Heads Over Tales.com. “The book’s plot development–slow, complex, and based on the turning emotions and actions of various characters–is spot on for the type of book that it is.” “Rhynard’s two compelling tales manage to combine powerful emotionality with thorough research,” declared a Kirkus Reviews contributor, “as both the investigations into dream theory in the present timeline and the colonial activities of the past are deftly detailed.” “An exceptionally well written saga,” stated a contributor to Small Press Bookwatch, “Dangerous Dreams blends history with fiction to deftly present a compelling and multilayered story that will hold the reader’s rapt attention from beginning to end.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Kirkus Reviews, December 12, 2016, review of Dangerous Dreams: A Story of the Lost Colony of Roanoke.
Publishers Weekly, February 5, 2018, review of Dangerous Dreams, p. 41.
Small Press Bookwatch, February, 2016, review of Dangerous Dreams.
ONLINE
Head Over Tales.com, http://headoverbooks.com/ (May 27, 2017), review of Dangerous Dreams.
Mike Rhynard website, http://www.mikerhynard.com (August 8, 2018), author profile; author interview.
Mike Rhynard has been involved in cattle ranching since age seven; and from the time he could read, an ardent student of American history. In addition, he's a retired operational fighter pilot, combat veteran, developmental test pilot, and aerospace engineer and consultant; with extensive writing experience.
Mike lives on the family ranch in the Rocky Mountains of Montana with his long suffering, but still loving, wife and a bunch of hopelessly adoring animals.
If you read “Dangerous Dreams,” thanks for writing a review on Goodreads and Amazon.
Follow Mike and “Dangerous Dreams” on his website (mikerhynard.com), and on Facebook (Facebook.com/mikerhynardauthor) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/mikerhynardauth).
About Mike
Author — Rancher — Fighter Pilot — Test Pilot — Consultant
Mike Rhynard
Mike Rhynard has been involved in cattle ranching since age seven; and from the time he could read, he’s been an ardent and enthusiastic student of American history. In addition, he’s a retired operational fighter pilot, combat veteran, developmental test pilot, and aerospace engineer and consultant.
Mike has enjoyed writing since grade school; and in the course of his professional careers, authored numerous technical publications. But as he wrote fighter aircraft evaluations and space transportation plans, an unrealized passion to write historical fiction simmered and grew just below the threshold of his consciousness. Finally, in the early 90’s, his daughter’s academic experiences convinced him that American schools no longer taught a comprehensive core of American History. So, in righteous retaliation, he wrote “Dangerous Dreams” as a Young Adult novel, with the belief that a series of fast-paced, adventurous historical fiction novels could insidiously teach the history the schools were not. However, when a reviewing agent kindly suggested that Mike re-write the story as an adult novel, the idea resonated with him; and after a 19 year hiatus to run the family cattle ranch and his aerospace consulting firm, he embarked on the journey in 2011.
He published the adult version of “Dangerous Dreams” in October 2015, and will begin plotting and researching his next historical fiction novel in 2016. Mike Rhynard lives on his family’s ranch in the breathtaking Rocky Mountains, with his long-suffering, but still loving, wife and hordes of hopelessly adoring animals.
Dangerous Dreams
A Story of the Lost Colony of Roanoke
When did you decide you liked to write?
In the 10th grade, I wrote a short story about a cowboy named Joe who ended up as lunch for a vindictive mountain lion. I put a lot of time and thought into creating a suspenseful plot, and thoroughly enjoyed the process. My English teacher had read excerpts of the tale as I developed it, which was fortunate; because he lost the final product, but gave me an A anyway, based on his interim reviews. From the moment I started writing about Joe and his nemesis, I knew I wanted to write.
How did you develop your writing skills?
I wrote a good number of stories in high school, and a few in college at the Air Force Academy; but I don’t recall doing a lot of creative writing there. Then, as an operational fighter pilot, there weren’t many opportunities for writing, and most of what I did was on the technical side. In grad school (Aerospace Engineering) the focus was 100% on the technical side, as it was thereafter, when I became a test pilot and wrote numerous test plans and reports on the aircraft I tested. Technical writing is, in fact, an art form—one that instills good rudimentary writing skills like how to be concise, factual, objective, and unemotional, and how to use active voice, which contributes immeasurably to the readability of any type of writing. Next, as a flight and academic instructor at the Air Force Test Pilot School, I actually taught technical writing (teaching things is the best way to learn anything) and frequently imparted the gem-of-wisdom that, “You can be the greatest test pilot in the world, but if you can’t tell people, concisely and clearly, what you learned in the test, you wasted your time.”
When I decided to try historical fiction, I knew my technical writing experience provided an excellent core capability, but I also realized it would have to be enhanced in a special way if I was going to make people love, cry, laugh, and hate. So I started paying attention to how the novelists I liked said things and inserted feelings and emotions into their stories, made readers care about or despise their characters. I then applied what I’d learned to developing my own style; and you, the reader, will now judge how well I succeeded.
What is your writing regimen?
Well, first I must say that I’ve never had the luxury of being able to write full time. My entire literary “career” has been a catch-as-catch-can experience, accomplished whenever I could steal moments from my day jobs of being an aerospace consultant and running a cattle ranch. Such required (requires) a great deal of discipline, but I’m blessed with a fair amount of that, so I try to rise early in the morning and get in three or four hours of writing before the work day begins. However, most of my plot and scene formation come at the end of the day, when my left brain spins down, and my right brain spins up. I stimulate this transformation, by sitting in the hot tub with a beer and absorbing the glory of the Rocky Mountain around me. Then, in the morning, I edit the previous day’s work, and put flesh on the bones of the previous night’s plot formation. The editing process never ends.
What do you enjoy most about writing?
I find it exhilarating to formulate a good scene, or find the right words to express a feeling in a manner that stirs my own emotions.
How do you put a story together?
I’m sure there are as many techniques for this as there are writers. In my limited literary experience, I develop a general plot and backdrop for the story, then research every inch, nook, and cranny of supporting material. I then profile all of my main characters—physical characteristics, personalities, quirks, skeletons-in-the-closet, ambitions, fears, etc.—so I know how make to them act in the situations they’ll encounter in the story. Next, I outline the basic events of each chapter; and last, I develop the scenes and add the words. See previous statement on the eternal nature of editing..
Do you plan an entire story before you start?
No. I plan the basic flow of things, per the chapter plots described above, but I frequently change things, or insert what I hope are clever, engaging, intriguing, or heart-gripping twists.
Do you become engaged with your characters and the plot?
Absolutely. I loved and despised my various characters in Dangerous Dreams and felt the same emotions I hoped to evoke in my readers. Even now, I think of Emily Colman and her courage, innocence, and vulnerability nearly every day.
Do you plan to write more novels?
I do, indeed. When I originally conceived Dangerous Dreams as a young adult novel, I envisioned a series of stories (28, to be exact), each built around a momentous event, or series of events, in American history, that would take Emily’s family (including her younger brother) from 1587 to the present. Time and the Almighty will determine how far I get, but I plan to begin the next novel in 2016.
Dangerous Dreams
Publishers Weekly. 265.6 (Feb. 5, 2018): p41.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2018 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
Dangerous Dreams
Mike Rhynard. CreateSpace, $14.99 trade paper (612p) ISBN 978-1-5347-4081-5
The preface of Rhynard's hefty debut describes how he drew on his own experiences dreaming about historical characters whom he "spoke ... laughed ... feared ... and ultimately died with" in writing this novel set in the lost colony of Roanoke, Va., in 1587. Young Emily Colman is one of the 117 English colonists left behind after Gov. John White sails back to England for more supplies. She and the others--her father, friends, soldiers, and various paramours among them--strive for basic sustenance and desperately fight the Powhatan tribe, which was ravaged by an earlier English expedition. As the colonists attempt to elect leaders and establish defenses, Emily struggles to find lasting love amid the harsh conditions of the new world. Interwoven is the present-day story of Allie O'Shay, who realizes she's dreaming the entire saga--and learns that her lucid dreams could mean actual danger for her. A graphic rape scene in which the victim is depicted as being aroused will likely put off some readers, but those who can get past that will find a story full of convincing period details, fraught with tension and violence, and featuring a strong cast. (BookLife)
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Dangerous Dreams." Publishers Weekly, 5 Feb. 2018, p. 41. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A526810371/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=00436cbf. Accessed 26 June 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A526810371
Dangerous Dreams
Small Press Bookwatch. (Feb. 2016):
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 Midwest Book Review
http://www.midwestbookreview.com
Full Text:
Dangerous Dreams
Mike Rhynard
CreateSpace
4900 LaCross Rd., North Charleston, SC 29406
www.createspace.com
9781517054847, $24.99, PB, 798pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: On July 23, 1587, England established its first permanent North American settlement on Roanoke Island in present day North Carolina. Barely a month later, the colony's deteriorating circumstances forced Governor John White to return to England for additional supplies and colonists. However, war with Spain preempted his return until 1590, when upon his arrival, he discovered the colony had vanished.
Shortly after the governor's departure--the last instant of known Roanoke history--hostile relations with the nearby Indians and imminent starvation force the colonists to consider leaving Roanoke Island. But where can they go? Their charter from Sir Walter Raleigh is for the Chesapeake Bay area to the north; yet, the river to their west offers a far shorter, but more dangerous passage--it's populated by hostile Indian tribes antagonized by an earlier, English military expedition.
While the colonists weigh their options, suitors seek Emily's favor; the powerful Powhatan chiefdom plans the colony's demise; and four warriors from a tribe to the distant north make their way toward the coast to trade with tribes near the colony. Ill fortune relentlessly hounds the colonists as they depart Roanoke, and they soon realize their new circumstances are more precarious than those they escaped. As the colony struggles for survival against mounting adversity and internal conflict, an unlikely suitor enters Emily's life, and she faces terrifying perils that ultimately lead to an agonizing decision.
Increasingly distraught, Allie follows the Lost Colony and Emily as they march inexorably toward their destinies. Desperate to understand the genesis and verity of her dreams, she probes the depths of modern dream science to fashion a theoretical explanation for her dreams. But as the colony's prospects dim, Allie discovers there may be far more to her bond with the Lost Colony and Emily Colman than she could ever have imagined; and as her emotional fusion with Emily surges, she faces a dire challenge that threatens her own survival.
Critique: An exceptionally well written saga, "Dangerous Dreams" blends history with fiction to deftly present a compelling and multilayered story that will hold the reader's rapt attention from beginning to end. An epic novel that showcases author Mike Rhynard's impressive storytelling talents, "Dangerous Dreams" is certain to be an enduringly popular addition to community library collections. For personal reading lists it should be noted that "Dangerous Dreams" is also available in a Kindle edition ($9.99).
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Dangerous Dreams." Small Press Bookwatch, Feb. 2016. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A444913680/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=dc63080a. Accessed 26 June 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A444913680
DANGEROUS DREAMS
A Story of the Lost Colony of Roanoke
by Mike Rhynard
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KIRKUS REVIEW
A debut historical novel weaves a tale of youth, conflict, loss, and choice through one of America’s greatest mysteries.
Allie O’Shay has, in some ways, left her past behind, departing her family’s cattle ranch to pursue a doctorate in psychology. But the past is no simple thing, and Allie begins having strange, impossibly vivid dreams that seem to be genuine history, not fantasy. The dreams center on the Roanoke Colony, filling in the gaps of just how the settlement vanished. In particular, Allie feels drawn to a young colonist named Emily Colman, who’s particularly embroiled in the turmoil of Roanoke. Emily’s story offers a portrait of the colony: the escalating tensions and disastrous errors in dealing with the local Native American tribes, and the elation and grief as both new life and swift death come to Roanoke. Finally, there are Emily’s own timeless tribulations, as she contends with the romantic attentions of multiple men and faces a decision that could take her life places she never thought possible. Allie struggles to make sense of the dreams, and turns to everything from family history to cutting-edge dream theory to drugs in order to delve deeper. What’s more, as conditions in Emily’s timeline deteriorate, Allie learns she may be approaching an end to the dreams, leading to a terrifying conclusion that has wreaked havoc on the minds of women throughout her family line. Rhynard’s two compelling tales manage to combine powerful emotionality with thorough research, as both the investigations into dream theory in the present timeline and the colonial activities of the past are deftly detailed without overwhelming the characters or story. Similarly, while the narration centers on Emily and Allie, it also effectively incorporates the perspectives of all the other significant characters without becoming confusing. It’s possible that a chapter with more descriptions of Allie’s life immediately before the dreams began would have allowed readers to connect with her more in the novel’s early parts. But the suspense of the Roanoke story provides plenty of incentive to keep reading until Allie’s sections develop more weight.
This dynamic, genre-bending tale involving dreams and the Roanoke Colony delivers new discoveries and venerable truths.
Pub Date: Aug. 9th, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-5347-4081-5
Page count: 612pp
Publisher: CreateSpace
Program: Kirkus Indie
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12th, 2016
May 27, 2017
Book Review: Dangerous Dreams by Mike Rhynard: a Difficult Read
I’ve said before that I really wish that books came with “nutrition facts” labels that gave accurate, somewhat numerical indications of their contents in terms of incidences involving violence, sex, profanity, etc. This would be far easier than any kind of ranking system, and remove any possibility for bias or accusations thereof. It would enable consumers to be more informed about what they take into their minds, which I think is at least as important than what they take into their bodies. Such labels, I think, would also enable authors and publishers to more appropriately market their books.
I got a free copy of Dangerous Dreams: A Story of the Lost Colony of Roanoke through NetGalley, where I was provided with the book’s genre (adult historical fiction) and a description, but not much more. I’m not generally the best reviewer of historical fiction, although I do occasionally enjoy books in that genre, but this book’s description indicated that it involved really interesting dreams. That piqued my curiousity, in part because the book I recently wrote also involves similar kinds of dreams. But I should’ve known that it would have been a more difficult read than my usual fare because of its adult genre, but went into it somewhat blindly given its lack of my desired label. So I have to qualify my rating of this book with this caveat: for its genre, it’s a really good read. But I didn’t enjoy it.
Why Dangerous Dreams is a Good Read
What I mean by that is that, as an adult historical fiction, it’s a fascinating fictional “filling out” of the real mystery surrounding the second group of European settlers to try and establish a colony on American shores in the late 1500s. It follows 117 colonists who landed on Roanoke Island, off the coast of what would become North Carolina. For a variety of reasons, their circumstances, which were tenuous to begin with, rapidly deteriorated. Their governor sailed back to England for additional supplies and colonists, but his return was delayed until 1590, when he discovered the colony had vanished. The book’s plot development–slow, complex, and based on the turning emotions and actions of various characters–is spot on for the type of book that it is. I would say it’s an R-rated version of Dances With Wolves, with a significant added plot facet being that everything that happens to the colonists is seen in vivid dreams by a girl 400 years later who embarks on a quest to understand them.
The fact that that girl’s experience reflects a similar, real-life experience of the author’s is also pretty interesting. He says, in the preface:
On several occasions in my adult life, I have experienced dreams so real…that I awoke believing I had actually participated in a true American historical event: the battle of the Alamo. I spoke [with the other Alamo defenders], laughed with them, feared with them, and ultimately died with them.
Why I Didn’t Like It
So why didn’t I enjoy it, and what does that have to do with my desire to have seen a nutrition-facts label on the book before I read it? Because it has a fair amount of brutality and murder, references to rape, actual rape, and some profanity. While perhaps true to life, it was not true to my moral code or my usual reasons for reading. One of those reasons is to acquaint myself with the better realities and possibilities of the human race.
By my ten-star rating system, which measures books on their artistic and technical merit and doesn’t take into account my personal tastes, I’d have to give Dangerous Dreams a 7. Its premise was great (2 stars), its plot and pacing were genre-appropriate but a bit slow (3 stars), its characterization was solid (2 stars), but its style, which was generally elegant, was occasionally disturbed by stiff dialogue. If I were to factor in my personal tastes, though, I would rate it closer to a 3 or 4.
Would I recommend this book to others? Yes, if this kind of book is your cup of tea. No, if not.