Erika Bolstad—Windfall: The Prairie Woman Who Lost Her Way and the Great-Granddaughter Who Found Her

Advance copy: Backstories on books by NASW members

Windfall

WINDFALL:
THE PRAIRIE WOMAN WHO LOST HER WAY
AND THE GREAT-GRANDDAUGHTER WHO FOUND HER
Erika Bolstad
Sourcebooks, January 17, 2023, $26.99
ISBN: 9781728246932

Bolstad reports:

The idea for Windfall came to me in 2009, when my mother inherited mineral rights in North Dakota from a grandmother she'd never known. My mother was delighted; this was the height of the Bakken oil boom and the Great Recession. I was more skeptical; I wrote about environmental issues and climate change, and I had concerns about fracking.

My mother died in 2010. Although I thought often about the possibility of writing about my family history, it wasn't until 2013 that I finally was able to travel to North Dakota. After the trip, I knew I needed to quit my job and delve into the story of the oil boom and the story of my great-grandmother, Anna, who homesteaded in 1905 before disappearing into the state asylum.

Erika Bolstad

I wrote a proposal for an agent I met at a party. The proposal was terrible; the agent declined. Nonetheless, I continued my research. I traveled to North Dakota 10 times over eight years, paying for almost all of the trips out of my own pocket or with freelance pieces.

In 2018, I met a new agent through a friend. I rewrote my proposal. I also wrote a draft of the book and then revised the proposal again. The agent sold the book in late 2020. I spent 2021 revising the book and adding new chapters. A final research trip in 2021 revealed the ending to me.

It took a while to admit I was writing a memoir, a reported one that connects my family's story to larger truths about American greed and the climate consequences of the myths of the West.

The central idea of a book takes time to emerge. My best advice? Trust that the process of writing will reveal the book's heart.

I wish I had filmed more, earlier. I'm making a short documentary tied to the book, and I didn't begin capturing footage until 2019. I twice quit full-time journalism jobs to devote myself to this book. Wise? No. But I'm glad I bet on myself.

Contact info:

Erika Bolstad: erika@erikabolstad.com, https://www.erikabolstad.com/, @erikabolstad
Book: https://read.sourcebooks.com/non-fiction/9781728246932-windfall-hc.html
Publicist: Madeleine Brown, madeleine.brown@sourcebooks.com
Agent: Jessica Papin, jpapin@dystel.com

NASW members: will your book be published soon? Promote it by submitting your report for Advance Copy.

Tell your fellow NASW members how you came up with the idea for your book, developed a proposal, found an agent and publisher, funded and conducted research, and put the book together. Include what you wish you had known before you began working on your book, or had done differently.

See https://www.nasw.org/advance-copy-submission-guidelines.

View Advance Copy archives at https://www.nasw.org/member-article/advance-copy.

Thinking of writing a book? If you are a NASW member, you may access a list of more than 200 books and online resources to help you craft your book proposal, find an agent and funding sources, negotiate your contract, learn about self-publishing, publicize and market your book, and more at https://www.nasw.org/article/write-book.

Send book info and questions about book publishing to Lynne Lamberg, NASW book editor, llamberg@nasw.org.

Follow @LynneLamberg on Twitter for news about science/medical books, writing, and NASW authors.

Banner image adapted from original photo by Erika Bolstad.

NASW members: Share photos of your office bookshelves for use on our website. Upload photos to bit.ly/naswpicsubmit.

Advance Copy

The path from idea to book may take myriad routes. The Advance Copy column, started in 2000 by NASW volunteer book editor Lynne Lamberg, features NASW authors telling the stories behind their books. Authors are asked to report how they got their idea, honed it into a proposal, found an agent and a publisher, funded and conducted their research, and organized their writing process. They also are asked to share what they wish they’d known when they started or would do differently next time, and what advice they can offer aspiring authors. Lamberg edits the authors’ answers to produce the Advance Copy reports.

NASW members: Will your book be published soon? Visit www.nasw.org/advance-copy-submission-guidelines for information on submitting your report.

Publication of NASW author reports in Advance Copy does not constitute NASW's endorsement of any publication or the ideas, values, or material contained within or espoused by authors or their books. We hope this column stimulates productive discussions on important topics now and in the future as both science and societies progress. We welcome your discussion in the comments section below.