Heather’s Bookshelf: Author Interview with Dave Mason
Book Title: Between the Clouds and the River
Released: 09/09/24
Genre: Historical Fiction
Interview by Heather L. Barksdale
What inspired you to write “Between the Clouds and the River”?
Mason: As someone living in their third country, I’ve long been conscious of the concepts of borders, immigration, and citizenship. Those constructs underpin virtually every aspect of life in 2025, but they didn’t always exist in the way we seem to view them now. When I stumbled across an article about a guy living in Hawaii who’d admitted — after about 40 years — that he wasn’t an American, but was actually an escaped German prisoner of war, my historical fiction brain and my contemporary societal issue brain must have bumped into each other and immediately sent me down a research rabbit hole.
By the end of WW2, there were more than 700 POW camps scattered across Canada and the United States, and they held more than 450,000 primarily German and Italian prisoners. As opposed to Allied POWs held in German camps, the majority were actually employed—paid to work as farm hands, laborers, mill workers, etc. That fact alone was fascinating, and it led me to stories in which many former prisoners related the fondness they felt for their captors and employers. There are many accounts of former POWs returning to North America after the war in order to reconnect with people with whom they’d formed strong bonds, and I couldn’t help but wonder what kinds of wider human stories those experiences might have created. But it was when I read a certain statistic that my imagination kicked into overdrive. Of the 450,000 enemy soldiers held in those North American camps, some 2,200 escaped. Only seven were never accounted for. Seven! Where did they go? Are there people out there today who have no real idea about their actual family history? That’s fuel for a historical fiction bonfire.
How did you come up with the names of your main characters?
Mason: I’ve often wondered that myself. Seems to me they pretty much just showed up and introduced themselves.
Is there anything that you want readers to know about you, your writing process or your book?
Mason: Hmmm… I’ve met with quite a few readers / book club members, and they always seem to be curious about the research aspects of writing historical fiction. In my mind, the best historical fiction makes it impossible to tell where “facts” end and “fiction” starts, so it’s imperative that the so-called factual stuff rings true. That obviously means hours of research, but it’s something I really enjoy, especially when it entails experiences like getting to meet 97-year old former WW2 fighter pilots, or speaking with museum curators, or people who identify the remains of long-lost soldiers and airmen for a living. It’s incredibly fascinating.
That said, I have a few thoughts about the “fact vs fiction” aspects of what’s accepted as established history, and that’s a subject that’s explored somewhat in Between the Clouds and the River, along with the concepts of borders, immigration, citizenship, and family.
If "Between the Clouds and the River" were adapted into a movie, who would you like to see cast to play your lead characters?
Mason: Oh, boy. That’s another classic book club/reader question. And I honestly don’t know. I think that when I create my characters (or when they create themselves?) I obviously begin to form a mental picture of their physical characteristics, but I don’t think I dwell too much on describing that stuff for the reader. I prefer to drop hints and provide subtle clues regarding physical appearance that allow readers to create each person themselves. That stuff, combined with
perceived personality, allows readers to paint their own pictures.
A little while after my first novel, EO-N, started gaining some serious readership, I began to get emails from readers suggesting actors to play the various characters in the book, and I have to admit that some of them — although I might not have thought of those folks otherwise — made a lot of sense to me. EO-N has actually been acquired for film and television, so maybe one day I’ll get to find out what a professional casting director might think!
When you encounter writer’s block, what do you do to break yourself out of it?
Mason: Writing is what I do for fun, so I don’t stress too much about that stuff. I think it’s natural that people get occupied with other things (there’s kind of a lot going on in the world in which I live at the present time!) and that creativity might get pushed aside by practicality. My approach is to let it all happen. And I find that when I do go ahead and open up my laptop and type a few fictional words, if I’m in the zone, I find it hard to stop.
Are there any tips that you would like to share with other aspiring authors?
Mason: I’m only just coming to grips with the notion that I am an author, so giving advice seems like a bit of a stretch. And since writing is just what I do for fun, I’m thinking my approach to it might not be for everyone. That said, I guess I’d just encourage anyone who feels the urge to get some kind of story out of their brain and onto a screen or page to Nike the hell out of it. Just. Do. It!
What is your favorite book, genre, and/or author?
Mason: Tough question. I read all sorts of stuff including literary fiction, narrative nonfiction, historical fiction, biographies, autobiographies, business, etc. As long as a book is well written and pulls me along, I’m cool with it. That makes choosing a favorite author pretty difficult, too, but I have a lot of respect for people like Martin Amis, Guy Vanderhaeghe, Michael Ondaatje, Annie Proulx, and Dave Eggers who can turn ideas and words into pictures and memories so beautifully.
What are you working on next?
Mason: I’m working on a few historical fiction projects. One involves ancient Inuit hunters, Vikings, Nazis, and Nasa. The other explores the mythology of heroism, rugged independence, and people “pulling themselves up by their bootstraps” in the context of the violence and upheaval of 1860s North America.
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