When the Bottom Drops Out: Researching World War II Fiction

Writing historical fiction requires more than imagination. It requires careful research and sometimes a willingness to change course when the facts don’t cooperate. In this guest post, Scrivenings Press author Terri Wangard shares how researching World War II fiction unexpectedly reshaped the third book in her Unsung Stories of World War II series. What began as a planned storyline set in Australia quickly took a surprising turn, leading to new characters, new possibilities, and ultimately one of her favorite books to write.

When the Bottom Drops Out

by Terri Wangard

My original idea for my series, Unsung Stories of World War II, was war brides from unusual locations. In other words, not from England or France.

What more unlikely setting could there be than Brazil? A large German community lived in Brazil which could add plenty of intrigue. A German-Brazilian bride would certainly raise eyebrows. I’d spent a day in Rio de Janerio, which helped to plot a few days of fun R&R until they weren’t fun. I could share my love of seashells with Isabel. Book one proceeded without a hitch.

Book two hiccupped as I researched conditions in Iceland during the war. The Icelanders were not happy about the foreign militaries barging in and taking control. A romance was possible but not setting the tone I wanted. The Red Cross placed a group of recreation workers in Iceland for morale. I’d already written a Red Cross book (Soar Like Eagles), but that highlighted the girls serving donuts and coffee from clubmobiles. Still expecting this series to feature foreign war brides, I added a French Canadian woman who had been working in the US. Canada may not seem exotically foreign, but the French aspect provided flair.

Time for book three.

Disaster struck.

My planned Australian setting, beginning with the bombing of Darwin, would not work. The American pilots who helped defend Darwin were not based there. They’d been ferrying planes and continued on. There might be enough for a short story, but I needed a full-length novel. Now what?

I had a couple of givens to work with. The series follows three best friends, Daniel, Stefan, and John, who all become pilots. This was John’s story. He’s mentioned in the first two books as a fighter pilot. I wanted to keep him in the Pacific instead of the usual European setting. Beyond that, I was twiddling my thumbs.

Then someone started chattering. “Me, me, me. Let me star with John. I’ve loved him my whole life. I want him. I want to be his bride.”

Who was speaking?

Gloria.

In the last paragraph of my World War I book, The Storm Breaks Forth, she was introduced as the main characters’ newborn daughter. Her cousin Daniel from Seashells in My Pocket also made an appearance.

Flick on the proverbial light bulb. I could do a version of the best friend’s sister trope, in this case, his cousin. And I could revisit Gloria’s parents. Her father received the Medal of Honor and that could play to Gloria’s advantage, and cause conflict with other characters.

More possibilities presented themselves. To be near John, Gloria had to be in the Pacific. But why? The likeliest reason: she was a nurse. Her dad had been wounded in France where a neighbor had cared for him in a Paris hospital. Iona could be Gloria’s mentor. For repeated contact with John, she’d serve on a hospital ship, which could be stalked by an enemy submarine.

Listen For the Chickadees turned out to be a fun book to write. Who doesn’t want to visit Hawaii? The Pink Palace? The beach? Gloria could witness the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Eleanor Roosevelt, who made an appearance in Seashells in My Pocket, could return for another visit. Bob Hope could join the fun. I wanted to bring in Fred Astaire, but that would have been a stretch. Instead, John could meet him off-page at a stateside performance.

John could mimic George H. W. Bush’s experience of being shot down and rescued by a submarine. Dropped off on Midway, he could experience the tiny island that most of the airmen who fought in the Battle of Midway never saw. He could meet Admiral Nimitz, who seemed to be pulling strings for him. Celebrity cameos always lend a note of authenticity.

In the end, the revamped book three became my favorite.

Title: Listen for the Chickadees

Author: Terri Wangard

Genre: Historical Romance

Release Date: March 10, 2026

Other books in the Unsung Stories of WWII series: Seashells in my Pocket, No Leaves in Autumn

She’s loved him forever. He’s never seen her as more than a memory from home.

Then Pearl Harbor changes everything.

December 7, 1941 shatters the illusion that anyone is safe.

Navy nurse Gloria Bloch wakes to the thunder of enemy planes over Pearl Harbor, certain of only one thing: John Walsh, the boy she has loved since childhood, is far from danger aboard an aircraft carrier. Or so she believes.

When panicked American gunfire brings John down over the harbor, their reunion is brief and breathtaking, forged in chaos neither can escape.

As the Second World War drives the United States into the Pacific conflict, Gloria and John are swept onto separate paths of duty. Gloria serves aboard the hospital ship USS Serenity, tending shattered bodies and wounded souls. John flies combat missions as a Navy fighter pilot and combat photographer, risking everything to document a war that refuses to leave him untouched.

Their paths cross again and again in fleeting moments between air raids and surgeries, courage and fear, longing and loss. With every meeting, the feelings they have buried deepen. But war demands more than love. It demands sacrifice, tests faith, and steals time without warning.

When separation stretches into silence, Gloria must face the terrifying possibility that hope itself has become another casualty of war.

As war and distance threaten to pull them apart, only the smallest signs remain: a whistle, a painted bird, and a promise worth holding onto.

 

Terri Wangard grew up in Green Bay, Wisconsin, during the Lombardi Glory Years. Her first Girl Scout badge was the Writer. Holder of a bachelor’s degree in history and a master’s degree in library science, she is back in Wisconsin after several years in Michigan, Utah, and California. Her WWII research included going for a ride in a B-17 Flying Fortress bomber. She is a member of the American Christian Fiction Writers and serves as the Carol contest coordinator and is secretary of the Wisconsin Southeast ACFW chapter. You can connect with Terri on her website.