Character Studies at Little Bighorn

Longtime Friends' member and now, board director, Lola Mauer contributes great historical-fiction of the battle by focusing on several key individuals who fought at the Little Bighorn.

Ms. Mauer wrote four short stories as part of her master’s thesis in Creative Writing from Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana -- we will publish all four over a period of several months. Born in Ronan, Montana, Ms. Mauer also received her Bachelors in English from Ball State -- she now resides in Columbia, S.C. where she is employed at the University of South Carolina.

In an interview we had with Ms. Mauer she explains,

Each time someone asks me about my master’s degree in Creative Writing I always get raised eyebrows.  There is even more surprise when I tell them my emphasis was in Historical Fiction. 

While preparing my thesis I knew that I would write on no other subject than the Battle of the Little Bighorn.  Writing the stories was a wonderful experience and enabled me to bring new life to the characters of the famed battle.  My goal was to tell the story of these men in perhaps a way that has been overlooked.  While readers will find truth to the stories there is also much imagination interwoven into each paragraph.  Such is the benefit of historical fiction and why I love that form of writing. 

The Edgerly story, last in the series, is an award winner and the first piece I wrote for the thesis project.  I am now writing a story from the perspective of Captain Myles Keogh and will add that piece to the rest where it belongs.  Happy browsing, dear reader.

We begin the series with the fictional account of the Cheyenne warrior Wooden Leg. It's Ms. Mauer's interpretation of the battle from the warrior perspective. Currently, we also highlight one aspect of the soldier's side by focusing on Major Reno.

It should be noted that parts of language and terms might be offensive to some, but please keep in mind these stories are told from the perspective of individuals who lived in a different time and place of the 19th century.

We appreciate Ms. Mauer sharing these short stories with our members and visitors of our website. We are also excited to report that Ms. Mauer is now editor of the Friends of the Little Bighorn Battlefield’s newsletter, which is sent to our members.

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