B.C. writer wants to share your wildfire stories in her next book
Claudia Cornwall was evacuated during the wildfires, which inspired her latest project
Stories from last summer's B.C. wildfires will be documented in a book, thanks to writer Claudia Cornwall.
Cornwall, who teaches creative writing at Simon Fraser University, is looking for British Columbians who had first-hand experiences with the wildfires to share their stories in her latest project.
"I had so much emotional investment in it, I thought it would be a good topic to explore," she said.
On Aug. 30, 2017, Cornwall and her husband were trying to protect their cabin at Sheridan Lake, 40 kilometres east of 100 Mile House, from a nearby fire when they were given an evacuation order.
"I looked back and thought, 'Oh my God, are we ever going to see this place again?'" Cornwall said.
The fire at Sheridan Lake neared her property, but late on Sept. 2, the wind shifted and blew the fire away from the cabins and homes on the lake.
"It was just awful."
Cornwall's personal experience with the fires is one of many.
She's heard stories about a horse that was painted pink so it would be easy to find when its owners returned from their evacuation, a woman who left Bowron Lake by canoe as a fire neared the remote hiking circuit and two sheepdogs that protected 89 sheep from a fire.
But, she needs more.
"I thought people walked through this fire really well," she said. "There was a lot of grace, a lot of determination, a lot of courage, a lot of intelligence. People were kind to one another — little grocery stores stayed open so evacuees could gas up in the middle of the night. People took one another in."
Along with extensive interviews with people who lived through the fire, she plans to include a history of the region.
"The Cariboo is a wonderful place," she said. "There are ranches that have been in one family for generations. There are neighbours who have been helping each other out for decades. That's part of making the community so strong."
The book is still in the works, but Cornwall hopes to have it published in 2019.
Her previously published books include Letter from Vienna, which one a B.C. Book Prize, and At the World's Edge: Curt Lang's Vancouver 1937-1998.
Anyone interested in sharing their stories for use in the book is asked to visit Cornwall's website.
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