Obsessed with Real-Life
Characters
On Writing Miss Etta
Deanna Lynn Sletten
The obsession began over twenty years ago. While watching a
favorite movie—“Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid”—I began to wonder, what
were the real outlaws like? Thus began a long research project that turned into
an obsession and two novels.
At first, I began reading every book I could get my hands on
about the two outlaws. Surprisingly, there were many. An amazing pair of
researchers had written two books and two of the outlaw’s relatives had written
books also. Butch’s own sister, Lula Betenson, had written a book about her
brother, Robert LeRoy Parker, even though she’d been a baby when he’d left home
at the age of eighteen. Every book added a new piece to the puzzle of who the
outlaws were and how they lived their lives. And while I found the two men
interesting, what fascinated me the most was how little anyone knew of the
beautiful, educated, charming Miss Etta Place.
A mystery. My obsession grew.
In 2001 (and then 2011) I published a middle-grade novel
titled Outlaw
Heroes about a twelve-year-old boy who is swept back in time and joins
in on the escapades of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. In doing so, the
young boy learns a few life lessons. Etta Place played a small but important
role in that book. It’s a fun adventure, and so far, has been enjoyed by those
who have read it. But after writing that book, I knew I wanted to write more
about these characters. Particularly, Etta Place.
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| The Wild Bunch - November 1900 Left to right front: Harry Longabaugh, Ben Kilpatrick, Butch Cassidy Back: Will Carver, Harvey Logan |
In the years that followed, I continued to research each character
from every source I could find. From the well-known books by Butch and Sundance
researchers to the obscure—even Captain William French had written a book about
his life including his W S Ranch and his friendship with the outlaws. I found
old newspaper clippings that pertained to the two wily outlaws. While on
vacation, several times, I stopped at places they had robbed — the bank in
Winnemucca, the Tipton sign on a deserted stretch of railroad in Wyoming. I
wanted to get a feel for them having been there and see what they saw. I had
copies of the Wild Bunch photo and the one of Harry and Etta in New York framed
on my desk. I obsessed.
And still, who was Etta Place?
I created a timeline of the dates and places Butch and
Sundance were, both together and separately. From the first known moment when
Etta appeared in Sundance’s life in the winter of 1896 in Robbers Roost, to the
last moment when she was no longer mentioned in their life in South America. Taking
that information, I weaved her story in among known facts about Butch and Sundance.
Still, where did she come from? Who was she?
No one knows that answer. It is believed that she worked for
Fannie Mae Porter in San Antonio as prostitute and that is where Harry met her.
One account said that Etta was Butch’s girlfriend in Robbers Roost before being
Harry’s. Other accounts say she was a teacher, a music teacher, or she was his
cousin. Looking into her young, unlined face in the photo taken of her and
Harry in 1901 tells its own story.
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| New York City, NY - February 1901 Harry Longabaugh and Etta Place |
I doubt that Etta was a prostitute. She doesn’t have the
hard, used look as most women of that occupation did. She was thought to be
nineteen in 1896 when she first was seen with Harry. She looks very young in
the 1901 photo too – five years later. I also have my doubts that Harry would
have taken a prostitute as a wife or girlfriend. Despite being an outlaw, Harry
was raised in a respectable family. He had looked up to his elder sister, Samanna,
who was dignified and beautiful. I believe that when choosing a life partner,
Harry would have wanted someone he could be proud to bring home. A woman with
an education, with manners and grace, and who was lovely to look at. But as an
outlaw, he needed to have a companion who could follow him anywhere, living
both high and rough, and able to manage both. That is what makes Etta so fascinating.
I gave Etta an interesting past that would have enabled her
to ride a horse well, shoot as well as any man, yet be able to charm the most
dignified guest. That is how many people who’d known her described her. And she
must have loved Harry very much, to follow him around the rugged west, and all
the way to Argentina to start their lives over again, without knowing what lay
ahead of them. She was lovely, yes, but she was strong.
The story of Etta, Harry, and Butch lives on because it is
such an interesting one. No one knows for certain what became of them. They
lived as outlaws in the United States, tried to go straight in South America, but
had to go back to crime when the authorities hounded them. They had a moral
code unlike most criminals of their day, and even a sense of humor about
themselves. They lived, loved, and laughed a lot, but in the end, we have no
idea if they made the greatest escape of all or died bloody and were buried in unmarked
graves. All I know is that after writing two books about these characters, I
doubt that I’ve laid them to rest.
I’m still obsessed.
I hope you will be too.
Miss Etta: A Novel
My historical women’s fiction novel, Miss Etta, is available or preorder and will release on September
4, 2018. The paperback will be available for purchase on that date as well, and
the audiobook should be available by November. Here is more about Miss Etta.
Book Description:
She rode with the most famous outlaws of her time. Then she
vanished.
In the fall of 1895, Etta Place falls in love with Harry
Longabaugh, alias the Sundance Kid. She gives up everything to follow him and
his partner-in-crime, Butch Cassidy, in their outlaw life across the continent
and beyond. Breathtakingly beautiful and every inch a lady, Etta can also ride
and shoot as well as any man. As their fugitive life begins to crumble, she
finds herself alone and living in a convent with her newborn son. Knowing she
can’t hide away forever, she moves halfway across the country to begin anew.
Etta prays her past won’t catch up with her.
In 1911 Emily Pleasants steps onto the train station
platform of Pine Creek, Minnesota with a teacher’s contract in hand and a
secret life she’s fled. A young widow with a small son, she’s searching for a
safe place to raise her child where no one will recognize her. She meets Edward
Sheridan, a successful merchant and bank owner, who quickly falls for her
beauty, intelligence, and kindness. Still, she worries her notorious past will
threaten the one thing dearest to her—her son.
From the deserts of Texas to the sweeping vistas of Wyoming,
the refinement of New York City to the lush valleys of Argentina, Etta followed
the outlaw men she loved so dearly. And then, she disappeared.
One woman, two separate lives. What became of the elusive
Etta Place?
Preorder Now:
Amazon Kindle: https://amzn.to/2MjfFdP
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