Aren Lerner (Craig) began writing Beneath Old Glory at age 13 in home school at the urging of her older sister during the summer that their father was seriously ill. When her father died a few months later, Aren continued writing because she found she loved it! And it became, in part, a way to understand and explore her own feelings about her father’s death and the new world her family found themselves in. It became a fixture of family life – Aren handwriting in 60 some red notebooks and combing through mountains of history books from the library to do her research, becoming a lover of history at the same time, seeing therein a depth of meaning and significance that enriched her own life and that could be expressed through her characters’ lives, thoughts, hopes, and dreams.
After more than nine years of continued writing and revisions, with the encouragement of her family, Beneath Old Glory achieved publication. The tale has grown from 1861 through 1866 in Book 1 to the current segments being written depicting life in the early 1900s (Book 10?). The series involves several main characters as their families grow, and follows them and their children through the years and the changing conditions surrounding them in the late nineteenth century United States.
Aren holds a PhD in History from the University of Aberdeen, an M.A. in History from University of Nebraska, and a B.A. in History from the American Military University. She loves all things cats, horses, ranches, fairy tales, gold panning, history, military, and politics. Yes, they make for an interesting combination! She currently homesteads with her husband and daughter on her husband’s family property.