How My DNA Directs My Writing

A large segment (and a surprising plot twist) in my current work-in-progress, Snoqualmie Bound, takes place in the United Kingdom during World War II. I was determined from the start that it would be centered in Southeastern England. Not Cornwall, or Wales, or Ireland, or Scotland, but along the coastline that was closest to France. I thought it made sense, because that was the area, along with London, that was most heavily bombed by the Nazis.

But it turns out that may not be the only reason I’m drawn to that specific area.

I just got an email from Ancestry, saying that my DNA regions had been updated.

When I viewed my updated DNA results, my jaw dropped. Almost HALF of my DNA comes from Southeastern England and Northwestern Europe!

Then I remembered a map I’d seen on Facebook a couple of days ago, posted by Amazing Maps. Taken from the book Albion’s Seed: Four British Folkways in America, which I’ve read several times, it shows the general migrations from areas of England to areas of America. I was immediately drawn to the fact that people from Southeastern England headed for the New England states. I knew from an early age that my father’s ancestry was largely from New England, as he used to tell us that we were descended from William Bradford.

Now it all makes sense. The puzzle pieces are starting to gather, and I’d better get writing!