Author | Lightnews

Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Apr 4

My bright spot today. 12-ish yrs ago, I scattered CA native wildflower seeds along this fenceline & each year there are a few more. Someday, I imagine they’ll grow along the whole fence. Which is to say: I hope all the beautiful, wild, free seeds planted years ago will keep blossoming & spreading.

An image of 3 California poppies in front of a wire fence with blue sky in the background.

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Mar 2

It made me think about our country & how I want to live in a place where every living creature gets the basic, decent care & kindness they need to allow their true selves to blossom & shine. Maybe that sounds really sappy but that’s kinda who I am. 🧵4/4 #joy #resist

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Mar 2

…which she really liked. That felt like a wonderful reward, to think about the sad horse who came here & the one who blossomed w/the most basic of decent care & kindness. 💙 BUT ALSO! 🧵3/4

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Mar 2

She’s what we call “in your pocket” w/o ever actually pushing any boundaries like so many attention seekers do.
This morning, she just came & stood next to me. She sniffed my hair & lightly investigated my sleeve. We stood together & I rubbed her face & she shifted til I was rubbing her ears…🧵2/4

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Mar 2

My little moment of joy today. 💙 When Kiki arrived here after being rescued from a feedlot, I thought I’d never met a horse more dull & downtrodden. As she found her place here, I discovered she is a quiet soul by nature, but also she gently seeks interaction…🧵1/4

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 13

🧵 4/4 Nieto has magicked a story that is perfectly of its time & ours, as every page rings w/echoes that resonate today. I was swept away by the emotional depth of this slow-burn love story & its conclusion left me teary-eyed & tingling w/ the best kind of goosebumps.

#historicalfiction

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 13

🧵 3/4 Here’s my blurb for LOVE AND CONDUCTIVITY: A gorgeous literary historical novel that will transport readers to post-WWI America with sumptuous period details, beautifully crafted imagery, & a swoon-worthy romance that’s the stuff of dreams & yet feels oh-so-real.

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 13

🧵 2/4
I was so lucky to read LOVE AND CONDUCTIVITY as it was being written & then again in its lovely final form and I’m so excited to get to hold it in my hands and press it into yours. It’s the perfect Valentine’s Day treat. 💗⚡️

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 13

Happiest Book Bday to Erin Nieto and her gorgeous, post-WWI, epistolary romance LOVE AND CONDUCTIVITY. 💗⚡️
🧵1/4

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

Or, if you prefer a fictionalized account, then Sarah Bird’s novel Daughter of a Daughter of a Queen is a great starting point.

🎨The portrait of her above is by artist John Will Davis.

#blackhistorymonth #civilwarhistory #femalesoldier

Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

If you want to learn more about her, the Warrior Project website is a great place: newsroom.woundedwarriorproject.org/The-Only-Kno...

Cathay Williams: The Only Known Female Buffalo Soldier

Cathay Williams, the only known female Buffalo Soldier, she was taken as contraband in the early days of the Civil War in Missouri. Learn more about her inspiring story!

newsroom.woundedwarriorproject.org

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

When she voluntarily enlisted in the Army after the Civil War, she said it was because “I wanted to make my own living and not be dependent on relations or friends.” 💙

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

She served as a washerwoman and cook during the Red River campaign (which is also where Rosetta Wakeman alias Lyons Wakeman saw combat) and the Battle of Pea Ridge.

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

Before all that, she was an enslaved Black woman who was taken as “contraband” (which is what enslaved people were called when they were captured by the Union) and “pressed” into service during the Civil War.

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

February is Black History Month and Cathay Williams is the first female Black solider to enlist with the Army. She’s also the only documented Black woman to serve in the Army in the 19th century AND the only known Black female Buffalo Soldier. 💙

An illustrated portrait of Black female soldier Cathay Williams and a photo of the cover of Sarah Bird’s historical novel about Williams, entitled Daughter of a Daughter of a Queen

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

And yet, our history shows that trans people and women have always been in our military, fighting our battles, defending our rights. 🏳️‍⚧️

Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

In addition, the newly appointed Secretary of Defense has for years vocally opposed women serving in ground combat positions, something they’ve only had the opportunity to do for barely over a decade.

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

Though trans service members have served openly since 2021, our new administration’s latest executive order on Jan. 27, bars trans people not just from serving openly, but from even enlisting.

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

This is a bittersweet anniversary, since now the rights of women, non-binary, and trans service members are at risk.

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

Albert Cashier, who lived the rest of their life after the war as a man and whose former comrades insisted Albert be buried in their uniform upon their death. 💙

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

Sarah Emma Edmonds (alias Franklin Thompson), who received a military pension as a married woman, thanks to her former comrades testifying on her behalf about her exemplary service.

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

Pictured are three of the soldiers who most inspired me as I wrote I SHALL BE NEAR TO YOU. Clockwise from right they are: Sarah Rosetta Wakeman (alias Lyons Wakeman), who saw combat in the Red River campaign and is buried as Lyons Wakeman at the Chalmette National Cemetery.

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

It felt like a victory, and like justice, because I knew from my research that women have always seen combat, fighting for our country in every war since the Revolutionary War. 💗

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

By the time the book came out, women had gained that right, thanks to Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta removing the military’s ban on women serving in combat on Jan. 24, 2013.

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Erin Lindsay McCabe @erinlindsmccabe.bsky.social · Feb 1

Inspired by the over 200 documented women who fought in the Civil War, I started writing I SHALL BE NEAR TO YOU in 2007, as the debate about whether to allow women into combat roles in the military was being decided.

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