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Erik Mortensen in At Guelph

Who Really Shot Abraham Lincoln?

Erik Mortensen

U of G student marries history and literature in long list of literary and theatre projects.

BY DAVID DICENZO

Humdrum just doesn’t cut it for Erik Mortensen. A 19-year-old Fergus writer in his second year of an English and history double major at U of G, Mortensen says he’s always been interested in edgy subjects when it comes to his work. Be it conspiracies or the paranormal, the more colourful the topic, the better.

“One of the concepts I like to apply to my writing is, if it isn’t controversial, it isn’t good enough,” he says.

Controversial is an apt description of his recently released novella, Avenging Abe. Set during the Civil War, the story follows Capt. Jason Gosse, a dedicated Union soldier who’s assigned to protect President Abraham Lincoln on a trip through a dangerous stretch of the countryside riddled with assassins. When Lincoln is subsequently shot — and not in a theatre — Gosse and his best friend, sharpshooter Kevin Hughes, follow orders and bring the president back to Washington, where “one of the greatest coverups of all time” begins to unfold.

Told through Gosse’s voice, Avenging Abe blends historically accurate detail and a wild storyline. Mortensen says the first-person account is particularly important because it provides insight into a character who remains dedicated to the cause — ultimately winning the war — despite his apprehension throughout.

“I wanted to set it up that way because when you reach the end, you see a lot more of the web that comes loose,” he says. “And you get to see how quickly what you assume to be real, whether you’re in the situation or just reading about it, changes. I think that’s pretty true of all time periods and these situations — the person being told what to do never knows the full facts until it’s too late.”

Mortensen last took American history back in high school when he attended St. James in Guelph, which is when he actually began to write the book. He says he put a lot of time into researching the period, making sure that details of the story were bang on, from the movements in battle and the type of liquor consumed to the names of native Americans depicted. Capturing the gore of the conflict was also crucial, he says.

“More Americans ended up dying in the Civil War than in every other war America has been involved in combined,” he says. “It was one of the most brutal and bloody fights. Sometimes it’s essential to catalogue the graphic nature of the war. You realize you don’t ever want to see that again.”

A prolific writer, Mortensen says he typically has two ways of coming up with ideas. Sometimes they simply pop into his head. Other times, he asks a friend to give him a list of a couple of items, some traits of a potential character and a setting for the story, which is how Avenging Abe got its start. A friend suggested a pocket watch, a tri-cornered hat, a coward, a loudmouth and the setting of the Civil War. “From there, I threw the story together.”

Mortensen says his first serious attempt at writing was in Grade 5 when his teacher asked the class to produce a short story. He handed in 20 pages on a group of people off to find the lost world of Atlantis.

“I’ve always loved creativity and imagination,” he says. “Most of my friends were off playing football, and I was sitting there thinking up imaginary worlds.”

Mortensen, who writes every day and admits to getting only about four hours of sleep a night, received the Ontario English Catholic Teachers Association Young Authors Award, the Lions Club Creative Writing Award, the St. James Literary Award and the St. James Lifetime Achievement in the Arts Award.

But he aspires to much more than seeing his words on a page. He’s also interested in producing, directing, doing stand-up comedy and acting. In November, he did his first one-person show.

The list of projects Mortensen has in the works is staggering: a second novel, to be called Divine Revolution; a children’s book that will be illustrated by his girlfriend; a Sherlock Holmes-themed production that’s being put on by the Mainstreet Players, a Fergus-based theatre company he founded last year; a musical planned for 2008 consisting entirely of Aerosmith music; and an “edgy” play for the “Shakespeare — Made in Canada” festival called Hot Pursuit, which he sums up as “A Midsummer Night’s Dream meets American Pie.”

Mortensen also works at Tim Hortons to raise extra funds for his theatre company, regularly sends scripts out to Hollywood bigwigs like Jerry Bruckheimer and says he’d love to do an MA in creative writing at the University of Guelph-Humber.

Throw in school and it’s easy to see why he says eating and sleeping “come second to everything else.”

Prof. Kevin James, History, says Mortensen “has found a very creative way of marrying his skills in history and literature. His approach to historical fiction is imaginative. And between stand-up, writing fiction and his other pursuits, Erik also devotes a lot of time and energy to his courses. That’s impressive.”

Mortensen admits he’s endured some struggles, mostly because of his age. When some people realize he’s just 19, they quickly lose interest in his work, he says. But that hasn’t deterred him from following his dreams. He says he simply works with the people who do believe in him, like Crackjaw Publishing, a new local company that helped see Avenging Abe come to fruition.

“A quote I heard when I was younger and that I really believe in is: ‘The only things we regret in life are the risks we don’t take.’ Ever since then, every time I think: ‘Should I or shouldn’t I do something,’ I end up doing it.”

Erik Mortensen in Fergus-Elora News Express

Local Author Spans Literary Spectrum

BY SHEILA O’HEARN

Nineteen-year-old Erik Mortensen is prolific, market-savvy, and talented. His new historical fiction novella, “Avenging Abe”, is hot off the press of Crackjaw Publishing in Guelph, and he is inviting the public to help him celebrate the launch of his latest literary offering at the Breadalbane Inn on Friday, February 9th at 7 p.m. in the Ferguson Room.

The combination of history and english interests him greatly, so much that he is seeking a double major from the University of Guelph in those subjects.

His latest book, “Avenging Abe”, is about a government conspiracy involving Abraham Lincoln and an intriguing behind-the-scenes exposing of the facts – or is it fiction? – surrounding his assassination.

“This story is one that you probably will never believe, mainly because I am the only one who knows, and who is willing or able to talk about it,” Mortensen writes in his opening paragraph.

Despite the past in which the book is set, Mortensen hooks readers from the start, using fresh, 21st century language to depict events and to dramatize historical events. The facts are true enough; the fiction part is often the cast of characters that he creates from his knowledge of history.

A plot-driven novel, the scenes do not overhwhelm, but flow from one to the other. Mortensen relates events in an unsentimental way; he writes with dexterity and muscle. Although the text is dominated by the first person, Mortensen’s vision is journalistic; he casts that ‘eye’ outside himself – a mark of a promising and good writer. The result is an engaging story, a swift page turner, in which one can’t wait to see what will happen next.

Mortensen’s novel-crafting has perhaps been honed by his play and screen writing. He founded and runs his own theatre company called the Mainstreet Players and is involved in drama productions in Wellington County and at the university he attends. He described his newest, untitled production as a “Midsummer Night’s Dream” that meets “American Pie”. This adult, comic venture, part of the Shakespeare – Made in Canada festival, will be shown on March 23rd and 24th at the University of Guelph, War Memorial building, and is $10 at the door.

Mortensen has other projects on the go also, such as hooking up with magician Ryan Joyce.

“We’re talking about doing a show together, and I’m scripting for one of his shows,” Mortensen said.

In addition, he is converting one of his screenplays into a children’s novel with illustrator Sarah Traversy.

Mortensen continues to work on plays and screenplays, juggling his many projects, including a screenplay about Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe. He is also working on a new novel entitled “Divine Revolution”, a fictional account of the battle between heaven and hell.

How does he do it?

“I’m very disciplined,” he said. “I make lists and outlines and I plan things out; I’ll work on whatever strikes me when I sit down to work. I have projects where I’m working with professors at the university. This is for next year – but I’m working on a play with Judith Thompson, playwright and drama professor, and doing research with Dr. Sophie Lachapple in the history department.

Despite his cramped schedule, Mortensen also squeezes in midnight shifts at Tim Horton’s. Mortensen’s energy is boundless that some less enlightened folk might think of merely as the energy of the young, but he is not only driven by passion and inspiration; he is also methodical, business-oriented, and practical. His vision for himself as a man of letters is solid and he appears to be moving up that invisible ladder of success. His first book, entitled “House of Broken Stone”, was self-published while “Avenging Abe” intrigued the publisher of Crackjaw Press sufficiently enough to want to publish it. He has the ear and confidence of his professors at university and a following of actors and entertainers who collaborate with him. He is challenging himself further in seeking two degrees at school where most individuals are burdened to attain just one.

“Right now I’m looking for an agent, but it’s hard because of my age,” Mortensen said. “Often I get the feedback, what could I possibly know about life at age 19? But I’ll keep looking until I find one.”

It would seem that Mortensen has a great deal to say; his goal for writing is as sound as that of Charles Dickens, who began young, or Arthur Rimbaud, whose greatest writing was achieved before the tender age of 18, and countless others.

“I get people to look at things and to think about things. I look critically at an issue and I try to challenge people to look again at what they assume to be true. I like my work to have a controversial edge.”

His advice to young writer is to be “unafraid and to just (create) and don’t ever get discouraged.”

Mortensen doesn’t worry, during the process of writing, whether the end product will be bad or good – he’ll cross that bridge when he comes to it; the important element is that he takes the risk in the first place by writing out an idea that has been percolating in his head.

“Even if what you’ve written turns out to be bad,” he said, laughing, “You’re still giving yourself that experience and you’ll grow from it. It’s really important not to be afraid to be creative or to be different. And don’t settle for the lowest common denominator. Be unafraid of ambition.”

Although he hopes to turn the head of a perspective agent soon, he said he is grateful to his parents Jean and Dave, the various teachers from both elementary and high school, his friends and peers who continue to encourage him.

His hard work is paying off. He won the OECTA Provincial Young Authors award, in addition to a Sears Drama Festival Award of Excellence. He has been nominated for the Under 20 Top 20 award.

One of the first short stories he ever attempted to pen evolved as a 20-page text about looking for the mythical Atlantis. He was only in Grade 5 and the teaching was holding her breath for a single page of writing from her students.

“The writing just took hold; I’ve been doing it ever since,” he said.

Perhaps that first story was prophectic, because Mortensen gives the impression that he will settle for nothing less than Atlantis in his vision for himself as a writer and his place in the world.

“Avenging Abe” launches on February 9th, and the book is currently available at Sunrise Books in Guelph. For more information, visit Crackjaw’s website crackjawpublishing.com, or call Mortensen at 519-843-6950.

Erik Mortensen in The Ontarion

An Exciting Historical Romp

BY ALENA DERVISEVIC

Erik Mortensen is a second year student at the University of Guelph with a double major in English and History, currently living in Fergus. He has just recently released a historical novella appropriately and self explanatorily entitled “Avenging Abe”.

Set in 1863, it followed the adventures of Capt. Jason Gosse, who is assigned to protect President Abraham Lincoln through a trip in the woods. Lincoln gets shot by one of the many snipers, but Gosse and his friend Kevin Hughes are still determined to get the job done and carry the body to Washington as assigned, where it was burned behind a government building. The story is narrated by the character of Capt. Jason Gosse, whose military instruction leads to, “one of the greatest cover-ups of all time” (the death of Abraham Lincoln). With this cover up comes a story of the satisfaction that comes from avenging great people.

Not a genre that I would usually indulge in, but Mortensen really creates a fun piece of literature, and leaves the reader guilty of indulging in an action/adventure story. The details throughout the book are precisely used to paint a very believable picture of the actions taking place. The language is very appropriate for a war story, and the structure that Mortensen uses is captivating and forces the completion of the book almost immediately.

Erik Mortensen’s research began while he was in his later high school years, taking the time to explore various historical resources and absorb a lot of information, down to the minute details. This intense research really paid off, as the writing reflects the time period quite appropriately.

Exploring the various texts gave Mortensen the details needed to create a story, just as he had hoped, plugging facts in as he wrote the historical adventure. “Avenging Abe” really shows off Mortensen’s writing skills, as well as his interest and awareness of history, the two fused together really do create a pleasant and captivating read.

Two more of Erik Mortensen’s pieces of literature will be coming out next year. One of which is going to be a children’s book. Both will be produced by the same publishers for “Avenging Abe”, Crackjaw Publishing. He is currently working on a second novel called “Divine Revolution”. Erik’s work is really fun, and it will take him very far in his future.