Fierce and Fearless: Author Dan E. Hendrickson Celebrates Heroic Women in Brandy, Dame of the Caribbean
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Asia Tabb
Aired; May 9th, 2025.
Listen to the podcast for the full conversation.
With Mother’s Day just around the corner, author Dan E. Hendrickson joins The Spark to share a story rooted in love, legacy, and liberation. His latest novel, Brandy, Dame of the Caribbean, continues the saga of a woman pirate turned abolitionist, capturing both swashbuckling adventure and heartfelt family moments.
“I have very, very strong, wonderful daughters,” Hendrickson told The Spark. “One of them is a news reporter and the other is going to law school. They’ve inspired me their whole lives with their personalities, their conviction, and their uniqueness and their strengths. And I have put a lot of their characteristics into some of my female protagonists throughout the years—and Brandy is one of them.”
Brandy is no ordinary pirate. Raised by infamous buccaneers and later trained by a Shaolin monk, she evolves from a fugitive into a freedom fighter. Hendrickson weaves this transformation through rich historical context, noting that Brandy becomes involved with a group of sailors rescuing runaway slaves from American shores and settling them in Caribbean safe havens.
“She does a complete 180,” he said. “Her parents were slavers. But she turns around and spearheads freeing them. She’s a very powerful woman.”
The word “Dame” in the book’s title isn’t just theatrical flair—it’s a nod to the British tradition of knighthood. “At the end of the book, Brandy gets knighted by Queen Victoria,” Hendrickson revealed. “I thought that was a cool twist.”
But the real heart of Brandy’s character comes from Hendrickson’s own home. In describing the creative spark behind the novel, he shared a formative story about his daughter Donna as a child.
“She loved bunny rabbits,” he said, laughing. “One day our big, wolf-like dog Thunder tried to go after a nest of baby bunnies. Donna just stared him down. This tough dog got down on his haunches and backed off. That fierce glare? It’s now one of Brandy’s signature moves in the book.”
His daughter Becky also inspired the protagonist’s martial prowess. “She was a karate champion here in Lancaster,” Hendrickson said. “So I put that in. Brandy’s got Becky’s fighting spirit.”
The book opens with a tender scene of Brandy teaching her children to sword fight on the deck of the Morning Star. “Her master teacher, the Shaolin priest, actually developed a little war plan with the kids, and they managed to disarm Brandy,” Hendrickson recalled. “She laughed about it, but it was this wonderful moment of family bonding.”
And just like any working mom balancing a demanding job and motherhood, Brandy faces sacrifices. “She’s like a mom in the military,” Hendrickson said. “There are scenes where she’s away rescuing people while someone else watches her kids. And there’s a part where she has to rescue her own children from a pirate called the Jaded Empress. That moment is everything.”
When asked how he writes a female character with such authenticity, Hendrickson credited his family. “Have daughters and watch them grow up,” he advised. “And listen to them. I bounce ideas off of them and my wife. They give me insight, they give me editing notes.”
His daughters recognize their traits in Brandy and love the character. “They compare themselves to her all the time,” he said. “It’s a pleasant part of our conversations—laughing about who did what and how it ended up in the story.”
In Brandy, Dame of the Caribbean, Hendrickson delivers a tribute to women who lead, love, and fight. His heroine may sail through storms and face pirates, but it’s her role as a mother and moral compass that gives the story its soul.
“I think having a female protagonist, a mother like Brandy, leading the charge gets people interested in learning this history,” Hendrickson said. “It’s a fun story, but there’s truth behind it. And if it gets people asking questions—‘Did this really happen?’—then I’ve done my job.”
