One of the most popular types of fiction is the “true” or “based on” story. There’s the natural inclination on the part of the reader to give more weight to the plight of characters who supposedly, actually, really did go through the events described. Reunion at Red Paint Bay took shape in my imagination after a friend told me of receiving an anonymous letter in the mail inviting him to dinner at a restaurant as repayment for something he had done as a youngster. It turned out well for him–a kindness from 35 years before being repaid. But “repayment” can mean retribution or revenge, and that’s the story line I chose to follow. A comment from Jules Feiffer seems to apply: “Nothing in the book ever happened and everything in the book is true.”