Published authors are often asked to read manuscripts for a possible quote. Many authors have their own criteria for deciding who and what to read. My first and major one other than having the time is this: is the book a romance? Does it have a happy ending? This way, if I love and quote the book, my readers who buy based on my recommendation aren’t disappointed. So when I was asked to quote Melissa Senate’s THE SECRET OF JOY, I was concerned since this wasn’t labeled “romance”. So I asked my one criteria question – Does it have a happy ending defined in the way we mean in Romance novels. It was. So I read. And oh my goodness was I in for a treat! I really and truly loved this story for so many various reasons. It’s real. It’s interesting. It made me FEEL all different emotions. So I invited Melissa to the jungle so I could share JOY with all of you! So please give Melissa a warm jungle welcome! And the cool thing is she’s giving away 3 copies to lucky posters! So read on and then comment!
How To Use Your Own Life As Inspiration For Your Novel, Yet Have It Be Virtually Unrecognizable To Family and Friends!
By Melissa Senate
When my first novel, See Jane Date, was published in 2001, a close friend and former colleague said to me with a slightly accusatory tone, “But Jane isn’t you!”
“Of course,” she’s not, I said back. “The book is fiction.” I can see why she was confused: like my heroine Jane, I was then: single, living in New York City, working as an editor in publishing, and dating, dating, dating like a madwoman.
When my second novel was published, my then mother-in-law said, “But Sarah’s not you!” Nope. Even though Sarah, one of the three heroines of The Solomon Sisters Wise Up, got pregnant two months into a new relationship—just like, er, I did.
Yes, it goes on. My third novel, Whose Wedding Is It Anyway? tells the tale of a woman planning a free wedding that is the opposite of what she always dreamed of. I wrote that novel while I was planning my own wedding (to my then 13 month old son’s father) that was the opposite of what I always dreamed of. But I don’t think anyone knew that, so no one said, “But, you’re not Eloise!” Even though I kind of was.
It’s the kind of that interests me about using my own life as inspiration. What I take is the nugget, the shining little golden center of something I’m going through, and then flip everything on its head so that what is recognizable is the broad thing itself and the emotion: a woman dating like mad yet feeling lonelier; a single woman who gets pregnant and is more than a little scared. And take, for example, my lighthearted mystery, Love You To Death, about a woman accused of killing/maiming her jerk ex-boyfriends while a very sexy cop investigates her. I wrote this while I was separating from my husband, the father of my precious boy, and as someone who came from a divorced home, breaking up my family was incredibly painful. I remember staring at the blank screen of my laptop, thinking: I can’t write about this. Yet I did: unrecognizable to anyone but me, that little black comedy about the end of relationships, of not feeling like you belong anywhere, even in your own family, (which is a constant theme in all my novels), was very much about my the beginning of the end of my marriage.
My new novel, The Secret of Joy, which was just published this week (yay!) follows the tradition. Something happened, something heavy, something family skeleton-y, and I couldn’t figure out how I felt about it. I couldn’t really talk about it to anyone, either. I found myself thinking of it all the time, but I knew I’d never write about it, even though I thought it would help me work through it. Yet a couple of years ago, I finally sat down at the laptop and gave that nugget to a heroine and let her handle it. Let her deal with it. Let her show me the way. After all, she’s not me. She’s fictional. She won’t do what I’d necessarily do. And it’s very helpful to get another point of view. ☺
What happened and what I took from it for my premise of The Secret of Joy: Several years ago, I received a startling email out of the blue that said: I think you might be my half sister. Whoa. Whoa. Whoa.
Now, I have not seen or heard or had any contact from my biological father or any member of his family since I was eight or nine years old. I’ve always known, though, that I had a half-brother who was born when I was seven, a half-brother I had never laid eyes on. Then one day, when I’m in my thirties, the email. I think you might be my half sister . . . .
You imagine the questions, the soul-searching, the “what does this mean?” Does it mean this person is my brother? But I have a brother already. Does the word brother, sibling, father, mother, family mean a danged thing if it’s not backed up by anything, like, say, being there? Can you feel something out of nothing? Can there actually be nothing out of something like that? Does DNA a sibling make? Round and round and round I went, not sure how I felt about anything. But eventually, the questions became such a part of me that I found myself ready to seek the answers the best way I know how: my forming my burning questions into the premise and theme of a novel. Because there’s a slightly touchy quality to this particular premise for me as concerns my family, I was hesitant to write about it, until I remembered that using my own life as inspiration without making anything autobiographical is what I do best, what makes my novels work for me, what I write for. To me, explaining myself to myself, figuring out my life, heart, mind and soul, through my fiction is one of the greatest things about being a novelist.
Have you ever used your own life as the inspiration for your work? If so, are you surprised at how it manifests itself in the story?
A big thank you to Carly and the Plotmonkeys for having me this exciting launch week! I have three copies of The Secret of Joy to give away to commenters, and you can read all about how Rebecca and Joy are not me! ☺
Carly Phillips would like to take 100% credit for all her stories but the truth is, Carly’s strength is writing family, emotion, funky elderly people and animals. She couldn’t plot her way out of a paper bag, which is why she smartly found her plotmonkey pals early on in her writing career. Thanks to their support, Carly is now a NYT Bestselling author of 23 plus novels. Because writing doesn’t keep her busy enough, Carly is also a wife, a mother of one preteen and one teenage daughter, the primary care giver of her soft coated Wheaten terrier and an expert carpool mom.
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Hi Melissa great blog. I haven’t used my own life as inspiration for a novel but I have used elements of my grandfathers. It was an unhappy tale to be honest. After WWI he came out of the war shell shocked and confused – of course in those days PTSD wasn’t recognized. He didn’t go back to his wife (and two daughters) and effectively disappeared with out trace Ten years later he re-married (my grandmother), had a son (my dad). In those days getting a divorce was very expensive and only rich people could do so. It turns out (major skeleton in the cupboard moment here!) that he did in fact marry my grandmother bigamously! Take care. Caroline x
Wow, Caroline, what a story! Thank you for sharing that. The book I’m writing now involves a heroine discovering the secrets and story of her grandmother, and it’s made me think a lot about my own late grandmother and the very interesting and hard life she lived.
:) Melissa
Hi :)
Thank you very much for this wonderful interview.
I enjoyed learning more about Melissa and her writing.
I think every writer uses his or her life experience in their writing
(But what about vampires, etc?) including the writer’s dreams & imagination.
Thank you again,
All the best,
RKCharron
xoxo
PS – Melissa Senate is on Twitter! To follow her she is: http://twitter.com/MelissaSenate
PPS – I Posted about this interview on my blog.
:)
Thanks, RK! And for the Twitter link too.
I too have used things that I have experienced in my life as inspiration in my writing.The first instance was with my daughter actually. She, like one of the characters in my book, has a Biycuspid Aortic Valve which can lead to open heart surgery if she isn’t careful but unlike my daughter, the child in the story, does have the valve replacement and a rough road along the way. My daughter? No she didn’t.
I use the feelings and thoughts I am having at any given time to inspire my characters and I have to admit sometimes the words they say have actually come right out of my mouth at times and others as well. Some of those lines are just too funny to put aside and never use in the context of my story.
Thanks for stopping by and I hope to get my hands on that book of yours… it sounds like it will be a good one!
Have a great day!
Thanks so much, Patsy! I can imagine how emotional it must been to write about issues concerning your daughter’s health. My little son is just at the tail end of a two year healing process for a hip condition, and I’m still too close to it and what it meant for him these past couple of years, but something of it–the fear, uncertainty, especially as it concerns a child, will find its way into my fiction one day, I’m sure.
Love how your husband’s chest puffs out with pride at certain scenes. :)
:) Melissa
My daughter is now 20 and before she turned 16 she had approximately 14 various surgeries. Mostly orthopedic. She had a hip replacement in 9th grade and I fear we are knocking at the door to have the other replaced as well. She also has had two sets of titainum harrington rods placed for her scoliosis. Long story. I am sure your son will do fine and I will keep him in my prayers. I have learned over time that children are resiliant and recover quickly. do not be surprised if your son is angry with you after the surgery even at that age. It is a normal reaction and the only way they have of expressing their fears and pain. My daughters first surgery was at six months and when she was two had a shoulder surgery and was angry. It will take a few days to a week for them to get past it. Just try and remember not to take it personally(it is hard and it makes you want to weap for them but in the end it all works out and your child has a better shot at a “normal” life.) ;o)
What a lovely story! Here’s my life story. I was born in the 60’s. I was born breech, a single-footling breech, where my left leg was over my face and my right foot was hanging down. The doctor’s were taking my mother up for an x-ray when they saw my foot and rushed my mother to the delivery room. No C-Section, Ladies! Unfortunately, they didn’t find my hip dysplasia until I was 6 months old. I had 5 hips surgeries from the age of 6 months to 4 years old. I wore a full body cast, with a halo pinned into my ankles, until I was 4. I spent more time in the hospital then I did at home, crawling around the floors there, on a blanket getting myself into trouble. I didn’t go to Kindergarten like the rest of the kids because I didn’t learn to walk until my 6th birthday, after a case of Perthes Disease. It stops the blood flow around the hip socket causing the head of the femur to dies.
I was very shy when I was younger. I limped badly and was made fun of, as other children do when someone is different. By the age of 12, my natural hip began to break apart. I had my first hip replacement at 22, the next one was 7 years later (at 29) and my third was 7 years after that one (at 36). They sure aren’t meant for someone young and somewhat activity who wanted and had children. It also takes a toll on the rest of your body too. I have had knee surgeries and a replacement, scoliosis of the spine, back surgery, my other hip replaced… let’s just put it this way. I have had a total of 25 surgeries and there’s more to come.
Through this all, my parents and family members treated me as though I was a normal child. They would strap me unto a horse, let me try out for sports and do anything I wanted to or what my body allowed me to do. It was the outside world that treated me differently. Through this, I learned to perserve. I helped others to learn that even though I was different I still felt the same as them. My own children, because of my health problems, learned to treat others equally, even if they were different. I try not to use the word “handicap” because I never felt I was. I was just different…maybe special in some way. I was God’s way to give the Doctors someone to learn new skills on, to help them be better for the next generation.
Lisa, your story touched me so deeply–my 7 year old son has Perthes Disease and is just about through with it. He was diagnosed at 5 and endured weeks of traction, 6 months in a wheelchair (no weight-bearing), three months in a Petrie cast (the double leg cast with 2 ft bar between the knees) and then 7 months in a hip abduction brace. His only restriction now is jumping–not easy for a 7 year old boy not to jump for 2 years, but come his x-ray appt in Dec., we’re expecting is ortho to finally release him. We got very lucky with this doc–he never needed surgery and in a year from now, it’ll be like he never had Perthes, except for occasional aching in the affected leg. What a doozy.
Thank you for sharing your story. Until Max was diagnosed, I’d never heard of Perthes Disease. Now I know the winner of Survivor: Fiji had it, as did Cameron Mathison, who did a little jig on Dancing With the Stars. Gives me great hope.
:) Melissa
Hi Patsy! Look at my article below yours. We have alot in common.
It sounds like you and my daughter have been through the ringer. She was born with Congenital Scoliosis, Complete Spina Bifida, Springles Deformity and Trigger Thumb. I am happy to tell you that she is a happy young lady and although she was a late bloomer she now has her first boy friend who BTW she was only his second date . Nigel is 23. He looks past all that she has been through to see the ypung lady she is inside and admires her strength and free spirit. ;o)
I hope you continue to do well and will say a prayer for your future surgeries and recovery.
Just realized I never said what The Secret of Joy is about! Here is a plot blurb:
28-year-old New Yorker Rebecca Strand is shocked when her dying father confesses a devastating secret: he had affair when Rebecca was a toddler—and a baby he turned his back on at birth. Now, his wish is that the daughter he abandoned, Joy Joyhawk, read the unsent letters he wrote to her every year on her birthday. Determined to fulfill her father’s wish, Rebecca drives to a small town in Maine—against the advice of her lawyer boyfriend who’s sure Joy will be a “disappointing, trashy opportunist” and demand half her father’s fortune. But when hopeful Rebecca knocks on her half-sister’s door, Joy—a separated mother who conducts weekend singles tours out of her orange mini-bus—wants nothing to do with Rebecca or the letters her father wrote to her. Determined to forge some kind of relationship with Joy, Rebecca sticks around, finding unexpected support from Joy’s best clients—the Divorced Ladies Club of Wiscasset—and a sexy carpenter named Theo . . . .
And my bio: Melissa Senate is the author of eight novels, including the bestselling See Jane Date, which was made into an ABC Family TV movie. A former romance novel editor for Harlequin Books in New York City, she now lives on the southern coast of Maine with her son.
Melissa, this book sounds amazing. It just shot right up my list of tbrs – especially on reading that you live on the southern coast of Maine. My grandmother lived in Freeport for the last two decades of her life, so I’m pretty partial to it. I have a lot of fond memories of Maine.
As for using my life in books I write, there are a few that I have put on the back burner (for now) that started out as nuggets from my life. Two deal with bipolar disorder and how it affects families (one is about adult children of a bipolar father, the other is about a bipolar child), the other deals with something even more personal to me, so it’s harder to write. It came about in the aftermath of a kidnapping attempt on one of my nieces, which brought back memories of how I, as a child, was nearly abducted one day, too. After hearing about my niece, all I could think was – how could this happen twice in the same family, in the same small town? Well, upon doing some research, I discovered that there were several such incidences scattered over the years, which isn’t very comforting to know.
Margay
Margay, I’ve done a zillion interview Q&As the past couple of weeks to promote my new book, and one question was what my greatest fear was. My answer: It’s unspeakable. But it’s exactly what you mentioned. I live one town over from Freeport, and it’s small and quaint and seemingly safe, but I don’t let my 7 year old play alone outside and I don’t care who calls me a helicoptor because of it.
Thanks for your kind comments about the book, too.
:) Melissa
Melissa, I was the same way with my girls when they were younger. They would play outside, but I would watch from the window. I still keep watch over them and worry about the things they have to face. And seriously, I am putting this book on my Christmas list and if nobody buys it for me, I’m treating myself! Best of luck with it. Margay
P.S. I love that area of Maine. And if you’re that close to Freeport, you should check out the Desert of Maine. Not a lot of people seem to know about it. I do because it’s part of my family history – my ancestors used to own it.
Hello Melissa. There have been in my life, as in so many other’s, things that were not so pleasant and since I had no one to talk to I bottled them up. Many a times have I wanted to sit down and write about them. For therapeutic reasons, but the empty paper seemed a little scary. And the few words I wrote down on them where so confronting that I chickened out before I even started. Live is never easy and you where brave enough to let it out. Perhaps I’ll write a story about a girl whose a bit different from me. Now that I have read your post I feel encouraged to try again.So thank you for that.
Hi Kirsten, thank you so much for your comment. I know what you mean about that empty page–and chickening out too! I did that with the story for The Secret of Joy a number of times. Couldn’t quite figure out how to approach in the right way, but knew I wanted to put it down on paper some day. Sometimes it’s just a matter of waiting for the right time.
:) Melissa
Hi Melissa, what a treat to find you here in the Jungle. I’m glad to hear you’re doing so well.
I do have a story I’ve wanted to write inspired by my family history. Lots of “skeleton-y” stuff back there as you said and I was afraid family members who are still living might recognize themselves. But after reading your post, I think it might be possible. So thank you for the great post.
I still have your critique of that very early manuscript and all of your e-mails. What a brutal learning curve you started me on and I’ve never looked back. Thank you so much.
Enjoy your day in the Jungle and I hope you’ll visit again soon.
Cher :fallleaf:
Hi Cher!
Nice to see you here. And good luck with that story! I’ve found it helps to just remember that while the character isn’t you, the emotions she’s feeling often are exactly what you’re feeling/what you would feel in a similar situation.
:) Melissa
Thanks for the tip, Melissa. I’ll keep that in mind when I begin to write that book.
Take care and be well,
Cher :fourturks:
Happy Thanksgiving! :jive:
Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us.
I write Erotica so my writings are more like a “Wish Book” than a life story
LOL, Pat! It’s funny–I do have one love scene in The Secret of Joy, and it’s the shortest scene in the book. I don’t know what it is about chick lit writers and the lack of actual sex. :)
I haven’t really used my own life as an inspiration because I’ve never written anything. I hope that someday I can write something and use my own life as an inspiration because I think that there is some things I would like to really write about.
milkavainamo@lyseo.edu.ouka.fi
Hi Milka,
Memories provide wonderful inspiration. Good luck if you do choose to pick up that pen one day!
:) Melissa
Your books sound very feel-good, which is definitely what I look for in a read. I write historical, but yes, I’d say especially the secondary characters tend to be blends of some family members or carry on family beliefs.
Congratulations on your latest release. :fallleaf:
Thanks, Gillian! I love historicals. It’s been a while since I’ve read one, and you’ve just inspired me to add a couple to my list on my next bookstore visit.
:) Melissa
Thanks for this wonderful post today. When I write in my journal I think about life, family and how my dad managed to survive aned triumph over illness, adversity and be positive and succeed.
Thank you, Anne. And what a wonderful, triumphant story about your father!
:) Melissa
G’morning, Melissa! I find drawing on memories of events of my life to touch the emotion created by the events is a way to add depth to my characters and writing. While actual events may bear no relation to the events in my book, the ambiance and emotions read more real.
Thanks for visiting the Jungle today and sharing your life with us. I’m off to my RWA chapter meeting and looking forward to refilling my writer’s cup of inspiration!
Thanks, Silver! I know just what you mean. With characters whose backstories and plots are their very own (and not stolen from my life!), I often find myself drawing on emotions that relate to what they’re going through.
:) Melissa
Hi Melissa,
Great blog. Your books sound so interesting to read. I would love to use my life as a story, but, I feel my writing skills are not up to par. I wouldn’t even know where to start. But I hope one day I will.
Congrats on your new release.
Well, Elisa, I must say that your comment was very well written, if that’s any indication of your writing skills, and I’d say it is!
:) Melissa
Thank you. I guess I write how I feel. I should write a story of my life. I have had a lot that has happened in my short 31 years of life. My health has taken a toll, doctor called me yesterday and told me I have a small aneurysm on my brain. She tells me not to worry that i could have had it all my life. How do you not worry about something like that. So now I am not worrying or stressing about it. Just living life to the fullest.
I’m guilty of using my personal life in my stories as well. And I think it’s a great way to work out the issues surrounding us. But sometimes I’m just too close to write about an issue. But isn’t life fodder for more stories? LOL.
Lynn
Lynn, I know exactly what you mean. It took me a long time to decide to write about half-siblings connecting for the first time as adults.
Life is definitely fodder!
:) Melissa
What a touching story, Melissa. I’ll definitely look for your book. If I were going to write, I’d certainly include the raising of my adult Down’s Syndrome daughter, who, in spite of much sadness when she was born, turned into the “light of my life”. (I did love Kathleen Korbel’s similar story entitled A ROSE FOR MAGGIE, which I found very real & true.) If a book feels true, it works for the reader.
Good luck on the release of your book.
Patricia, thank you so much for your comment and sharing the story about your daughter. I read A Rose For Maggie back when it was first published (I used to work for Silhouette and got to read an early copy). Such a beautiful, beautiful book.
:) Melissa
Congrats on your new release! It sounds like it is a wonderful book that will tug at our emotions! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks, Colleen! Sometimes I think I share way tooooo much, but I am a sharer!
:) Melissa
Hi Melissa welcome to the jungle! I must confess I’ve never read any of your books but have just put you onmy list :) I’ a new writter not published (yet) I find myself taking stuff that has happened in my real life taking it and of course changing it to make it into it’s own story. I think most writers use something form their life wether it is a job or career that they know about maybe it is a charcter that they mold off of someone they once knew or know. Maybe even using a name. ok I’m going to go check out your books now. :)
Thanks so much, Michele and good luck with your writing!
:) Melissa
Melissa–I’m a reader, not a writer, so I guess I’m using the lives of others as inspiration! I really enjoyed your column. Your novels sound very interesting. Thanks for visiting with us.
LOL, GSM!
:) Melissa
I’m a reader not a writer. Although I’ve often said my family would make a good story. I enjoyed your interview very much and I look forward to reading your book.
Thanks, Linda! Yup, I definitely think most families would make great stories!
:) Melissa
Would love to win a copy. My computer is down. GRRRR! So using a library computer.
Rose, your comment just reminded me that I need to get myself to the library to return my 5 overdue books–all research related to Italian cooking for next book.
:) Melissa
Welcome Melissa,
You have brought a whole new light to fictional story telling for me. I adore the idea of exploring your inner feeling about what is going on in your life, by writing about it. You are a brave woman to do so. And really when you stop to think about it in a whole, the world could be a better place if more people did the same. Even if the end goal was not to publish.
Your article has made me pause and think about the theme of my work more and what I’m really saying with my writing. Thank you.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING :thankseat:
Have a great weekend and congrats on your new release!!!
~Talina :givethanks:
Hi Talina,
Thank you so much for your kind comments! For me, I know it definitely helps to “write” my feelings about what’s going on in my life, even if it’s completely disguised through a fictional character.
And Happy Thanksgiving to you too!
:) Melissa
:jive: I am a reader not a writer! Athough there are a few things in my families life that would make a good stroy! Your book sounds fabulous and I would really enjoy reading it. :jive:
Thanks, Quilt Lady (love that moniker)! If you do read The Secret of Joy, I hope you like!
:) Melissa
Hi Melissa – welcome to the jungle!!
I too use life experiences as the kernal for my story telling. By the time the story is finished, I don’t think anyone would recognize the story as something from my life, but that’s where it all starts.
I hope you enjoy all the fun and excitement of your new release!!
Hi Alannah (I love your name, by the way),
That’s definitely what I do too–in the end, and all the way through, really–the story belongs to the character. It’s not mine, it’s not autobiographical; just that nugget is inspired by real life events.
And thanks!
:) Melissa
Welcome to the jungle, Melissa! The Secret of Joy sounds so wonderful. Thanks for sharing your story with us. I’m a reader only, but love the idea that writers use a bit of their own life to make a story work.
Thanks so much, Liza. If you do read the novel, I hope you enjoy it!
:) Melissa
Hi, Melissa! Been out all day but I see you’re holding down the fort quite nicely! Thank you!!!!!! Thrilled to have you here! Adn in time for the holiday, my favorite icon: :fourturks:
Carly, thanks so much for inviting me to guest post at the Plotmonkeys! I had a great time and loved sharing stories back and forth. (Note to self: Must get interactive blog with actual real enabled comments.)
:) Melissa
Hi, Melissa! Welcome to the jungle! Sorry it took me so long to get here…I’ve spent all day doing lesson plans…the joy of homeschooling!
I love pulling from my real life for books and can’t remember a book that didn’t have a little something from my life in it, even if there’s no way anyone would know but me. But the things people assume are the real me are usually pretty wrong, LOL! The more I pull, though, the more uncomfortable it is–it’s hard to be a writer and still have some privacy, you know? Yes, you do!
Thanks for the great topic!
Thanks, Julie!
Homeschooling on a Saturday, no less! The learning (and teaching) never ends. :) Now that my son is in first grade, I have a new appreciation for those who homeschool.
I’m going to go check out your latest release. Happy Thanksgiving!
:) Melissa
Hi Melissa–thank you SO MUCH for being here today!!! I really love your books and am super excited that you came to the Jungle.
Thanks, Leslie! Off to check out your website. And Happy Thanksgiving!
:) Melissa
Thank you so much for this fun opportunity to visit with you all, Plotmonkeys! I wish everyone a very happy Thanksgiving!
:) Melissa
Hi Melissa -
I enjoyed your post. Most of my mc’s aren’t too similiar to myself, but I do take nuggets from my life. When I was ten, my family moved from Honolulu to Seoul. I thought my life had ended and withdrew. One of my manuscripts is about a girl whose family makes the same move. Her way of coping is to try to escape on her own and get back to Hawaii.
Jeanne, your story sounds wonderful. I can imagine how difficult such a move must have been for you. My family moved the summer I turned twelve from to a place that was totally different in every way, and I remember feeling very lost in every way (though not a huge move like yours.)
:) Melissa
I really enjoyed your post, Melissa. I hope I’m able to find your book. It sounds like a very good read.
Thanks again, Patsy!
:) Melissa
hey! your books sound interesting and like something i would really enjoy! hopefully i can find them around
thanks!
Thank so much, Christina!
:) Melissa
Hi Melissa!
I think that is a great premise for a story, and all the more so since it connects with your life. I really want to read the book now. Thanks so much for sharing!
The cover is great too, by the way!
Thanks, Zara! If you do read The Secret of Joy, i hope you’ll let me know what you think of it. And thanks about the cover. I love it too. Really captures the spirit of the book.
:) Melissa
The Secret of Joy sounds wonderful. Please enter me in the giveaway. Thank you. Have a great week.
Thanks, Emma!
:) Melissa
I don’t have a story to add, though your post has started a few ideas simmering that I need to keep a watch on!
I do have got a copy of your book ordered from Amazon. Sounds fab and I know I’m going to enjoy it hugely.
Thank you, Mulberry! I’d love to hear what you think of the novel after you’ve read it.
:) Melissa
I have used my own experiences as launching pads for my fiction. My characters and their actions are complete fiction, but my own experiences and reflections on them are what end up on the page in a round about way. So, I’d say, my writing is inspired by my life, but I do have to remind my friends and family that it is all just make-believe. And I agree with you. It’s a great way to work out your feelings, to test theories, to do the things you yourself would never be free to do. It can be very cathartic, and hopefully for the reader as well!
Lucie, it’s definitely been cathartic for me to use my own life as the launching pad. That’s exactly the word.
:) Melissa
Melissa,
When my first novel came out–about a lawyer in L.A. that does a lot of dating–everyone thought it was me because I was a lawyer in L.A. who used to do a lot of dating (I was married by the time the book came out). After I got tired of explaining the difference between “inspired by” and autobiography, and saying things like “just because the book is written in first person, doesn’t mean it’s me,” I gave up. Now I just say, “yes, I’m Julie,” even though I’m not :)
I look forward to reading your new one.
Beth
Hi Beth!
Honestly, I still have not forgotten the adorable opening scene of your book Romantically Challenged. It’s one of my favorites.
The Secret of Joy is my first novel that ISN’T written in first person, and I’ll bet that makes a huge difference with family/friends who won’t think of the main character as me. (Writing in third took some getting used to, I’ll tell ya.)
Thanks so much for visiting here!
:) Melissa
Melissa,
Look out when your little guy finally gets released! If he was like I was he will be hell on wheels! The best of luck to you and your family. You’re a special lady and I believe that God doesn’t give us anymore than he knows we can handle. Take care and God Bless!
Thank you, Lisa!! Very comforting.
:) Melissa
I starred this in Google Reader so I could get back and make a comment — hope it’s not too late. Melissa, your book sounds wonderful. I am a reader, but if I were to write I would draw from my family’s experiences.