Who or What Inspires You?
Who inspires you to face the blank page? What makes you do it?
Whenever the daily routine of facing the page grinds on me, I park myself at the computer anyway. I let the words stutter and stumble. I trust that the rust and sputter will eventually give way to clarity and flow. I know that the time to do get started is now, because now, I can.
I was always going to write… someday. That someday became today after my husband was diagnosed with, and treated for cancer… twice. In 2005, he had an autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplant with a 50% chance of survival and a 10% chance the treatment alone would kill him. He survived. He smiles. He thrives. And, he inspires.
There is no someday. There is only today. And today, I am gifted with health, time, and opportunity. Today, I write, because today I can.
Who or what inspires you?
Reality inspires me. Real life. Real people. Real heroes. They’re far more compelling than fictional ones. Although I write fiction, I create fictional characters to provide a perspective to historical events. I have them interact with historical personalities to see what they can learn, what insights they can glean. I use the recorded words (written and spoken) and actions of the historical personalities to the greatest degree possible in my dialog. My fictional characters merely allow the reader to interlope and have a sense of context to interpret those words and actions.
I am thrilled that you, a writer of historical fiction, responded to my post. My WIP is historical fiction, inspired by the heroism of the residents of the Burin and Avalon Peninsulas of Newfoundland in the early 20th century. Like you, I am highlighting real time and real events…as experienced by fictional characters.
Thanks for taking the time to comment. Will definitely check out your books!
All the best,
Annie