Write What You Know by Rita Karnopp. Some of the best advice I’ve ever received in my writing career is
to ‘write what you know.’ Writers can’t
help but draw from their own life’s experiences when developing stories. This enriches and deepens the believability
of our characters.
A writer improves with
each book, and so does their ability to reach deeper inside themselves to pull
out those personal life experiences through the actions of their characters. By
allowing our characters to experience our very own emotional roller-coasters or
hurtful experiences … we bring our reader in … and they will sense the honesty and
vulnerability of your characters.
It was through writing
that I realized I was drawn to the Native American’s way of life and
traditions. I’ve always felt the
eighteen hundreds through the Native American’s point of view. In sharing that epiphany with my sister, she
revealed, “That’s because our great grandmother was Chippewa Cree from
Wisconsin.” Say what?
I had no idea … and so
developed my love for writing the Native inspired story; whether 1800s or
2020. Because I live in Montana … I
turned my attention to the Blackfeet; the most feared Indian nation on the
Northern Plains in the nineteenth century.
Through extensive
research I found I could draw on those life experiences of true Native people
who participated in the changes that ripped their lives and culture apart … and
their struggles to survive.
I believe writers
should ‘write what you know’. But, it’s equally important to ‘write who you
know.’ Every character you create should have a reason for existing … and a
reason they are who they’ve become.
History gives us an
opportunity to create believable characters. I found a sketch showing Territorial Governor Isaac Stevens and James Doty,
Secretary to Stevens, and Little Dog, who served as an interpreter, plus various Blackfoot tribes (Piegan and Blood), the Flathead, Nez
Perce, Gros Ventre, Kootenai, Pend d’Oreille, Cree, and Shoshone at the Judith
River, for the signing of the Blackfeet’s first treaty with the United States. This
was the inspiration I needed to write Leota, Dream Woman, who believed it was
her mission to stop Chief Lame Bull from signing the Treaty of 1855. The white berry from the red willow was
bitter and even though it was used as a kind of enriched vitamin for the
Native, the white man found it bitter and undesirable.”
That grabbed me … the
‘white berry’ could be my white woman and the ‘red willow’ could represent the
Indian Nation … and so my book White Berry on the Red Willow developed. History is a world of captivating stories of ‘what
ifs’, and by writing them we bring characters to life. We give them air between the pages of an exciting
life’s journey.
Check out my latest novel, OFF THE GRID, a YA that is for
readers thirteen to ninety-three.
Living in the woods, surrounded by nature, is a
fantasy of those living within the unethical confines of society. But when
you’re seventeen, even thinking about walking through the woods conjures up
ghastly visions.
Taylar must forgive her father’s intentional betrayal of bringing her family to live in the remote Bob Marshall Wilderness in Montana. Hundreds of miles from civilization, she must put aside her fears and do her part to help her family survive the challenges of dense wilderness, mountain lions, bear, rattlesnakes, and the worst animal of all – man.
Will their father realize that their neighbors
aren’t what they appear to be . . . before it’s too late? Will her almost
sixteen-year-old sister, Brook, who loves hunting and nature, have what it
takes to guide them out of the untamed wilderness and back to civilization?
Rita Karnopp is a
fun-loving, imaginative, creator of stories that take you away . . . until you
close the book. Versatile, she writes Indian historicals, suspense, thrillers,
futuristic, YAs and a trilogy about the Gypsies during the Holocaust.
When
not writing, Rita enjoys the Montana outdoors with her husband, Dennis, her
Cockapoo, Gema, children & grandchildren, RVing with new camper, crystal
digging and gold panning.
Please
visit Rita at Amazon page:
Email
Rita at: ritakarnopp@bresnan.net
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