It's All About Relationships

Relationships are a major theme in my writing. Each of my books focuses on how relationships are integral to the making of a good, or possibly bad, human … or possibly non-human. Quirks, uniqueness, or oddities are what I love to focus on. Those weird, non-nuclear familial concoctions inspire me in real life, so that’s what I write. In the end, isn’t it relationships that so many of us seek when we open a book? New friends and family sprawled vulnerably in ink across the page? 

Yes, plot is important. Heaven forbid we stray too far from the ever-present chokehold of the mountain graphic organizer, neatly placing the exposition at the foothills that lead toward the treeline ridge of rising action, which brings us seamlessly up to the climax (or high point if you’re in my 8th-grade classroom), then cascades beautifully downward into the falling action, only to nestle sweetly in a pool of resolution. (Oh my. Was that all just one sentence?) 

We pick our way through the bramble of grammar and syntax, trimming and pruning a neat little path up and down the mountain. But if I’m being honest, and I am always honest, I want to feel something. I want to struggle but trust the author. I want to fight my way through words and paragraphs and chapters with my emotions, relating somehow to at least one character in a way that feels real and a little raw, perhaps. 

I want to see the characters in such a clear light that, if I met them on the street or in a coffee shop, I would recognize them and feel confident to carry on a meaningful conversation with them. Maybe even share a deep, dark secret or dream. I want to know them. And for me, the only way to try to make that happen on my pages is to foster a relationship between each character and their potential readers.

This is a difficult task for me. It takes me time, so so so much thought, and more empathy than I ever believed I was capable of. But, as I have said before, I can do hard things. I might not be able to pump out two or three books a year, but at least I will know with each new story I offer up to the scrutinous eye of readers out there, that I did my best to find them new friends, heroes, families, and maybe even a villain or two.