THE TRUTH ABOUT STORY

Some of the best stories come from real life because they are dense and compelling. That's why readers often favor memoir, as well as, fiction that allows them to identify with the protagonist or point of view (POV) narrator.

When I lived in Arctic Iñupiat villages without any plumbing or roads or modern conveniences like television, computer, or the Internet.  I acquired a lot of first hand rugged experiences and survival skills that I included in my books I AM THE ICE WORM, DOG WOMAN, ALONE IN THE ICE WORLD, and FINDING JADE MOUNTAIN.

Fishing commercially for salmon along the California coast aboard a 55' sailing schooner taught me other life lessons I included to BELLY UP. My sailboat Bobolink became the sailboat in the story and my experiences with sharks, whales, freighters and trying to catch fish in terrible weather gave me the nuts and bolts I needed to give the story verisimilitude.

I taught eighth grade on a USMC base and former students who have read WARRIOR'S DAUGHTER say it's like "reliving eighth grade all over again."

Both KNUCKLE DOWN and LOOKING OUT FOR LINDY are based on the Los Angeles homefront during World War II and the sinking of my dad's liberty ship SS Peter Silvester by a German submarine in the Indian Ocean.

SS Peter Silveste

A FEW SCREWS LOOSE has truths about friendship and mental illness. And my current work-in-progress CHANGED IN THE NIGHT (working title) deals with psychological issues connected with loss within a context of sci-fi/fantasy.

The most important element of story is truth, and truth comes from reaching into those deep and sometimes brutal feelings. Readers tune in to that truth at a level they might not understand. All they know is they've been there and done that and can relate to the story's narrator.

As writers, we need to excavate human emotions even if it hurts to face our own guilt, fears, and hopes. We need to somehow get those feelings onto the page for the reader no matter what genre we are working in.

How do we get story? The hard way; we dig up a rough draft like clay and slap it down on paper. Then we mold that sloppy mess and shape it and tweak it and revise it a hundred times. We put our heart and soul into it so there are universal truths based on who we are, what we know, experiences we've had, and life lessons we've learned.

Readers read books to discover how to lead their own lives.

Where do stories come from? The truth is they come from ourselves; therefore, we must dig deep.