A Writing Holiday

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

I think I’ve earned myself a well deserved break from writing - if only for a day or two.  There are a couple of stories that have been niggling at me, but I had not taken the time to write them down.  My writing network had a competition that closes today and I thought I’d use the opportunity to get these characters out of my head and on my hard drive.

The writing went smoothly for the romance novel, but the other story took some time to wrap my head around. Five years ago, a group of men robbed three women, abducted and raped them. Then they shot them and threw them in a sewage pit. One of the women lived to tell the tale. The others didn’t make it.  The men were held, tried, and convicted.
 
Many times since the story broke, I’ve thought about what those women must have gone though and also about the fact that they have loved ones who never got the chance to say goodbye. The two women who died have never been found.  I imagine that the one who lived must have seen some dark days since that horrible experience.

I hope that if and when I finish this project, I’ll handle it with sensitivity and respect. I will, of course, put my own interpretation on what happened and spin my plot in such a way that it isn’t a replica of their experience.

I have so much respect for the woman who survived that ordeal.  Not only did she escape, but was strong enough to testify against the men who treated her like less than a human being.  Wherever she is, I hope she knows what a powerful message she has sent by being such a woman of character.

2 comments:

  1. Oh Joy, I really hope you can write the story. It needs to be told. I'm like that with the project I'm currently working on. It's based on true-life experiences of women who have been living with husbands or boyfriends that rape them on a daily bases. (Marital rape.) It's a story that has been going through my mind for so long but I know it need to be told. I hope we can do our projects justice.

    CD

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  2. Boy, do I know what you mean. This is one of those things you hear about and it just stays with you.

    I'm sure you'll write a good story. The editing is what will make the difference between good and great. Your heart is in it, so you'll do it justice. Here's to success!

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