The Writing Process

It was never my intention to write a book. The book just grew organically from my memory and from my desire to move forward with some peace and understanding after my father died. I did not have a full sense of what the story was- I only knew that I had a story and it deserved to be told, especially in light of the evidence that was perking up concerning CTE.  So, everyday I would sit with my ipad and wait for the writing to come. At first it was all simply disjointed vignettes. As those vignettes mounted, I began to see a structure and the arch of the story became clear. My first pass at a “book” was really a narrative mostly focused on me and my experiences. Thanks to feedback from various readers, I quickly figured out that my story was not the story I wanted to tell- instead, I wanted to focus on my parents and their story. Once I had that figured out, the organization really began to take shape. But, that was not enough for a book. I had to create authentic dialogue, tension between characters, and include revelations about myself and my relationships with my parents for the book to have purpose and real content. That refinement process took over a year of work and would have been impossible without an editor and coach. The King of Halloween and Miss Firecracker Queen is the result of these efforts.