Ask the Author: Ella Burakowski
Answered Questions (12)
Ella Burakowski
The child was gone as if he vanished off the face of the earth. There was no death certificate, no body, only a sheet of paper revealing his body was transferred to the funeral home.
Ella Burakowski
What happened to baby Louis in the Horonia Residential Hospital for the mentally challenged
Ella Burakowski
Will Traynor the wheelchair-bound quadriplegic and Louisa Clark his hired caregiver in the book Me Before You by Jojo Moyes. Polar opposites, these two start from an adversarial place and develop a rare relationship. Each one ends up giving the other exactly what they need. It's a deeply emotional journey into an unusual relationship that tests moral and ethical values.
Ella Burakowski
Thank you Pica, I have written to your email address.
Ella Burakowski
Arthur, I did a ton of research. I spoke to historians, my sister went back to the barn with my uncle David, who is the only survivor alive today from my family. I listened to hours and hours of tapes, interviews and watch and read everything I could get my hands on. I wrote to the International Tracing Service to get information from them as well.
Writing Hidden Gold as narrative non-fiction I also had to verify all the historical facts with my uncles account and make sure it all matched. I had to research the era, the customs, climate, religions at the time, etc. I had to make sure every detail was authenticated and accurate, while at the same time creating an intriguing and a complelling read.
Writing Hidden Gold as narrative non-fiction I also had to verify all the historical facts with my uncles account and make sure it all matched. I had to research the era, the customs, climate, religions at the time, etc. I had to make sure every detail was authenticated and accurate, while at the same time creating an intriguing and a complelling read.
Ella Burakowski
I'm not sure who the "she" is that you are referring to Debra. Hidden Gold is the story of my mother's family who were hidden in a tiny secret enclosure under a hayloft for over 2 years. She was never in a camp, other than a displaced persons camp after the war. She met my father, who survived forced labour camps and Dachau, in Foehrenwald DP camp in Germany.
Ella Burakowski
That's an excellent question Nicholas. It is more important than ever to record the stories of survivors. It won't be long now before the eye witnesses will all be gone. We will only have their recorded memories to keep the truth about this horrific period alive. We have an important job to do, on their behalf. We will become their representatives when they are no longer here to speak for themselves.
Ella Burakowski
Hidden Gold is a combination of both. It's called narrative non-fiction. All the events and facts are true, however, the emotion, scene settings, touch, feel, smell are all fiction. Together they make a compelling read. Truman Capote wrote in this genre when he did In Cold Blood. It makes for a compelling read, rather than a history lesson.
Ella Burakowski
When I was 14, my mother died in front of me of a massive heart attack. When she died, she took with her every story, every experience of how she survived the Holocaust. She took with her the reason she used to scream in the night, the reason I was different than the other kids. There was so much I didn’t know.
It wasn’t until I became an adult that I was interested in the story of how she survived, but it was too late to hear it from her. My Uncle David Gold, my mother’s brother, is still alive today at the age of 85. I felt compelled to write my family’s story while he was still able to describe the events my family endured during one of the most horrific periods in human history.
Writing Hidden Gold has allowed me to reconnect with my mother and walk in her footsteps through the darkest time in her life.
It wasn’t until I became an adult that I was interested in the story of how she survived, but it was too late to hear it from her. My Uncle David Gold, my mother’s brother, is still alive today at the age of 85. I felt compelled to write my family’s story while he was still able to describe the events my family endured during one of the most horrific periods in human history.
Writing Hidden Gold has allowed me to reconnect with my mother and walk in her footsteps through the darkest time in her life.
Ella Burakowski
Follow your heart. You'll get better as you go along. Remember one thing when you write...show don't tell. Make your reader feel the characters fear, love, hatred, disgust. Don't just tell your reader, put your reader's emotion in the place of your character's, so they can identify.
Ella Burakowski
As a 2nd-generation survivor, I am all too aware that I am a unique link to the past and the future. Very soon there will be no one left to directly tell these harrowing stories of survival of the Holocaust. By writing Hidden Gold, I am passing on this remarkable story, in the hope of teaching and influencing for the better, the next generations.
Ella Burakowski
If I've been writing a lot, I give myself a break - a short break. No more than a few days before I force myself to sit down and write. It may not be perfect, and it may not be something I will use in my book, but I force myself to write to break through the block.
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