Tara’s Comments (group member since Jan 06, 2010)

Tara’s comments from the Second Wind Publishing group.

My character comes from a recent story collection I published, Where the Dog Star Never Glows. I decided to respond to this thread because she brings up many different emotions in my readers. Her name is Bridgitte, and she lives in some vague small urban town in the Northeast. While walking down the road one hot day, she encounters and then seduces a telephone repairman. The final scene is her writing her name in the dirt where they lay. She is trying to establish her importance.

Why I bring this up is because it's been interesting to hear the various reactions. Women tend to either relate to the story and love it, or have a very negative opinion and are disturbed by it. Men, on the other hand, all seem to like and relate to the push and pull need of both characters--woman wanting one thing, man wanting another. Can the man provide what the woman wants beyond sex?

My intention was to try to find some reasons and empathy for why a young girl might be promiscuous (this story was based on a distant relative in the early part of the last century). It's meant to shock a bit, disturb, and then hopefully enlighten a bit.

Bridgitte could very well quote that line herself, Never overlook the importance of being important.

Great question! I look forward to other responses.

Tara

At every reading I've done this year, someone asks me about my writing schedule. I don't have one. Impossible, my life isn't structured that way. And even if it was, I would not want to regulate it so much. I like writing when I'm inspired.

This is a really interesting conversation. As a writer who finds it very easy to write short short fiction, and is struggling with completing a novel, I decided that writing shorter chapters would help me finish. I also know that many publishers are encouraging shorter chaps, because of shorter attention spans. I like Sheila's comment, however, about chapters coming to a real end. I'll keep that in mind . . . Thanks, Norm, for starting this topic.

Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn was the first book to truly inspire me. My fourth-grade teacher used to read a section every day. I loved gathering around and hearing the latest adventure the characters were on, and hearing the lovely, simple language. I think that's the first time I noticed poetry in prose.