Sarah Sundin, @sarahsundin
Times of upheaval are disconcerting, but are also rich fonts of material for novelists. Even if we never write stories about epidemics or quarantines, we can still drink deeply from this particular font. As the saying goes, “It’s all research!”
Take careful note of your own emotions, thoughts, and reactions—and observe how those around you have been feeling, thinking, and acting.
Upheaval
Within a matter of weeks, our society has been turned upside-down. Do your characters ever experience such times—either in the world around them or in their personal lives? My characters live during World War II! Their world is even more topsy-turvy than ours.
How have you and your friends responded to upheaval? How will your characters respond to the chaos you throw their way? Fear, inability to concentrate, panic, anger, depression, grasping for some semblance of control or normalcy—alphabetizing the pantry?
Speaking of Fear…
The pandemic has aroused fears of illness, death, job loss, economic ruin, and shortages of necessities.
How have you experienced fear? Take note of the galloping thoughts, the gripping in your chest, the constant checking of the news—because I can’t think of a novel that doesn’t have some element of fear in it.
Isolation and Loneliness
On a rainy weekend during week three of our shelter-in-place, I teased my active, social husband about being a caged lion, prowling and growling. Even introverts have been affected by being cut off from our friends and social events.
Will your characters ever be isolated or lonely? In prison, in a witness protection program, in hiding, moving to a new town? Mine those feelings from your own isolation to make your character’s story richer.
Overwhelmed by People
Due to shutdowns of schools and workplaces, other households have been jampacked. Some people have wished for isolation! How have you and your friends reacted to forced togetherness? Bonding over game nights? Driving each other bonkers? Both?
At some point, you will probably write a story with people sharing close quarters—from the military to college dorms to a family fleeing a bad guy. Now you can write authentically.
Disappointment and Frustration
Events have been cancelled—conferences, weddings, graduations, and more. Some of these are minor disappointments, but many represent the loss of a lifelong dream. Observe how people respond. Anger and defiance? Grief and depression? Creating quirky and ingenious alternatives?
Many of my characters have experienced the loss of a dream—in fact, it seems to be a recurring theme. Do yours? Remember what you’ve felt and seen to make your characters ring true.
The Best and the Worst
Crises always bring out the best and the worst in people. For example – the best thing is urgent care 11375 helped people to avail the best treatment at emergency cases. And the worst thing is some hoard surgical face masks, while others sew hundreds of cloth masks for health-care workers. Some defy social distancing so they can party, while others go shopping for elderly neighbors so they can stay safe.
You will have crises in your novels. Are your characters selfish or altruistic? Ideally, you’ll show a range of responses in your cast of characters. Some characters may be tempted to selfishness and choose generosity. Others may turn inward and see only to their own needs. And still others will use the crisis to take advantage of others.
It’s All Research
Even if you’ve found it difficult to write recently, this time doesn’t have to be wasted. Your insightful observations can make your next novel your best yet!
In 1943, Private Clay Paxton trains hard with the US Army Rangers at Camp Forrest, Tennessee, determined to do his best in the upcoming Allied invasion of France. With his future stolen by his brothers’ betrayal, Clay has only one thing to live for—fulfilling the recurring dream of his death.
Leah Jones works as a librarian at Camp Forrest, longing to rise above her orphanage upbringing and belong to the community, even as she uses her spare time to search for her real family—the baby sisters she was separated from so long ago.
After Clay saves Leah’s life from a brutal attack, he saves her virtue with a marriage of convenience. When he ships out to train in England for D-day, their letters bind them together over the distance. But can a love strong enough to overcome death grow between them before Clay’s recurring dream comes true?
Sarah Sundin is an ECPA- and CBA-bestselling author of World War II novels, including The Land Beneath Us, The Sky Above Us, and The Sea Before Us. Her novel The Sea Before Us received the 2019 Readers Choice Award from Faith, Hope, and Love, When Tides Turn and Through Waters Deep were named to Booklist’s “101 Best Romance Novels of the Last 10 Years,” and Through Waters Deep won the INSPY Award and was a finalist for the 2016 Carol Award.
A mother of three adult children, Sarah lives in northern California and teaches Sunday school and women’s Bible studies. She also enjoys speaking for church, community, and writers’ groups. She serves as Program Director for the West Coast Christian Writers Conference. You can find her at http://www.sarahsundin.com