This time of year seems fitting to share the Story Behind the Story of My Own…
I wrote My Own because readers of My Dear One weren’t ready to let go of Dianna and Jake; they wanted more of the couple’s love story. But how does an author continue a love story when the HEA occurred – allegedly – in book one? Well…
I opted to explore one of my worst nightmares: How would my husband and I – and our family – cope if one of our four children went missing? It wasn’t hard for me to imagine the terror, and the grief, the anger and rage, the friction as family members sought to support and blame each other, and themselves. What was harder to predict was the direction the story would go (I’m a Panster, not a Plotter) and the journey writing it would take me on…
My Own evolved into something more than a missing child story; it grew into a story of faith, hope, and personal accountability; of how, sometimes, we must revisit our past, and heal old wounds if we want a chance of moving forward with grace into our future. How life, and our plans for it are never guaranteed, and how the people we thought we could trust often fail us because, like us, they’re human, and fallible. How sometimes the only person we can trust is ourself; and how the only opinion that matters is the one in our heart. And how, at the of the day, sometimes the only answer for another’s failure, or for ours, is forgiveness.
We’re all human. We’re all fallible. We’re all also capable of impressive feats of courage, acts of kindness, heart-breaking sacrifice, intelligent intuition, and heart-healing faith, and forgiveness.
Love is never easy. Marriage less, so. And family is always complicated. Add in the devastating physical and emotional toll of war… Writing My Own was as much a personal journey for me as it is a journey of the heart for Dianna, Jake, and those they love, and those who love them.
Stay safe, stay well my friends, and when you can, practice forgiveness, for yourself if for no one else.
Deborah
One of the secrets to a long and fruitful life is to forgive everybody everything every night before you go to bed. ~Anon