WRITE FIRST – EDIT LATER I write from my heart and allow myself to develop my characters, settings and plots freely. If I am thinking of having a book translated into another language, it makes sense to have someone (or several someones) from that country read over it and tell me if I’ve named one of my characters after a hated former dictator, or a word describing a bodily function in their language! LOL Hopefully, they’ll catch any obviously horrible mistakes I’ve inadvertently made.
I don’t, however, worry about having my characters express views they may not share. If I am writing well, readers will engage with the characters and enjoy the story. To Kill a Mockingbird is read by people everywhere – we all recognize a good story.
If you are brave and allow your characters to speak freely – say what they would really say when they don’t think anyone’s listening, you will almost definitely offend someone eventually; but it will be a good story, because it will be real and honest. And that’s what readers want – a good story.
Offensive characters, or ordinary ones struggling to find their way in an imperfect world, are good starting points for Saturday Salon conversations, too. Art, literature, music, and the daily news can all be used to launch deep conversations.
Saturday Salons are dinner/conversation gatherings I created and hosted for many years. They’ve taken on a life of their own now and it always makes me feel happy when I hear of someone hosting one.
A self-admitted book addict, Valerie was the kid with the flashlight under her pillow. A life of travel with exposure to many different cultures led to a pervasive interest in people, with degrees & teaching credentials in Cultural Anthropology & English.