Finding out someone who I respected immensely, and who made me nervous with their sheer presence, got a copy of King of Spades. *cue mass panic.
I’ve always had my “art” or something I created on show in the public eye and free to draw different kinds of attention (or even none.) When I thought about releasing KOS (years ago) it was goblin-type mirth imagining my circle reading my book/s. I was hoping they would like the stories and maybe get some kind of excitement, understand the genuine love and concern I have for the characters and situations in the books…then…
What would they really think? Would they suppose I secretly wanted to disembowel someone (*spoiler*) like that scene in KOS? Was I writing about some sexy AF assassin boy because I wanted to be with someone exactly like him? WILL MY DAD READ A SEXY TIME CHAPTER and think it is a memoir?!
O GAWD.
…Calm down, mate.
Those thoughts are for overthinking amateurs, right? Tut tut. 😛
I’m sure a lot of authors would tell me (and you) to get over it, f*ck what people think. Now that I’m older, I don’t I think about that being a possibility so much but I did have a little spike of “OMG” when I was told this person was reading KOS, so I thought I’d write about that feeling.
I remember what it was like to be worried someone might think differently about me because of the genre I was currently writing. Recent stories in the media (celebrities receiving death threats because the character they play does something wrong in their show) don’t fill me with confidence. Are we really unable to differentiate fiction from reality?
No, Agent Starr isn’t my imaginary boyfriend (let’s be clear though, if he somehow turned up in real life and wanted to Netflix and chill, I would -not- decline.) He is just a very special character. It doesn’t hurt that some people find him attractive and get a kick out of the sexual tension with the main character either. Even I find that part interesting.
Any sexy time that happens is part of story time. I’m not an Erotica writer, this is not a romance series and everything that happens is to further a plot and not for the opportunity to provide gratuitous imaginary titties for all. If you want that – the erotica genre is freakn on fire 🔥right now, particularly in eBook format. You’ll find something!
And disembowling? Oh. THAT.
Look, I was under the impression we all wanted to disembowel someone…right?…Right? 😜
So…do we write from experience, desire, opinion, bias? Maybe some people do, but for me, not usually purposefully. Inspiration comes from everywhere when you’re a Creative.
I have written some dialogue in a forthcoming novel that stems from a phrase someone said to me nearly twelve years ago (for eg.) Some character names are variations of assholes I’ve met in real life so that I can have an inside joke with myself when I kill them off (I’m lame like that) and some topics are icebergs I have had experience in or researched in depth just to write two lines that ring true.
Do you know what it feels like to be shot? kissed? Told “it’s over?” Of course you can use it…experience is valuable, but if you aren’t writing a non-fiction recount of your personal life, you should probably keep it short/not make it excessively personal/leave it unembellished, or save it.
I use my life experience sometimes but I don’t shape the story around it or strive to have an incident happen in the story just so I can write about my personal view (memoirs are for that imo.) If something ends up happening in the story and I can use my personal experience to describe (what it’s like to be shot with a high-velocity projectile, or fire a gun etc) then I will describe my experience woven with others I have researched too.
With regards to what I haven’t experienced personally, I will bust my ass making damn sure I get someone’s/some people’s true experience to draw from then allow a speck of “creative licence” Why? Because fiction, that’s why.
For example; I have spoken with veterans who were active duty and saw combat. Some that I heard from said they would love to relive the frightening challenges they faced, and then there were some who suffered aftermath in the way of life-long physical injuries and/or battles with mental health and who can tell me it’s different for them. I probably won’t always get it right or suitable for every person because I am writing about a fictional syndicate but I try and have some real elements.
The specific things in KOS I did base on my life …*drumroll
🤐 I intentionally made the main characters (Cleo and Agent Starr) the heights they are because I know what it feels like to throw a kick from this stature so it made fight scenes etc easier to write. I know what it’s like to stand (and do more) with a man who is 6ft2. So it was really more a of a logistic thing. But Cleo is not some projection of mem despite the dark hair and the suffer-no-fools attitude. As I have told a few people, I saw her has a Mila Kunis type. Sort of. You know, before she got Kutchered.
I also mostly gave her the slinky Bridle costume thing (in KOS) because I wanted to draw her in kickass comic styles and thought it would look good.
TLDR?
*Write what you know, but don’t use it as a way to write a memoir if that’s not your book’s intention.
*Research what you don’t know. Be fair, be real, be respectful. I know it makes me feel good when someone living a similar life to the ones I write about tells me they identified with a character.
*Feel free to add some “creative licence” because why not, it’s fiction. Just don’t be a dick.
*If you would pick this book up and read it, then write it.
*Most people don’t read too much into it (pun, sorta!) and just appreciate the story. So write on and don’t worry too much if your friends think you secretly want to be a serial killer. Maybe they’ll be nicer to you.