Why I #AmWriting About PTSD

[image error]I was recently chatting online with some people about my work in progress, The Soldier’s Wife. I was telling them about my plans for the characters, and we started talking about my plans for Uriah. In the Bible, Uriah is a soldier. In my novel, he becomes Ryan, a special forces member who has come back from a recent deployment not quite himself. He’s struggling with PTSD, which is one of the contributing factors to the breakdown of his marriage to Barbara (Bathsheba).

One of the people raised this question: why give Ryan PTSD? It’s a good question. Here’s why.

PTSD, or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, is becoming very prevalent in our society. Here are some statistics, courtesy PTSD United:

8% of Americans have PTSD at any given time. That’s over 24 million people.
The Veterans’ Administration (VA) estimates that up to 20% of Operation Enduring Freedom veterans suffer from PTSD. That’s 400,000 soldiers.
In the past year, the number of diagnosed cases in the military jumped fifty percent–and that’s just the diagnosed cases.

If those statistics aren’t sobering enough, here are a few others from the VA:

In 2014, 18% of all adult suicides in the United States were military veterans.
That is an increase of 32% since 2001.
The increase of female veteran suicide rates is an even more alarming 85.2%.

Unfortunately, our society doesn’t like to talk about the “ugly” side of war. It’s only been in the recent past that we have begun to truly discuss and learn about the atrocities of the Vietnam War (and if you don’t know much about the war, I highly recommend Ken Burns’ documentary).

It’s not a disservice to Uriah to give his modern counterpart PTSD. PTSD is a very real struggle that many of our military (and, let’s face it, non-military) families face every day. Simply “not talking about it” won’t make it go away.

Aside from calling attention to the issue, I think including it also gives more potential depth to the characters. We really must think about the motives that everyone has for their behavior (from David to Uriah to Bathsheba), and how each bear their own responsibility for everything that is to come.

There’s no doubt Uriah was a good soldier. He wanted to stay with his men. But what kind of husband does that make him? Well, that’s one of the things that I explore in The Soldier’s Wife.

What are your thoughts? I’d love to hear them!

Latest NewsWhy I #AmWriting About PTSDJanuary 3, 2018The Soldier's Wife / WritingI was recently chatting online with some people about my work in progress, The Soldier’s Wife. I was telling them about my plans for the characters, and we started talking about my plans for Uriah. In the Bible, Uriah is a soldier. In my novel, he becomes Ryan, a special forces member who has come back from a recent deployment not quite himself. He’s struggling with PTSD, which is one of the contributing factors to the breakdown of his marriage to Barbara (Bathsheba).
One of the people raised this question: why give Ryan PTSD? It’s a good question. Here’s why.
PTSD, or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, is becoming very prevalent in our society. Here are some statistics, courtesy PTSD United:

8% of Americans have PTSD at any given time. That’s over 24 million people.
The Veterans’ Administration (VA) estimates that up to 20% of Operation Enduring Freedom veterans suffer from PTSD. That’s 400,000 soldiers.
In the past year, the number of diagnosed cases in the military jumped fifty percent–and that’s just the diagnosed cases.

If those statistics aren’t sobering enough, here are a few others from the VA:

In 2014, 18% of all adult suicides in the United States were military veterans.
That is an increase of 32% since 2001.
The increase of female veteran suicide rates is an even more alarming 85.2%.

Unfortunately, our society doesn’t like to talk about the “ugly” side of war. It’s only been in the recent past that we have begun to truly discuss and learn about the atrocities of the Vietnam War (and if you don’t know much about the war, I highly recommend Ken Burns’ documentary).
It’s not a disservice to Uriah to give his modern counterpart PTSD. PTSD is a very real struggle that many of our military (and, let’s face it, non-military) families face every day. Simply “not talking about it” won’t make it go away.
Aside from calling attention to the issue, I think including it also gives more potential depth to the characters. We really must think about the motives that everyone has for their behavior (from David to Uriah to Bathsheba), and how each bear their own responsibility for everything that is to come.
There’s no doubt Uriah was a good soldier. He wanted to stay with his men. But what kind of husband does that make him? Well, that’s one of the things that I explore in The Soldier’s Wife.
What are your thoughts? I’d love to hear them!...

I am (Not) ResolvedJanuary 1, 2018WritingCall me a rebel, but I don’t do resolutions. I know today’s The Day, and everyone’s been happily posting theirs online all morning, but I just can’t.
For me, it never made sense to wait until a certain day to start something. Going to start a diet? Start it. Don’t cheat for two weeks and wait to start on the first Monday of a new month.
So, here are the things I am (not) resolved to do this year (because I already started them):

Exercise more – About a month ago, I started a new fitness program someone recommended to me. I have had five abdominal surgeries, and my stomach’s a wreck. This program is meant for postnatal moms, and while it’s been a year or eight since I last gave birth, I thought it would be perfect for me in my post-c-section-post-appendectomy-post-gallbladder state. I really enjoy it, and so far I have been working out four times a week with this program.
Eat right – last year, I started the Trim Healthy Mama plan (any other THMs in the house)? Anyway, we’ve been eating this way for months now, and while I don’t plan on doing much differently, I am continually growing in my understanding of the concepts and branching out to try new recipes and ingredients. Newsflash: there are zucchini in my fridge that I bought because I like them. I’m not sure what to do with that.
Write more – I am so bad about putting everybody else first. I’ve wiped a lot of things off my plate, so I won’t feel as guilty about spending more time at the computer. I’m finished with National Board Certification (woo hoo!), and I recently sent in my application to be a Google Trainer after finishing my Level 2 certification. There’s not really much standing in my way except, you know, me. So there’s that.
Participate more in the writing community – Ya’ll, I’m bad about reviewing other people’s novels. Which is terrible, since I wish more people would review mine, but that’s neither here nor there. Last month, I’ve started writing a review every time I finish a book unless the author is long since deceased (and considering that I teach literature, that’s a fair concession, I think. Otherwise Shakespeare would be getting all sorts of favorable reviews from some chick in Kentucky).

So what about you? Do you “do” resolutions? If so, what are they?...

#BookReview: A Light in Bailey’s HarborJanuary 1, 2018Monthly Book Review / WritingRecently, I had the pleasure to spend an afternoon reading A Light in Bailey’s Harbor, by Bethany Baker (Follow her on Facebook here).
As the listing on Amazon reads, “Katy Kippling has an abundance of personality, or so she was told by a recent male acquaintance. Trying to conform to the etiquette of an 1880’s lady is difficult enough, without adding the challenges of having an abundance of personality.
Katy loves the Cana Island Lighthouse, serving her small lakeside town in Bailey’s Harbor, Wisconsin. In the summer of 1880, the new lighthouse keeper arrives. While Katy imagines his stately captain’s beard and noble brow, Blake Strawberry, the new keeper, is quite the opposite.
Blake is a young man searching for something to heal the pain and heartaches of his past. By moving west and accepting this new position, he plans to forget all of his painful memories and disappointments. What he hasn’t counted on is that the Lord’s voice can be heard just as clearly in Wisconsin as in Massachusetts.”
A Light in Bailey’s Harbor was a pleasant afternoon read. I enjoyed the very interesting potential origin story of the hymn “It Is Well With My Soul”. While Katy Kippling is the main character, my personal favorite was her friend, a non-native English speaker who frequently spouted malapropisms in her endearing accent.
I wasn’t ready for A Light in Bailey’s Harbor to end; in fact, I double-checked my Kindle to be sure I hadn’t accidentally skipped more chapters. Alas, it was over, and so was my stay at the Wisconsin lighthouse. Why don’t you pick up a copy of the novel and go for a visit yourself?...

Five Things I Learned About Being A “Real” AuthorDecember 31, 2017WritingWe’re wrapping up 2017. It’s been a big year for me, personally and professionally. Publishing my first novel has taught me a lot that I never knew about literature–and that’s saying something, considering that I am a teacher of literature! Here are five things that I learned this year:





Reviews Are Important – I never really thought about reviewing novels before. I honestly never gave it a second thought; especially the novels by best-selling authors. But once I became an author, I realized how important reviews are. Aside from the fact that reviews help put your novel out there for other people, reviews teach you important things about your own writing. A lot of my friends have read my book, but I don’t know anything about what they thought. I don’t know which characters they loved or hated, which parts they wished had been longer, and which jokes they thought were annoying. A good, honest review is very valuable to an author and really helps them hone their craft.





2. Writing is a LOT of work – Boy, is it a lot of work. It takes hours to write a draft of a chapter. Then it takes more hours to revise that chapter. Your average novel is 25 – 30 chapters long. That can be 180 hours just to write your first draft. If you were working a regular 40-hour workweek, that’s almost a month. And that’s just the first draft. That doesn’t count your own revisions before you send it off to an acquisitions editor, who may or may not request additional revisions before offering a contract. Then, there are additional revisions to be made. When you and your publisher finally agree on all the revisions, then there’s another final proofreading read-through. It takes forever. I signed my contract for Don’t Ask Me to Leave in July. It wasn’t published until March of the following year, and somebody was working on something pretty much up until that date.
3. You Can’t Do It Alone – It’s funny. Writing is one of the most social anti-social professions I’ve ever seen. You have to write the manuscript yourself, sure. But from there, you can’t do it alone. You rely on so many others along the way. You rely on the help of your editor, your publisher, your cover art designer, and countless other people to get the book on the shelves (or to digital readers), but it doesn’t stop there. Once the book is published, you need the help of others to help get the word out about your book. Again, I feel guilty about this one. I so rarely shared good books I read with other people (and in a way, it’s kind of my job). In 2018, I’m making a much bigger effort to share with others.
4. Where You Sell Matters – Again, I hadn’t really thought about this one. I figured it all worked pretty much the same way. I also didn’t think much about print versus eBooks. A book was a book, or so I thought. But as it turns out, some companies are a lot more friendly to authors (like Amazon). And it also matters how you sell. For example, if someone gets the book on Kindle and only reads 1/3 of it, you don’t make as much money than if they read the whole book (which means it’s definitely worth your while to work hard on making the book engaging!)
5. You Have To Keep an Open Mind – If you had told me three years ago that I would write and publish a contemporary romance novel, I’d have laughed in your face. I don’t read romance novels, as a rule. I don’t even watch “chick flick” movies. I always figured I’d write YA fantasy . . . but here I am. I’ve learned that you have to keep an open mind, no matter what. For example, I see my character one way, but an editor might not. If I’m open to suggestions, we might both be able to come to a much more beneficial interpretation.
What about you? What do you wonder about the publishing world?...

Songs of My Soul: Count Your BlessingsDecember 28, 2017Don't Ask Me to Leave / Songs of the Soul / WritingWe’ve just had a wonderful Christmas holiday. As usual, my children were very blessed (probably a little too blessed, honestly), and my living room still shows the signs of it. I have great children, and they keep swinging by the couch giving us hugs or kisses and saying thank you. They know they’re blessed.
Still, it made me think, though. Sometimes it’s easy to see your blessings, as it was for us when the floor was full of toys, discarded wrapping paper, and cardboard boxes. Other times, it’s not so easy. And that’s when it’s the most important to count your blessings.
In my first novel, Don’t Ask Me to Leave, the main character struggles a lot with that. The novel is based on the story of Ruth and Naomi from the Bible, which means that very early on, the main character loses her husband (and almost her faith). She balks when others point out the blessings that still surround her.
That is how it often happens, isn’t it? “When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost”?
So many of our blessings are easy to ignore or forget. But right now, I am so blessed. I am sitting on a couch, surrounded by family and two very grateful cats inside a warm house while it’s below 20 degrees outside. My refrigerator is full. I live in a country where I am free to express my opinions out loud, online, in just about any way I see fit.
And sometimes, when we think we’re not blessed, it’s because we’re “missing the forest for the trees”.
About thirteen years ago, I was pregnant with our son. To our dismay, it was a high-risk pregnancy, and starting at four months, I started bouncing in and out of the hospital thanks to pre-eclampsia. My husband ended up leaving his job, and for a few days there, we were very worried and stressed.
And then the phone rang.
He had applied for another job months prior (so many months, he’d almost forgotten about the application), and he would start in a few days.
So it ended up that he was off work while I was having my initial hospital stays and diagnosis, and then he started a new job with better insurance, pay, and hours.
Blessings come in many forms, even when you’re not expecting them.
We’re just a few days away from a new year. There’s no telling what it will bring. I’m sure there will be struggles and sorrows, but blessings also abound. I hope that you will be blessed in this new year....