Families... can't live with them, don't want to live without them
I'm fascinated by families and birth order. As an only child, I was the solitary kid in rooms always filled with adults. I think one of the reasons I'm such a good and thorough observer is because I was raised in that era where children were seen but never heard. I learned very early in life how to watch people without them noticing, how to gage emotions and reactions during situations, and most importantly, how to describe what I was seeing.
From the time I knew I was the only kid in my family's realm, I dreamed of having siblings. It didn't matter to me if I was the oldest, youngest, or came somewhere in the middle of the food chain. I wanted other people like me around the house. Sadly, it didn't happen. My life long fascination with birth order and how siblings react and interact with one another is the reason I like writing about big families. It gives me a great deal of pleasure to invent the families I always wanted as my own. I would have liked nothing more while growing up than to have older brothers looking out for me and sisters guiding my way to adolescence.
Families come with their own sets of rules on behavior and thinking and actions. Most of it is based on the shared history they have, and much of it is situational.
When I start a new book series, the dynamics in the family comes first. Is there a father figure present and if so, how does he rule? If no dad is around, how does the mother keep order, pay the bills, provide for her children? What roles do the oldest and youngest play int his scheme? All these questions are thought out prior to my ever typing a word of the story. I need to now "my families" before I can write about them.
What about you? Come from a big family, or are you an only like me? Where is your birth order and did it play a role in making you the person you are? Or did it hamper your dreams and desires because things were "expected of you?"
Birth order, sibling dynamics, and families are truly fascinating to read - and write - about.
From the time I knew I was the only kid in my family's realm, I dreamed of having siblings. It didn't matter to me if I was the oldest, youngest, or came somewhere in the middle of the food chain. I wanted other people like me around the house. Sadly, it didn't happen. My life long fascination with birth order and how siblings react and interact with one another is the reason I like writing about big families. It gives me a great deal of pleasure to invent the families I always wanted as my own. I would have liked nothing more while growing up than to have older brothers looking out for me and sisters guiding my way to adolescence.
Families come with their own sets of rules on behavior and thinking and actions. Most of it is based on the shared history they have, and much of it is situational.
When I start a new book series, the dynamics in the family comes first. Is there a father figure present and if so, how does he rule? If no dad is around, how does the mother keep order, pay the bills, provide for her children? What roles do the oldest and youngest play int his scheme? All these questions are thought out prior to my ever typing a word of the story. I need to now "my families" before I can write about them.
What about you? Come from a big family, or are you an only like me? Where is your birth order and did it play a role in making you the person you are? Or did it hamper your dreams and desires because things were "expected of you?"
Birth order, sibling dynamics, and families are truly fascinating to read - and write - about.
No comments have been added yet.
