Kaye88
asked
Martha Sweeney:
I have so many questions regarding your book Breathe In. What was the significance of Emma not wanting anyone to know her birthday? Why does she only remember her mother and never her father? Why are the night terrors triggered by emotion? Just curious....
Martha Sweeney
Great questions! First, thank you for taking the time to read my books.
Someone who had gone through several tumultuous events in just the matter of a few months since her sixteenth birthday; loss of her parents, thrown into foster care, almost raped by the male caregiver and feeling like she's responsible for the death of her own parents, Emmas has ultimate shut down from the world. Her flight to leave the east coast and move all the way out to California at the age of 16 is huge and taxing. She's ultimate on the run from the authorities, fearful of being put with another family that may be just as bad or worse as with Dean and Amber. The feeling of no control and wanting to take that back consumes her and fuels her actions.
Emma does remember her father. You're only seeing a small figment of her memory from the day of the accident. Did she really wake up right at that exact moment when the accident occurred? To Emma, she did, so the last few seconds of what she remembers plays over and over in her head. There's guilt, sadness and a myriad of other feelings she's having since the day of when she lost them. The inability to cope, let alone to have closure with the event haunts her. She misses them and is haunted by the dream anytime she has to face an emotional point in her life. The dreams play several roles, but I won't reveal that just yet since you're only in book one of the series.
It is an interesting thing what people hold onto with regards to situations and emotions to different events. Some people are able to continue forward while others get stuck in their own head. As you'll start to see, Emma has put forth a number of habits (some may seem neurotic to some extent), all because of what happened to her. For most, something major can trigger change and for the habits to suddenly alter to something you wouldn't expect - this is the case for Emma. Anytime the feeling of something changing that might be out of her control, Emma panics. Part of her panic attack is the reoccurring nightmare. With the new habits in place, which Emma uses as a wall to protect herself, it is very hard for those habits to alter in the slightest form let alone change altogether. Her nightmares are the result of sensing and knowing that things are changing - things her unconscious knows she has not power over.
Don't hesitate to ask more questions. I love being able to share!
Someone who had gone through several tumultuous events in just the matter of a few months since her sixteenth birthday; loss of her parents, thrown into foster care, almost raped by the male caregiver and feeling like she's responsible for the death of her own parents, Emmas has ultimate shut down from the world. Her flight to leave the east coast and move all the way out to California at the age of 16 is huge and taxing. She's ultimate on the run from the authorities, fearful of being put with another family that may be just as bad or worse as with Dean and Amber. The feeling of no control and wanting to take that back consumes her and fuels her actions.
Emma does remember her father. You're only seeing a small figment of her memory from the day of the accident. Did she really wake up right at that exact moment when the accident occurred? To Emma, she did, so the last few seconds of what she remembers plays over and over in her head. There's guilt, sadness and a myriad of other feelings she's having since the day of when she lost them. The inability to cope, let alone to have closure with the event haunts her. She misses them and is haunted by the dream anytime she has to face an emotional point in her life. The dreams play several roles, but I won't reveal that just yet since you're only in book one of the series.
It is an interesting thing what people hold onto with regards to situations and emotions to different events. Some people are able to continue forward while others get stuck in their own head. As you'll start to see, Emma has put forth a number of habits (some may seem neurotic to some extent), all because of what happened to her. For most, something major can trigger change and for the habits to suddenly alter to something you wouldn't expect - this is the case for Emma. Anytime the feeling of something changing that might be out of her control, Emma panics. Part of her panic attack is the reoccurring nightmare. With the new habits in place, which Emma uses as a wall to protect herself, it is very hard for those habits to alter in the slightest form let alone change altogether. Her nightmares are the result of sensing and knowing that things are changing - things her unconscious knows she has not power over.
Don't hesitate to ask more questions. I love being able to share!
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