Bella Ha asked Elizabeth Wein:

Hi I'm doing a project for school. Did anything from your past influence you to write this book? Thanks!

Elizabeth Wein Hi there, hope I'm not too late for your project and sorry I didn't respond sooner! Which book were you talking about? (I have written 8). Almost all my books have some connection to my past, but it's usually a subtle connection. So, while I don't have family or friends who experienced the things I write about, sometimes I'll set a story in a city or landscape where I used to live. One theme that does occur quite a lot in my books and short stories is that my characters often have a brother who is disabled or injured, which is because my own brother was badly brain-damaged in a car accident when he was 11. One of my fictional characters who appears as a baby and toddler participates in a lot of antics that are based on my own children.

Also, my own past interests have influenced me: so, I was very interested in World War II when I was a teen, and that's why I came to write Code Name Verity and Rose Under Fire. I write about a lot flying because I have a pilot's license. And I write about Ethiopia because my aunt and uncle were in the Peace Corps there and helped me become aware of its history.

Hope this helps!

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