Hello!! Lindi here.
It’s election day in the USA. And no, we aren’t going to be talking politics here, but how about we hold our very own election?
But first things first. I’d like to congratulate Mary Vaneverbroeck! She won the $5 Amazon gift card. Please email me at authorlindip (at) gmail (dot) com.
I’ve engaged a lot of reader input lately for the novellas I am writing. I participated in a couple of FB parties and some of my winners got to do things like name a city they love and that will go in my book. Also, for the very first time, I chose a heroine’s name from a list of names readers provided during the party.
It’s a bit freeing for me. There are certain things I don’t normally give over, if you will, to anyone. Names being one of those things. But I’m currently writing the heroine that the reader named, and my gal is growing into her name. I wondered if it would be hard to write to a name I didn’t come up with, but so far it’s working out.
But I do have a situation in the story and I was wondering if all of you could help me out. My gal used to be a nanny. She cared for an infant. In my original idea I had the whole family die in an auto accident. (This happens before the book starts.) But as I was writing I wondered about that. As a reader how would it make you feel knowing a baby died. So I’ve been thinking about this a good bit and wondered if I should change the backstory to having the parents die and the infant was whisked away to another state by one set of the grandparents. My gal has no claim on the baby and she vows not to become close to any baby for a long while. Of course she moves into a house where the guy next door is a single dad of, you guessed it, a baby. So, this is all in the first chapter, so I’m not giving spoilers.
I usually write upbeat fun-loving type books. I have friends who write amazingly emotionally wrought books. I like reading them, but I’m not sure I’m the one who needs to be writing them. Even though this families death takes place before the book starts, I’m still sad, as the writer, to even think about a baby dying. So that’s why I tried to come up with another scenario. But then I’m wondering if that makes my heroines issue seem unreal. Ugh!! Right? Such a quandary as the book is due soon. :)
This is where I need you to vote.
USA Today featured author Lindi Peterson lives in north Georgia, in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, with her husband and a lively array of cats, dogs and birds. She loves sharing life with her family and friends. Her passion for reading led her to writing, and then God spoke words of love into her heart and changed her life forever.
Cool voting/poll thingy! Look forward to reading the story when it is finished:)
Babies do die, it is a sad and harsh but it is reality that they do get killed. So it gives it a realistic feel even if it is depressing and hard to think about. Her moving past it could give someone hope who has list a baby that maybe hey too can live again. Anyway that is just my thoughts on it. I very nearly did not even open my email this morning with the title though. I am so beyond sick of politics that I nearly just deleted it.
I’ll look forward to seeing the results. Good luck with the story, Lindi!
I don’t like the idea of the baby dying (my own is kicking and turning as I write this), but I wonder if it will be realistic in a car accident—there’s always the option of the baby being home with the nanny when the parents were involved in an accident (to make the plot more realistic). I prefer upbeat fun-loving type books than profound drama. I think there’s a lot of drama in real like already…
I would say not to have the baby die. I remember a multipublished friend telling me before I started writing that killing a child was something that, generally, wasn’t done. So you had to have a major reason if you did it. To me, since you have reasonable alternatives, it’s better to let the baby live.
That said, I would probably have had her home with the baby when the parents were killed. That’s likely going to fly a little better and it could up the drama personally for her as she would be the one who has to hand the child over to the grandparents. *sniff*
:)
I also like the cool voting thing. I didn’t realize we had that installed :)
Thanks, Wemble. :)
Cassandra :) Ah–I so get the “over it.” Me as well. But I’m glad you did–and your comments are very helpful. I do appreciate your input.
Thanks so much, Jill!
Priscila–thanks so much for this insight. :) Oooh, and congrats!! Loved watching my grandson move around when my daughter was pregnant.
Yes, you and Priscila have a great point. I like that idea!! See, love reader input so much. :) You guys are awesome. Kids and pets—keep them alive at all costs, right?
Great question, Lindi! I’d rather you didn’t let the baby die! Yes, these tragedies do happen. :( But I’ve seen and heard of many accidents where the parents die and the baby survives. Strapped into their safety seats, it’s not uncommon for a baby to be the sole survivor.
The grief she would feel could be just as intense. She’s grieving the parents, who she was close to, and also that she will never see this baby she loved like her own child. That could be plenty enough to make her vow not to form close emotional attachments. Even more believable if perhaps her history is one of never feeling she belonged (eg her own parents died and she was brought up by cold and distant grandparents, or passed around in the foster system), and this family she worked for was the first place she felt a real sense of family.
The only catch I can see if the baby is still alive is that as a reader I would expect her to somehow see that baby again, to get a sense of closure. Somehow her emotional change that permits her to love not only the baby next door but the man next door might be tangled up in that.
Lots of good comments. I agree that if you can avoid having the baby die, I’d enjoy the story more :-)
Autumn—-great input. Thank you so much. And yes, I would agree that the baby would somehow make an appearance—such good insights—:) And I love the backstory you relayed. I should brainstorm more often. :)
Hi Margaret!! I’m with you–enjoying these comments.
Fun post–well as fun as it can be with talk about dying babies. It’s interesting to hear the different points of view and opinions of others. I imagine the input of others can help make a decision easier. Good luck on your book!
Winnie–thanks for stopping by. I hope you voted. :) And you are right, the input is invaluable.
Hi Linda! Thanks for the poll. Since I buckle my granddaughter into her car seat, my sentiment agrees with Autumn Macarthur – the baby survives. Living in the snow Midwest near a busy stretch of highway, one winter there was a 90 car pile up and a baby survived the car crash even though the baby and set were thrown from the car. Unfortunately the parents were not as lucky. Babies in car seats have double protection in a newer car with side air bags and then being cradled in a 5 point car seat harness – even when the car seat ejects the vehicle. When I was purchasing the car seat for my granddaughter, I watched some test crash videos before I made my choice. A fun vote – but as a naturalized citizen I also took my civic duty seriously. My granddaughter wants my I VOTED sticker. My son is taking his six grader along to the polling booth and my husband is working at the polling center from 6 am till after 8 pm when the polls close. God bless our country.
Renate–Thank you for the response. Yes, I did my civic duty as well this a.m. I thank you husband and all who are manning the polls. I didn’t have a line, but I know several who waited quite a while. It is indeed a privilege to be able to vote! And thanks for the info. I didn’t really think about the car seats being incredibly safe now. My youngest turns 30 in 2 days, so things have really changed. :)
I voted for the baby living. I’m going to walk to my polling place in a about half an hour. I hope I’ve chosen a time when the line won’t be long. Our ballot is pretty long, and I intend not to vote for a few things like the judges. I wish we didn’t vote for judges. I don’t like to vote on people or issues I don’t know anything about. We have no criteria to know how to vote for judges. I am definitely voting no to legalize marijuana. I pray that this proposition doesn’t pass.
This vote is much more pleasant. No one gets hurt!
Thanks for asking for our input!
It’s very depressing for me to read when a baby dies! I know it happens in real life, but it breaks my heart. I’d like to think that, in your story, the parents died and the baby gets whisked to the grandparents. Still sad, but at least the grandparents are in the picture to raise the little one….such a quandary like you said Lindi! This is one reason why I’m not a writer!
I like happily ever after endings….lol!