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Author Note
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DECEMBER 18, 2019 –
I can’t believe we’re almost at 2020. Crazy. I’m gonna look back at this one day and be surprised all over again, I’m sure.
How did this story come about? That’s what I like to go into in the back of these books, as well as my blog. A little more in-depth information if you will. As a reader, I used to wonder that a lot. This one came about from the Holly Lisle course I took on How to Write Short Stories. A lot of my shorts are going to come out of that, I’m sure. It’s a great course. So expect to read that comment in many places if you happen to pick up these shorts. Or novelette’s in this case. With my novels, it tends to be dreams that inspire me.
I went through a list of ideas for places that I liked and library had been one. Then from there came this sheet that was basically saying to ask the characters what they loved, hated, feared, and on. I do that with characters, but also with the story in mind itself and I have found it to be very helpful. I kept getting the idea of flames and fears, and a husband, so that inspired this idea. When I was attempting to figure out which short I wanted to write next, I had seen the pages I made of just notes and scribbles, and felt that familiar little tug within saying, this one. So I grabbed it and began to hear the striking of the grandfather clock in my head. From there I wrote, and the story went all over the place, but by the end I realized why – the main character, Opal, doesn’t even know what’s the truth and what isn’t.
Her mind has been warped within that blankness, with what little her husband drops here and there, which is the problem with the human brain. If we’re told something over and over again, eventually we believe it, or it somehow soaks in there. It’s how so many victims of captors end up believing other stories, and perhaps falling for them too. It’s not a weakness of a human being per se, but it does show how vulnerable we can become to those things. Little things dropped here and there by someone we trust, and more so when we are having our own faulty memories and brain happenings? We take their words in and believe them as our truth.
We see it with Carl doing it to Opal. He loves her to the point of obsession. So what does he do? Slowly begins to turn her against her own grandfather so in her mind, she’s of the belief of a story which isn’t even real. Creepy.
Thank you for taking the time to read this. I appreciate you so much for honoring me with you time. If you want to email me, I love to hear from my readers and chat with you as time allows. Email me at - k.ivers@outlook.com or stop by my website any time.
Kim Iverson
