Life Experience Turned to Fiction

Our Thursday Quick-Write today is a team effort from Jen Petro-Roy and Ammi-Joan Paquette.

Q: How do you know when a life experience or idea is “the one” to make it into fiction? When it comes to tough subjects, how much is too much?

Joan: I think the best ideas to pursue as a writer are the ones you absolutely cannot put out of your mind—the ones that won’t let you go, no matter what. The ones you can’t help but write. So how do I know when a story is “the one”? When it hunts me down until I write it, and forces me to stick with it come what may. (As a matter of fact, I’m wrestling with just such an idea right now…!) And there is something cathartic about exploring difficult life experiences through fiction, even for us as writers. I think sometimes we sit down with big life questions, framed as the experiences of others, and through the safety of that fictional lens, we can work through to understand what we truly believe, and want, and are.

So how much is too much? That’s a question that only I can answer for my stories, and only you can answer for yours. One thing I do know for sure, though: It never hurts to try. It never hurts to start.

Your Assignment: Brainstorm a list of situations and experiences in your recent or distant past that come back to you. It might be a big challenging life turn, or it might be the smallest conversation or exchange that left you scratching your head or cringing in embarrassment. Try retelling that event in a fictional setting. What will you change? What will you preserve? What is it about that incident that has so captured your mind that you have not been able to forget it? Maybe it would do the same to another reader, somewhere . . .  As always, feel free to share reflections in the comments.

Browsing through a clothes rack with Brett on my hip, a girl who worked in the store approached me.
"Can I help you with anything?"
"I am looking for a coat for this little guy," shifting Brett from one hip to the other.
"How old is he?" she said.
Should I explain that he is 18 months old, but looks like 9 months, and that he doesn't walk yet because he has Down syndrome, or should I just say 9 months old?
"Well, I am looking for a 12 month size; he is little for his age, he has Down syndrome."
And right then and there, this girl asked if she could hold him, and starting crying.
"Sure you can, are you all right?"
She explained to me that she had just had an abortion because the test confirmed she was carrying a baby with Down syndrome. She wasn't married, and her boyfriend didn't want the responsibility.
"I made the wrong decision," she cried. "I don't know if I can get over it."
She wanted to know everything he was doing, and if it was easy. I tried my best to comfort her. We talked for awhile, and then we left. I have thought about her over the years, and I hope that she has been okay.