CCBC-Net Archives
NOVELS IN VERSE
- Contemporary messages sorted: [ by date ] [ by subject ] [ by author ]
From: Sherry <kidbooks_at_thegrid.net>
Date: Thu, 05 Apr 2012 07:04:33 -0700
While cleaning out my office closet, I found a tattered shoe box filled with letters written by a friend who was in Vietnam during the late 1960s. I spent hours pouring through the gut-wrenching accounts of his day-to-day life in that living hell. It was so disturbing to watch a friend turn from a carefree kid into a hardened soldier. I knew I had to do something with his letters; I’d kept them nearly 50 years.
My novel in verse Purple Daze was born the day I found my friend’s letters. So, it made sense to use letters to capture a young soldier’s life in Vietnam. I started messing around with different writing styles, and wrote character sketches about other high school friends.
For me, this nontraditional story form was a real challenge. Each character required his or her own story arc -- with a clearly defined beginning, middle, and end -- yet I had to weave each story smoothly into the whole. But I felt this was the most effective way to give readers access to the inner most thoughts of all six characters.
Warmly, Sherry www.SherryShahan.com PURPLE DAZE: It's 1965. Do you Know Where Your Country Is?
Received on Thu 05 Apr 2012 07:04:33 AM CDT
Date: Thu, 05 Apr 2012 07:04:33 -0700
While cleaning out my office closet, I found a tattered shoe box filled with letters written by a friend who was in Vietnam during the late 1960s. I spent hours pouring through the gut-wrenching accounts of his day-to-day life in that living hell. It was so disturbing to watch a friend turn from a carefree kid into a hardened soldier. I knew I had to do something with his letters; I’d kept them nearly 50 years.
My novel in verse Purple Daze was born the day I found my friend’s letters. So, it made sense to use letters to capture a young soldier’s life in Vietnam. I started messing around with different writing styles, and wrote character sketches about other high school friends.
For me, this nontraditional story form was a real challenge. Each character required his or her own story arc -- with a clearly defined beginning, middle, and end -- yet I had to weave each story smoothly into the whole. But I felt this was the most effective way to give readers access to the inner most thoughts of all six characters.
Warmly, Sherry www.SherryShahan.com PURPLE DAZE: It's 1965. Do you Know Where Your Country Is?
Received on Thu 05 Apr 2012 07:04:33 AM CDT
