Reflecting on my own writing journey so far, I came to realise that it was two years ago that I satisfyingly pieced together the final fragments of my debut book, ‘The Fathers, The Sons and The Anxious Ghost’. This book is something I am very proud of because the storyline means so much to me. Having had friends and family suffering from mental health issues, the narrative was my own way of unpicking some of those elements.
In this blog post I want to reflect upon that story and how I created it. When I think about how it all started, it was actually fairly random. Hopefully by sharing my writing experience, you may find some of it relatable. New writers can understand just how complicated everything to do with publishing seems at first but after a while it all starts to make some kind of sense.
How did it all start?
I remember watching lots of drama series where mental health issues were touched upon and noticing that, at the time, a lot of these didn’t focus on men quite so much. This gave me the idea to make my story about three guys. It was just one of many ideas but I quickly sat down and wrote a short chapter introducing a dad and his son rushing to get to school. I wanted to show stress straight away so I ensured that he was late and that his fraught relationship with his wife was immediately apparent.
There were only two things in my mind at that point. I wanted a story about three guys whose kids all went to the same school and I wanted them to be rattled by something. So, I came up with the idea that one of their spouses would commit suicide. From then on, I knew that I had a story that would grow longer than one of my short stories.
In a nutshell
My story is told in three parts with each person writing a chapter. For me, this was a no brainer as I needed the characters to have their own unique voices and first person narrative was the only way to do this.
During a school play, three kids get into a scuffle, leading their dads to come into the same orbit. Soon after, a tragic suicide resonates through the town. One dad loses a wife while the others also feel the weight of the situation as repercussions eventually play out.
Each guy has a different situation at home. One is fed up with his marriage, another has realised that he prefers men and the third is left to parent alone after his sudden loss. But that is not the crux of the story.
Ten years later, the now 18 year old kids tell their part of the story and unpick the ramifications of not only the suicide, but also the destruction of their parents’ marriages. One daughter in particular cannot stop delving into her mother’s past and is determined that another parent caused her mum’s death.
The third part is a short chapter and is meant to draw things together, helping you to understand some of the chaos and hopefully leaving you with interesting questions.
What does the story mean?
It means everything to me. I have witnessed attempted suicide and loss amongst family and friends and have seen how destructive mental health can be. It was important that I got to explore this within a family drama as such events can have long term affects on those around the people who are suffering.
The story also explores an LGBT relationship, the power of long lasting and meaningful friendship, and how communities come together after a tragic event.
Thank you for reading about my first foray into writing a book. If you enjoyed this and like bookish content then please consider following my blog.
Finished about two years ago? That’s around the same time I finished my first book too. Thanks so much for this inspiring story, and high-five for our foray into authorship!
Yes do you still feel new? I feel I’ve learned so much already but have nothing like enough knowledge of the industry yet.
Giving each main character their own chapter to tell their story is a great idea
Yes I liked how Joanne Harris does it. Liane Moriarty kind of does it too, although she writes in the close third person instead.
Sounds like an exciting writing journey.
Fantastic book, interesting to hear how the writing journey happened
Thanks for reading.
Congratulations on having your first book. It’s a dream come true to have your first book published, right? And btw, I like the title of this book. Sounds like a good read.
It is my baby. Haha. Hope you may try a chapter.
Isn’t it magic how your life and experiences are combined through the story of your heroes? Writing is so much more that creating a story. It is how we experience life. It is how we wish this world will turn into. What we are most afraid that might someday happen so we write it in a story to conjure it.
I Always love to read about the story behind the story, so really liked this post 🙂
Those are great words. Thank you for your reply. Nothing beats a good story!
Congratulations on writing a book. That is a great achievement!
Congratulations on your first book and thanks for sharing your thought process. Drawing on your own experiences of seeing how mental health can be so complex, impactful and difficult will no doubt make your storytelling connect with anyone who reads your work.
Thank you for reading.
Congrats! Just to finish a book is a major deal. I’m happy you not only tried but succeeded!
Thank you. I do love my little book.
Congratulations on writing and publishing your first book! It sound very interesting, and as a reader I really love multiple POV’s stories! x
It is actually celebrating its birthday next month but I wanted to share the experience of writing it in my blog, which is newish. Thanks for reading.
Congrats on publishing your first book, that’s amazing! I love the story and the topics you’ve explored are so important to bring awareness to xx
Thank you. That’s kind.
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