For as long as I can remember, I’ve been a fan of the underdog, that person who has the odds stacked up against them, and somehow figured out a way to triumph over adversity. Ever since I was a kid, I’ve had a certain respect for the struggle that can sometimes be life. My childhood wasn’t easy, so I had to learn the art of resilience at an early age.
At times, I’ve been brought to my knees, drowning and writhing in the tsunami of what life has viciously thrown my way. I’ve always been a fighter, nevertheless, and once I catch my breath, that’s when I stare life in the eye, and figure out the lesson it’s attempting to teach me.
Sometimes the message finds me instantaneously, on other occasions, it takes its time. One way or another, it’s there, waiting patiently to be revealed amidst the muck.
I’ve always had an affinity for those who get assailed by life’s periodic chaos. In their battles, I often see myself in humanity’s commonality. I’ve come to realize that no matter who you are, how much money you have or what you’ve accomplished in this world, we’re all the same.
Humanity is the common denominator, and life hunts each of us down at will. It doesn’t discriminate against anyone. Most times when we least expect it, life comes knocking at our door. It’s a truth that’s inescapable in its medley of moments; those ups and downs and flashes in the middle that make up the whole of existence.
As I see it, it’s an unpredictable roller coaster ride from the second we enter this world until the time we take our last breath, but in that wild journey, there’s beauty at its core.
As I’ve matured and reflected on my own personal wars that I’ve fought, I’ve realized that most of my growth occurred on the other side of those battles. In the harshest of moments magnificence can be found. There’s splendor in the struggle if we choose to search for it.
In the darkness, our essence gets smelted and twisted in the heat of transformation, extracting strength we never knew we had to face life head on. It thrashes about, writhing in the pain of change, ultimately forming us into something exquisite if we let the process happen.
The theme of triumph over adversity consistently threads itself through my writing. Since I choose to see the beauty in the struggle of becoming, I imbue that quality in my protagonists. Once they discover their inner power and get up after being knocked down, they fight back. In that clash, they ultimately find themselves.
I delight in creating worlds that give my characters the chance to conquer the odds and emerge victoriously from their misfortunes. They are a reflection of me as they push back against the seemingly random nature of life. Initially, they may be down, but they are never out.
They dig deep inside to discover their strengths and abilities they never knew they had to overcome obstacles that at one time seemed insurmountable. That process isn’t an easy one, but it’s one that’s necessary to extricate themselves from the muck to continually press forward.
To stay stuck interferes with the energy of life. Energy is in constant motion, and staying trapped upends the process. I believe these curveballs that life flings at us are meant to propel us forward, often out of our comfort zones. That’s where true growth and healing happen. Those twists are the gifts I give my protagonists so they can flourish.
There’s a little bit of me in each of my protagonists. I plant small snippets of my own personal struggles into their worlds to get unraveled. They have their own strengths, weaknesses, fears and courage and how they choose to deal with the immense hurdles thrown in their paths is sometimes better than what I would do.
I enjoy observing the choices they make, and how they navigate their emotional landscapes as they try to find answers that most of the time aren’t readily available. Only by moving forward do they ultimately uncover what it is they need to find.
Even though my protagonists contain elements of myself, they are free to make their own choices. Just because we have similarities doesn’t mean they always think like me or do things the way I would. Infusing them with elements of myself is the starting point. I let the story unfold the way it needs to, and a lot of times, it expands in ways I never imagined.
My characters have minds of their own, and often boss me around, telling me what they are going to do instead of me leading the way. The more I write, I’ve learned that I just dictate their stories. They tell me what they need and want.
Frequently, I’ll be at my laptop writing, and suddenly they’ll deliver a thought to me that completely alters the course of their journeys and how I interact with them. I find myself responding out loud as if they are sitting next to me so I can contradict their demands, but ultimately, I allow them to lead the way.
If it’s one thing I’ve learned it’s that when you write, your ego needs to be checked at the door so your characters can show you the way forward.
As they triumph over adversity, I find myself proud of them and all they experienced to get to the point of victory. Watching them fall, yet still finding the courage to move on fulfills me. It reminds me of being a parent witnessing a small child stumble and ultimately succeed as they sit on the sidelines and cheer them along.
As I create my protagonists, I give them elements of what they need to succeed. The rest they find on their own as their journeys unfold. I find comradery with my characters as they share exquisite details of their inner worlds with me. I initially create them, but then they take over and show me who they truly are.
Facing life head on and never quitting is something I live by and so do my characters. Since adversity is a facet of every human life, I want to make my characters and their stories relatable to anyone who reads them. I want my words and my characters to feel like familiar friends, and a place to find solace when the storms of life are brewing.
I believe prevailing through hardships builds inner strength and my protagonists understand that which is why they don’t choose the easy path. They choose liberation, forgiveness, resilience and emotional healing instead.