Coming Down to the Wire

Well, this is the week the whole thing begins...NaNoWriMo starts on Wednesday, so "Dear Samantha" will officially be underway.

I realized today that I will be writing the whole thing in the first person, since these are letters. It will be easier in some ways, I think, because that's the way I write blog posts. The letters will be an extended version of blog posts.

I also realized I should have been using some of this lead in time to do some research on ovarian cancer treatment protocols, so I'd have a basic understanding of the first line of defense treatments, and the side effects that might affect Tara.

As the letters progress, along with her disease, there will obviously have to be some effect on the writing process...the letters will become shorter, perhaps, less cohesive. I don't want it to be too dramatic, because I want to keep the disease in the background. I don't want this to become some syrupy sweet, tear jerker tale. I just want it to be a thought provoking portrait of a woman who wishes to leave something behind to let her grandaughter know who she is and what life has meant to her. In that sense, it becomes like a deeply drawn character sketch of Tara, and the people in her life.

Tomorrow, some of the ideas that will pop up in the letters...