Not a Thing – Open Book Blog Hop #191

♦Welcome to another edition of the Open Book Blog Hop!♦

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Topic #191
What do you owe the real people upon whom you base your characters?

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Welcome back to another edition of the Open Book Blog Hop! The authors included in this ongoing series wish to thank you for your reads. We appreciate, even more so, when you share our writings with your friends. If you’re new to the series, welcome aboard. The authors engage and impress weekly. Prepare to become a regular reader.

First, I’ll say, that all of my books are works of fiction. The characters are not real persons. Each of my books contain a disclaimer explaining this. That said, no character, human or otherwise, is based on pure imagination. They are composites of people we meet or learn about during the course of our lives. 

The Trailokya Trilogy contains a great deal of my real life experiences, embellished for the purpose of storytelling, and often composited. None of the characters are any one particular person, because, frankly I do not wish to be sued. Absolutely, because the real life instances are things I experienced, I have rights to tell my story and lawsuits would not turn out well in a court. The reasons being that unless individuals want to divulge their behavior to the greater public, they would prefer to be silent, because I do not believe there is anything that would be awarded to them on the basis of slander or libel. Still, authors have to disclaim they’ve written actual people into fiction a real person—and, in my case, this is true, as I have composited my experiences with other person’s experiences.

I owe abusers nothing.

The reason I say all this is because The Trailokya Trilogy deals with domestic violence. The actions taken by characters, as abusers, are similar to those actions taken by those who have committed abuse in the real world. Similarities from case to case are well-documented. Part of my work is knowing this, researching this, and training on this. Similarly, the individuals who have survived such incidents have similar actions/behaviors also. I don’t have to reach to my life alone to provide this narrative, or a person from which to draw either of these roles. I’m sure I am not alone in being able to relate to both Maiel and Holly on the level of a friend who’s known someone, someone who has been abused, or someone who has brushed up to information about abuse and suspect it in their circle. 

To answer the question, what do I owe the people who I have based my characters on: I owe abusers nothing. Nothing. They chose to be violent and/or mentally abusive toward their partners, family, or friends. They have taken away choices from those they should have cared for and supported. Because of the heinous nature of such crimes, it’s important to gather and disseminate information to help others avoid going through such experiences, or if they are going through it to find a way out, to find safety again. Abusers owe their victims a great deal, and it is questionable if they can ever repay them sufficiently. So, in fact, these individuals owe us (the greater society). 

If you suspect that you or someone you know is a victim of domestic violence, please visit the National Domestic Violence Hotline website to find out what you can do to help yourself/others. Domestic Violence is not the victim’s fault. There is a way to get safe. Please reach out to someone you trust. There is help available. There is a way out. Be safe.

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