From the first draft of my most recent novel, Her Daughter, I knew that I needed to strip its characters of almost any identifiable trace of religion, ethnic background, nationality, or race.
That's because the story centers on a type of domestic abuse called Parental Alienation, where one parent deliberately gaslights the children to turn them against the other parent. I didn't want readers to think they could wave off the gaslighting parent's horrible behavior as something that only "they" (insert ethnic bias) do, that "our kind of people" would never do.
As writers, we work hard to give our characters vivid quirks, habits, speech patterns, and hairstyles. I didn't realize how difficult it would be to take some of that away--how much even the smallest ethnic clues are woven into our everyday lives.
That's because the story centers on a type of domestic abuse called Parental Alienation, where one parent deliberately gaslights the children to turn them against the other parent. I didn't want readers to think they could wave off the gaslighting parent's horrible behavior as something that only "they" (insert ethnic bias) do, that "our kind of people" would never do.
As writers, we work hard to give our characters vivid quirks, habits, speech patterns, and hairstyles. I didn't realize how difficult it would be to take some of that away--how much even the smallest ethnic clues are woven into our everyday lives.
For starters, my characters have white-bread names, such as Alice Wilson and Robert Corning, which could come from Northern European heritage or could have been changed on Ellis Island. The only holidays they celebrate are secular ones like Halloween and Mother's Day. The daughter of the title eats Cheerios as a baby and organic strawberries and wheat germ as a picky teen, but never bagels, churros, or pho.
No chapter takes place during December, because in the contemporary U.S., a family at that time of year would probably be brainstorming gift ideas for ... uh, which December festival?
Almost the only clues I allowed were occasional bits of description--"sun-blonde ponytail," "wild brown hair," "dark blue eyes"--because I think readers deserve some visual landmarks.
For a while, my self-imposed limits were an intellectual challenge, but not too onerous--akin to avoiding crutch words like "just" and "often." Until the funeral scene.
That scene is an important turning point in the narrative. However, commemorations of death are also key elements of cultures and religions. How soon after death is a person buried? How, when, and where would family and friends gather to remember the deceased?
If they gather at the funeral home before the burial--that's a Catholic wake. If they gather at the person's home after the burial--that's a Jewish shiva.
Couldn't I bury the dead in peace?
Oh, I wished I could simply write about the contemporary, secular-Jewish families that peopled my first two novels and that I'm comfortable with! How easily an "oy" would type itself into a round of dialogue, a bagel onto a breakfast platter.
And you know what? It's a good thing I couldn't.
Sure, fictional characters need the richness of ethnic food, names, music, and holidays, but they also need to have an unexpected mix of qualities--the same as real people do. Writing this book stretched me to think of new ways of describing my characters, without the easy cultural tags. I think they're better people because of it.
During her award-winning journalism career, FRAN HAWTHORNE wrote eight nonfiction books, mainly about consumer activism, the drug industry, and the financial world. She's also been an editor or regular contributor for Business Week, The New York Times, and many other publications. Her first two novels, The Heirs and I Meant to Tell You, were published in 2018 and 2022 by Stephen F. Austin State University Press and together won or were named a finalist for seven awards, including the Eric Hoffer Book Awards and the Sarton Award. HER DAUGHTER, Fran's third novel, was published in January 2026 by Black Rose Writing. She's at work on Number 4 from her home in Brooklyn, NY. Learn more at https://www.hawthornewriter.com/
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Would you like to participate in Friday "Speak Out!"? Email your short posts (under 500 words) about women and writing to: marcia[at]wow-womenonwriting[dot]com for consideration. We look forward to hearing from you!
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| photo credit Jolene Siana |
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Would you like to participate in Friday "Speak Out!"? Email your short posts (under 500 words) about women and writing to: marcia[at]wow-womenonwriting[dot]com for consideration. We look forward to hearing from you!
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