How do writers find their stories?? This one came to me as I sat, one Sunday morning, in the waiting area of a state prison. I was there to interview a convicted murderer for a play I was writing(Cook County Justice) about his case. I found myself sitting with many other women; wives, sisters, daughters, grandmothers. We all had one thing in common; we were there to visit a man behind bars and all of our shoe laces were untied. (They search you.)
Was I nervous? Scared? YES! I’d never been in a prison before and I was about to enter a visiting room filled with convicted murderers, rapists, thieves and drug dealers. The one thing these men had in common was they were someone’s son, husband, and father.
I have often advised new writers to write about what they know. I did not follow my own advice. These women had such an impact on me…..figuratively taking me by the throat and insisting that I tell their story. So I did….with research, research, and more research.
This story is told by three diverse women married to men who made a bad decision. Continue reading “When A Story Takes You by the Throat!”