Breaking by OhMyWord
Summary: It didn’t take long to be consumed and I knew we couldn’t keep this up forever, but right then, I was in it. All the way. And when each moment with her was everything, how could I possibly think of all the other nothings?
“Breaking” was a story that someone (I know don’t remember who) sent me the link to when I asked to for any recommended complete fics. I bookmarked, and started a few weeks later, and I ended up not getting much done that day. The story had me hooked from the first chapter, the dramatic beginning drawing me into the story.
Bella is committed after a failed suicide pact with her boyfriend, and it’s there she meets Edward Masen, her therapist. It deals with controversial issues, mainly a doctor/ patient relationship, and at times is rather disturbing to read considering the subject matter. Yet the situations that the characters find themselves in are portrayed with sensitivity and discretion, making it a gripping and heart wrenching read. All in all, this is a wonderful little known story that deserves more attention.
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My interview with OhMyWord:
1. Where did you get the idea for this story? What was your inspiration?
I was looking for a story where I’d have to take away all the fluff and comedy that I was comfortable with; I wanted to stretch a little. So I started playing with themes, like – what if Edward and Bella were both suffering and what if they really shouldn’t be together? And then one day I was walking through a bookstore and I saw the cover of this book, The Pact (Jodi Picoult), and the whole storyline popped into my head. I haven’t read the book; I don’t even really know what it’s about, but it was in the right place at the right time.
2. Is there anything you would want readers to know specifically?
Just that I take the mental health profession and the various disorders I talk about within Breaking seriously. I did a ton of research before I started writing (and have studied psychology pretty extensively in college), so I’d have a fairly good grasp on that world before I decided to talk about it.
3. Why should readers read your story?
I put a ton of effort into writing Breaking; I knew it was going to be my dark horse story, so to speak, but I really wanted to step out of my element for a while. So, yeah, go read it.
4. So do you do anything special while writing a chapter? Listen to special music, need total silence, eat or drink anything in particular?
Actually, I do probably half my writing while I’m at work (don’t do this; I’m a bad role model). If I’m really on a tear, I can write a few lines – attend to something else – and then keep on writing. But then when I’m at home, I need almost no distractions at all; it’s weird. I usually put on head phones, turn my music up loud and then get to it. I have different playlists like, “depressing as hell” and “sunshine-y” type music. And I write more than one story at a time (right now I’m working on three or four), so if I’m in a good mood, I’ll work on whichever is my happiest story.
5. What do you do after you click the submit button for a chapter?
Cringe and hope for the best. And sometimes I’ll wonder how many typos/other errors I’ve missed.
6. Do you have a soundtrack to your stories?
Not typically, though I have a playlist for Breaking. I came across this amazing Tom Waits song, Green Grass, and became obsessed with it while I was writing; the imagery just fit into my story so perfectly. It’s about someone telling their lover not to forget about them when they’re gone, but it’s to an extreme; he says “things are now made of me” and “you’ll never be free of me.” That was exactly what I was trying to get across in my story.
Link for Breaking playlist here
7. What actor/actress do you picture as YOUR Edward and Bella?
I picture a slightly older Robert Pattinson as Edward or maybe someone kind of like Ian Somerhalder; they’re nice to picture, you know? But with less of a pretty boy image, that’s definitely not my thing. I like them a little rough around the edges (I call it “having some throw-down”). And for Bella, I don’t really have a specific actress in mind. I see someone that looks like a modern Pier Angeli and a bit like a twenty-something Joanna Going, but more Pier. I write the characters as adults, so Kristen Stewart doesn’t quite fit for me.
8. Is the story all planned out or do you do it as a fly by the seat of your pants thing?
Usually I’ll get a big “what if” idea like – what if Bella’s mom died and left her a house, and what if Edward was the caretaker and he drives her crazy? That became Reality and Other Inconveniences and incidentally, they come to me at random times; it’s like a light bulb coming on. I don’t plan out the whole story though, I just expand on my original idea so I know where it’s going before I actually start typing and then I steer the characters in that direction. (Spoilers ahead!) In Breaking, I knew I didn’t want Edward and Bella to “heal” each other; I wanted them to make every mistake possible until the whole situation seemed hopeless, this became them forming a relationship and leaving the hospital together without telling anyone.
9. Do you have a posting schedule? If so what is it?I really really try to post on Thursdays, but that’s very tentative. Damn real life getting in the way...
10. Do you believe in HEA?
Yes! But I like it to be in a heightened (this is fiction after all) realistic way. I don’t like it when all of a sudden, the main characters just come together and everything is roses, and I’m not particularly fond of the “dues ex machina” plot device either, where the big problem is all of a sudden solved by one impossible event or character insertion. That stuff drives me crazy.
11. Give me a list of your current projects AND do you have any more fic plans in the future?
Right now I’m wrapping up Reality and Other Inconveniences and I’m also writing a short story called The Cherished One (it’s another of those experimental projects, this time with a dark and very delusional Edward). For the future, I have one that I’ve just started – kind of funny, kind of sad, hopefully decent writing. The next big story that I’m going to post is unlike anything I’ve ever written (I say that a lot). And it has threesomes.
12. What brought you to fanfic? To Twilight?
My sister got me interested in Twilight; she’s a few years younger than I am. I was visiting her and we were at Disneyland in line for a ride and I said something like, “you know, I feel like reading young people books again” (I’d just finished reading Gravity’s Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon, not a light read by any stretch, but brilliant). And she told me about Twilight. I bought the first book and it took me about a month before I opened it, and then I ended up reading the whole series in about a week.
As for fan fiction, well it was kind of random. I had called in sick to work and was lying on the couch trying to sleep and had the television on. Some movie was playing and I started watching it, I thought to myself – this could so be Edward and Bella. I went online later and did some searching and that was that.
13. What is your background in writing?
I’ve been writing since I was old enough to pick up a pen. I wrote “scary” stories as a kid and then in high school, my best friend and I shared this huge spiral notebook where we’d write these one shots to each other in between gushing about boys and actually paying attention in class. In college, I’ve taken a few writing classes, but I’ve never been published or anything like that. Writing is definitely something I want to do and fan fiction, I think, is a good way to experiment with it.
14. Which character in your story do you identify with the most?
It’s hard to say with “Breaking” because all the characters are hurting so badly. I guess I can identify with Edward’s restlessness and the way he lets it build until he does something reckless.
Any character who would you like to see yourself with? Either as buddies or more?
In canon, *sigh* Edward...or Jasper, Emmett, Carlisle...
In my own story...probably none of them. Actually, maybe Carlisle or Esme.
15. Which RL author inspires you?
Well, Stephenie Meyer, without Twilight I wouldn’t be writing any of this and my work life would be a lot more boring. As for other people I read that inspire me – Tiffanie Debartolo, Janet Fitch, Richard Matheson, Anais Nin (she was paid by an anonymous collector to write erotica, people - check it out, and besides that stuff she’s brilliant), oh man, I could go on for days.
Did any FF authors inspire you?
For Breaking, it all came out of my head. But in general, I think SebastienRobichaud and The Black Arrow are two of the best authors I’ve read; I feel lucky to be able to read their work (and for free, no less).
16. Any recs for us?
Let’s see, right now I’m reading Crushed Seraphim by Mrs.TheKing, it’s one of the most original and imaginative stories I’ve ever read, Bella as an angel, saving the world; it’s fantastic. I also really like Girl with a Red Umbrella by spanglemaker9 and justaskalice. It’s a period piece, Paris – 1950, I feel swept away when I read it. It’s a mystery, a romance; it reminds me of movies like To Catch a Thief, those great old Hollywood pictures.
17. Anything else you would like to add?
I love to experiment with my writing and fan fiction - Breaking especially, was my chance to do that. I find inspiration everywhere, so to new writers that are looking for the right story, pay attention to the things around you! Just the other day I overheard this really shady salesman trying make a pitch to the guy next to me and I got this story idea about the lives of con men (which I may expand on in the future). Sometimes, the ideas I get seem too difficult to write or way out of my element, but I do it anyway. I think new writers might be surprised at just what they can do if they give it a shot.
And also, thank you to everyone that reads what I write and takes the time to talk about my work to others. I appreciate it more than I can say. You guys are the reason I write.
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