How can a writer deal with trauma in their fiction? – Advice from Sarah Walton, The Silk Pavilion

March 29, 2023

In the video, Sarah speaks about writing from personal trauma while not getting lost in that personal trauma, and using subtlety in one’s writing.

The most important thing is to truly become the character you’re writing. Understand their trauma and don’t merge it with your own, even if your trauma and theirs are similar. This separation is harder to achieve when you are similar to your character, but it’s not impossible.

Sarah tells us it’s often easier to write characters that are different to us. When you write a character that’s similar to yourself, there are aspects of them that you may be blind to because there are parts of ourselves we sometimes can’t see. If you choose to write a character similar to yourself, know them very well. Ensure you write through the voice of the character, not your voice as the author, passing through the character.

The Silk Pavilion expertly explores the nature of abuse, the power of victims and Jungian psychology, all while being totally unputdownable. Lean more about The Silk Pavilion here or grab a copy now here.