Wednesday, August 10, 2022

No Dogs Were Harmed in Midnight on the Marne by Sarah Adlahka

 JENN McKINLAY: Today I am delighted to host Sarah Adlahka, who shares with us the challenges of writing about a gruesome time in history (WWI) without being too horrific. Quite the impossibility, right? Well, Sarah has some thoughts...welcome, Sarah! 

And, Readers, just look at the cover of this novel -- gorgeous!



SARAH: I believe it was during round 2 of revisions for my historical fiction novel Midnight on the Marne that my editor gave me this advice:

 

“Think about your audience as women browsing the shelves at Target in search of their next book club pick.”

 

She had already convinced me to cut the detailed interrogation scenes where the protagonist Marcelle is being questioned (tortured) by a German general about her espionage, and she was trying to get me to see that, while the mystery-meat a starving French family would have been eating for Christmas in 1918 might very well have been dog, readers in 2022 – dog lovers in particular – would not be so keen to pick up a book where Fido was the main course. Now to be fair, they weren’t eating their own dog. I do have my limitations.

 

But how do you write a book about WWI without highlighting the horrors of war? And how do you highlight the horrors of war without getting into the gritty and gruesome details?

 

Write the story you want to write.

Stay true to yourself.

Paint an authentic picture.

 

As authors, we hear advice like this all the time. Whether from well-meaning friends who are just trying to encourage us or from critique partners who know how difficult it is to be in the writing trenches. And it makes sense, right? If we’re going to invest years of our lives into a book, shouldn’t it be authentic? Shouldn’t an historical fiction novel reflect the truest details of history, the bygone eras we spend months, maybe even years, researching?

 

I want to say yes.

 

I want to be among the die-hards who believe that you really must stay true to your subject matter – down to the grittiest details – to make your words sing. And maybe you do. But making your words sing is not necessarily the same thing as making your words sell. And since we’re in the business of selling words – or books – it just might be a good idea to listen to your editor. They are, after all, just trying to sell your book, and selling books is a tricky business.

 

Like most things in life, success as an author is linked to the shifting tides of public opinion. It’s linked to trends. And trends change. Opinions change. What’s popular, or even acceptable, in print and television changes from one decade to the next, maybe even from one year to the next, and this was a difficult lesson for me to learn.

 

I wanted my scenes to be authentic. I wanted my readers to feel the sharp edges of a broken chair, to hear the cries of men over a battlefield, to see the color of war as the sun came up over the horizon. And while it felt like my artistic freedom was being taken away, like I was being asked to paint a rosy sheen over the gruesome reality of war, what I eventually learned was that I was being given a gift. I was not being asked to eliminate those realities; I was being tasked with conveying those horrors through the repercussions they would have on my characters.

 

The effects of an interrogation – the restless sleep, the hypervigilance around men, the inability to trust – are more significant to the development of a character than the actual event itself. So, while the German general’s interrogation of Marcelle might have been what changed her, it was the consequences of that interrogation that really brought life to her character, that guided her to react the way she did throughout the rest of the story. I didn’t need to show the interrogation for it to have an impact.

 

And that was the challenge.

 

As authors we’re constantly being told show don’t tell. Show me that war is dreadful. Show me that battles are brutal. Show me that starvation is ugly. But perhaps we take it too far sometimes. Perhaps we don’t need to see a woman being beaten to understand the repercussions of trauma; perhaps we don’t need to see the carnage of a battlefield to understand the foundation of PTSD; and perhaps we don’t need to see a family eating a dog to understand the desperation of starvation.

 

It was a difficult lesson for me to learn, but a valuable one no doubt, and you can be sure that if you’re browsing through the Target bookshelves and happen upon Midnight on the Marne, you won’t find any dogs being harmed on its pages.


JENN: What do you think, Reds and Readers? How much grisly fact is too much? 


Book Summary:


Set during the heroism and heartbreak of World War I, and in an occupied France in an alternative timeline, Sarah Adlakha’s Midnight on the Marne explores the responsibilities love lays on us and the rippling impact of our choices.

France, 1918. Nurse Marcelle Marchand has important secrets to keep. Her role as a spy has made her both feared and revered, but it has also put her in extreme danger from the approaching German army.

American soldier George Mountcastle feels an instant connection to the young nurse. But in times of war, love must wait. Soon, George and his best friend Philip are fighting for their lives during the Second Battle of the Marne, where George prevents Philip from a daring act that might have won the battle at the cost of his own life.

On the run from a victorious Germany, George and Marcelle begin a new life with Philip and Marcelle’s twin sister, Rosalie, in a brutally occupied France. Together, this self-made family navigates oppression, near starvation, and unfathomable loss, finding love and joy in unexpected moments.

Years pass, and tragedy strikes, sending George on a course that could change the past and rewrite history. Playing with time is a tricky thing. If he chooses to alter history, he will surely change his own future―and perhaps not for the better.




Sarah Adlakha is a native of Chicago who now lives along the Mississippi Gulf Coast with her husband, three daughters, two horses, and one dog. She started writing fiction shortly after retiring from her psychiatry practice. Her debut novel, She Wouldn’t Change a Thing, was a CNN most anticipated book of 2021. Midnight on the Marne is her second novel.

33 comments:

  1. Congratulations, Sarah, on your newest book . . . “Midnight on the Marne” sounds quite compelling; I’m looking forward to meeting Marcelle and George . . . .

    It’s difficult to say exactly how much grisly fact belongs in the telling of a tale, but I think the answer is enough to support the story without making it difficult for the reader to read. Sometimes, even if it is the truth, it becomes overwhelming for the reader to read about it . . . .

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    1. Hi Joan - Thank you so much for your kind words.

      As a relatively new author, finding that balance has been a bit tricky for me, but I certainly agree with you. I can typically tolerate some grit, but I've read some scenes that were cringe-worthy and turned me away from authors. Hopefully Midnight on the Marne is tame enough!

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  2. Sounds like you got good advice from your editor and figured out how to use it and still keep the book your own, Sarah. Congratulations! I certainly don't want to read grisly, and I don't write it, either.

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    1. Thanks, Edith. I think my editor was spot on. I have to admit, I was a little upset to edit out some of the grit, but now when I look back I can see the importance of it. And those edits didn't change the story, thankfully.

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  3. SARAH: Congratulations on your new book! I agree with your editor's advice about cutting out the long interrogation scenes with Marcelle. I like reading mysteries but don't want the scenes to be too graphic. Have her deal with the aftermath. I wish TV & movies would tone these scenes down but most recent ones don't.

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    1. Hi Grace - it's funny that you mention TV and movies. When I write, I typically see the scene in my head (probably similarly to most authors) and I do remember wondering if it would be a scene too graphic for me to want to watch. That's probably a good indication that it's too much on paper, as well.

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  4. This issue is exactly why I read far more books than seeing movies. I can handle only so much gore and grisliness, and if it's on the page it's way easier to skip than it is on the screen. I'm with Grace on toning that stuff down!

    Your editor's advice was excellent, Sarah, and it sounds as if it made your book even better in the end.

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    1. Hello, Karen - I hope you're right! And I think you are. The tension of the scenes is still there, and the suggestion of what happened or will happen, but the details have been left out.

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  5. 'Write what you want to read.' If the story you wanted to write needed all the grisly details, it would have been a different story, for a different audience. But it looks like the story you wanted to write was about these particular characters, who are caught in the midst of a brutal war. The war is not the focus, your characters are--and I think you were wise to step back and listen to your editor. I have a vivid imagination--words weave images in my mind and stamp themselves on my heart. I don't want or need explicit scenes of violence/depravity. Congratulations on finding your way to bring this story to life!

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    1. Hi Flora - Thanks for your thoughtful words. I hope this is a book you can enjoy even though by its nature the WWI setting is gritty and unpleasant. It's the characters' story really, and - in my opinion - they're what really bring it to life.

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  6. Welcome Sarah and congrats on the book! Yes, I'm with you. The most important thing is the impact of events, not the events themselves. Since one of my series is historical, I'm always asking "How do I stay true to the era while not going too far?"

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    1. Hi Liz - Yes! It's such a difficult balance, especially when you spend so much time researching certain eras and want to include all the nitty-gritty details!

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  7. Welcome Sarah! And what a fascinating topic I mean--you're writing about a terrifying time, and you don;t wan to lose that. On the other hands, you want your readers to be immersed. And unlike in movies and TV, we can't cover our eyes and wait until the next scene. And wait--reading the synopsis--I'm thinking--time travel??? Tell us more!

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    1. Thank you, Hank! I'm so excited for readers to get their hands on this book! It's an alternate timeline historical fiction, so instead of the French and her allies winning WWI, we see what might have happened if a German victory had been fate's plan!

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  9. Great advice - it’s why we all need beta readers to save us from ourselves - write what you know but it is possible to know too much!

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    1. Hi Hallie! Yes, you're right. Sometimes knowing too much can make writing a particular scene more difficult because you want to include everything.

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  10. Congratulations Sarah on your new novel! I can still imagine the gruesome scenes without seeing the scenes on the pages. For example, seeing a black eye on someone, who was just tortured, gives you some idea of what happened, right?

    I love that cover of your novel and the title is perfect.

    Diana

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    1. Hi Diana - Thanks so much! I was so happy the publisher let me keep the title I came up with for this one! That didn't happen for my first book, so it was a special treat for me with this one!

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  11. It depends.

    I suspect I'm a neophyte preaching to professionals here, but I've been thinking about this since I first read the post 4 hours ago. There's too much detail and then there's enough detail to make the character's response make sense. Since, one hopes, that most readers haven't been in the situations of war that cause PTSD or generate the desire for revenge, it would seem to be necessary to create the atmosphere that would make those things make sense. Or, if readers have been in that scenario, the scenes need to be realistic. That means some degree of grit or grisly but not salacious or gratuitous. I think that you need to make your reader a bit uncomfortable so that they pay attention. I can see where that balance is tough to find and keep. Getting it right makes for art. (Louise Penny wrote a scene describing a complete mental breakdown, In A Trick of Light, maybe?. It was realistic, gritty, terrifying, realistic and brilliant. My book club hated it.)

    Know your audience and what they can abide. (1) I stopped reading a series once that had fascinated me because it took me inside a completely foreign world. Then the descriptions of the murders took a salacious and gratuitous turn and I began to wonder who her audience was.
    It wasn't me. (2) In a comment on an earlier post, someone mentioned (C S Harris') Sebastian St. Cyr. He is an ex-soldier with PTSD and a questing sense of justice and honor, but St. Cyr is no Peter Wimsey. Quoting the character himself, "Some say my penchant for violence is extreme" so one expects some gore and ugliness, balanced out by a good deal of romance. Enough detail to create the atmosphere without going into minute detail in either scenario. Enough to satisfy romance/mystery readers. All of which would be completely inappropriate in a cosy.

    Kill all the people you want, but never, ever, kill the dog!


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    1. CJ, You expressed my thoughts with eloquence and detail! I don’t believe the people who have commented represent the general reading audience. They are cozy mystery readers who want no violence or death scenes in their books, only the puzzle. The book described requires some of the grit and violence to represent the events realistically. Not everyone hides their eyes at violence or at the uncomfortable, realistic parts of the story.

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    2. CD - thanks so much for your thoughtful response. I really enjoyed reading it, although the comment you referenced above I believe has been removed. I too like a good dose of grit depending on what I'm reading, so I can certainly understand your point. Balance seems to be the key, which pretty much sums up my stance on most things in life - everything in moderation. When I went back and read the final edits of my book - and when I listened to the audible recently - I was happy with the decision to take out the bulk of the grit. I don't think it was necessary to convey what I wanted to convey to the reader. But I still have the scenes saved in a folder on my laptop and when I'm Stephen King famous and publish a new version of Midnight on the Marne thirty years down the road with all the deleted scenes, I just might have to throw those in ;)

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  12. Sarah, congratulations on the publication of Midnight on the Marne. Great title, great cover. It sounds like your editor gave you good advice--it's the characters' journey that keeps readers invested. I'm very intrigued by your alternate realities, if you could tell us more about that?

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    1. Hi Deborah - Yes! I love a good alternate timeline story. The Man in the High Castle was one of my favorite recent series, and I begged my publisher to use it as a comp title for Midnight on the Marne. In my story, the Germans successfully cross the Marne River during the Second Battle of the Marne, defeating the French and her allies, and eventually march into Paris. So the bulk of the story is set during a German and eventual Bolshevik occupation of northern France where the characters are struggling to not only stay alive, but also make their way toward the newly established front and cross into allied territory. I don't want to give too much away, but George (one of the MCs who is an American soldier with the American Expeditionary Forces) is given the chance to set things right but must sacrifice maybe more than he's willing to give up in order to do it.

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    2. Sounds fascinating, Sarah, and it's going on my list right now!

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    3. Thank you, Deborah!

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  13. Congratulations, Sarah, on your new book. At first I wasn't sure what I thought about writing for your audience and pulling back on gritty detail. It seemed a bit like compromising the truth. But, then I gave it more thought and decided that maybe it's not a bad idea to think about what your readers can handle or want to handle. And, showing the effects of the horror is what drives the story. So, I can see where there might be a line not to cross when relating the cause of a character's emotional scarring. I don't envy you or other authors the struggle to balance all that. One thing I'm absolutely certain of is that no dogs (or cats) should be killed in a book. I just read a YA book where a dog died, due to nefarious circumstances, and I thought that someone, preferably an editor, should have stopped that inclusion.

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    1. Hi Kathy - I hear you about the dogs! My editor was more adamant that we take that scene out (or at least change it) than to change the torture scenes! There was pretty much no room for negotiation with that!

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  14. Well... yes, I understand "much too graphic". Once I was reading a novel by an author I really enjoyed when I hit a specific sentence, He could see his hands lying in a corner of the room like a pair of castoff gloves. And I was finished, not just with the book, but also with the author. I never picked up another book by that author. Maybe it was just me, but it was "too much".

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    1. I have certain triggers like that as well. I guess most people do. Sometimes something just hits me the wrong way and I can't go back to it. Which is why as an author I think it's not a bad idea to tame down those scenes. You just never know how it's going to affect people.

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  15. The story sounds amazing and the cover makes me swoon - so fabulous. Congrats, Sarah!

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