- Joined
- Nov 10, 2012
- Messages
- 188
- Reaction score
- 25
- Location
- Fort Stewart, GA
- Website
- www.jennygaines.wordpress.com
Hey everybody,
I would appreciate some advice. I have in my possession about 200 letters written by my Grandmother (mostly to her father) during her Red Cross service in England and France during World War II. She died of breast cancer before I was ever born, and I wish I could have known her, but I feel blessed to have these letters.
She met my Grandfather, a First Sergeant in the U.S. Army, in Europe during the war.
I came upon the idea of using her letters as inspiration for a book. I've read through several (most are very hard to read due to her scrawly cursive) and most seem very slice-of-life for a Red Cross girl over there. She was not a nurse - she worked at some sort of club at one of the Army posts.
Her letters are very enjoyable to read the way she describes the things she's experienced. She wrote to her father several times a week. If you were in my situation and had a treasure trove of original WWII letters, would you:
a) Write a book using the letters, keeping it in epistolary format (but changing the names)
b) Write a book, but transform the letters into more of a narrative (not sure if that's the right term, but like in 3rd person or 1st person - also changing the names)
I would change the names to avoid legal stuff with family (I do not want to interact with the related family members) - her three sons, my Uncles, I have pretty much disowned because of the fact that their sister, my Mother, lives in a permanent care home due to 4 strokes and multiple brain surgeries and is a quadriplegic now (she is 61! Her life is the worst tragedy to me). They have never once visited her, called her, or called me/my sister about her. Understandably, I do not want to have anything to do with them anymore.
I would appreciate some advice. I have in my possession about 200 letters written by my Grandmother (mostly to her father) during her Red Cross service in England and France during World War II. She died of breast cancer before I was ever born, and I wish I could have known her, but I feel blessed to have these letters.
She met my Grandfather, a First Sergeant in the U.S. Army, in Europe during the war.
I came upon the idea of using her letters as inspiration for a book. I've read through several (most are very hard to read due to her scrawly cursive) and most seem very slice-of-life for a Red Cross girl over there. She was not a nurse - she worked at some sort of club at one of the Army posts.
Her letters are very enjoyable to read the way she describes the things she's experienced. She wrote to her father several times a week. If you were in my situation and had a treasure trove of original WWII letters, would you:
a) Write a book using the letters, keeping it in epistolary format (but changing the names)
b) Write a book, but transform the letters into more of a narrative (not sure if that's the right term, but like in 3rd person or 1st person - also changing the names)
I would change the names to avoid legal stuff with family (I do not want to interact with the related family members) - her three sons, my Uncles, I have pretty much disowned because of the fact that their sister, my Mother, lives in a permanent care home due to 4 strokes and multiple brain surgeries and is a quadriplegic now (she is 61! Her life is the worst tragedy to me). They have never once visited her, called her, or called me/my sister about her. Understandably, I do not want to have anything to do with them anymore.