The Fiction That Feels Like Memory

Marty

Several years ago, a former classmate read one of my blog posts and—without hesitation—declared that Marty, the central female character in the  Reunion Duology, had to be based on a real girl. She was so certain, in fact, that no amount of authorly denial could sway her.

Why? Because, in her words, “Jim’s feelings for Marty were just so strong.”

I’ve been turning that over in my head ever since. To be clear: Marty is fictional. She’s not a thinly veiled version of anyone I knew well—though her physical appearance was inspired by a classmate I barely spoke to, someone whose yearbook photo struck a quiet chord fifteen years later. That image became a door I stepped through in 1998 to imagine a character who was vivid, smart, guarded, hopeful—and, yes, magnetic enough to pull someone like Jim Garraty into her orbit.

If Marty feels real, it’s because I poured a good deal of emotional truth into her, even if the details are invented. She’s stitched together from memory, from imagination, and from the stories I needed to tell at the time. Maybe, just maybe, that’s the reason she resonates.

Funny how fiction can feel more familiar than memory sometimes

So, to my classmate: thank you. Your certainty tells me I did something right.

 

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