Page 63 - Novelist Post – J.D. Barker and more

will assist them in understanding how life is for those who do have impairments.
Can you share a particularly memorable moment from your global travels with a disability?
There have been some lovely people who have assisted me, es- pecially in the UK, and there have been some awful things that happe- ned, such as recently being denied boarding a plane because I did not register my scooter 48 hours in advance! That was a shock, a result of a new regulation most airlines ignore. But a farcical experience was being pushed in a wheelchair up the long conveyor ramp at Orly airport in Paris, when the attendant dumped me out on the floor on arri- ving at the top; he didn’t know how to lift the front wheels up over a ridge at the end of the belt. People were coming up behind us and I was piled on the floor... I wasn’t hurt, but it was like something out of a Marx Brothers movie.
How has your involvement in the ADA Accessibility Committee informed your writing or advocacy?
I would have to say that my knowledge has informed the committee more than my being with them has informed me or my writing. I was asked to join because of my lifelong disability and my experiences, which are valuable in looking at how the city will make installations or other improvements for disabled people.
What role does your writing group, Just Write Marin County, play in your creative process?
My writing group has been a gre- at support in my accomplishment. I started the group in 2013 because I was not getting enough done on my first book. I then began dedicating a minimum of four hours a week (but usually more) to the memoir and in three or four years I had a finished book. The writers have varied over the years, but there is always a core group; we share our triumphs and difficulties and sometimes share our writing. This group was started particularly to assist in producing, for people who were either not wri- ting enough or who wanted to write in the company of other writers.
What advice would you give to other authors who want to turn personal experiences into compelling stories?
Read, read, read, especially vibrant works. The more you read, the better your writing will be. And show, don’t tell. My editor taught me to use scenes and dialogue to make my memoir more alive and colorful, and I use that technique in most of my writing now. Characters become more vivid when we get
to know them by what they do and say, not by what the author may
tell us about them. I think of one popular book I started to read years ago, which in one paragraph early in the tome used the word “won- derful” twice to describe a man. I closed the book and didn’t bother reading the rest. That’s a lazy way to write! That kind of word might be acceptable if it came out of the mouth of a character; we then learn that the person uses superlatives when speaking. Lastly, employ a thesaurus to make sure you use the most specific and evocative words possible.
Living with the aftereffects of polio
taught me how much strength we can find through adaptation and creativity.
– Francine Falk-Allen
Photo: Francine Falk-Allen, author and advocate, shares her inspiring journey of resilience, creativity, and storytelling with Novelist Post magazine.
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