Can a childless woman write believable stories about
pregnancy, babies and raising children? That’s something I often wonder as I
write my novels and stories. In my most recent book, nobody has babies. My main
character, PD, and her late husband were never able to conceive. The people she
interacts with either don’t have kids or have children who are grown up. That’s
pretty much what my life is like, too, although PD’s story is not about me.
I recently read a wonderful book by Oregon
author Monica Drake called The Stud Book. It’s not what you think. The title
comes from the records zookeepers keep of the animals’ mating and breeding
activities. However, in addition to the zoo animals the character Sarah is
monitoring, she and her friends are all dealing with babies. Sarah keeps having
miscarriages but desperately wants a baby. Georgie just
gave birth to her first child, and Nyla has two older kids but is now
pregnant again. The author, who is a mom, describes their experiences in such
great detail that it’s obvious she has experienced this stuff. The chapters
about Georgie and her new baby are so real they must have been based on real
life. Drake seems to know exactly how the C-section stitches feel, how the
breasts feel when she’s nursing, and how it feels when the baby’s skin touches
her own.
I don’t know these things. I can guess. I can imagine. I can
ask other people to describe them. I can read and search the Internet, but down
deep, I’m faking it. Does that mean I can never create fictional characters who
have babies? Then again, can I write about men, people of color, people of
different religions, people working jobs I’ve never done, or people younger or
older than I am? I hope, with enough imagination and research, I can write
about all kinds of fictional characters, but I wonder if that’s true.
What do you think?
