Life As An Inspiration

Life comes at us pretty fast sometimes, and often times, those events that throw us for a loop are the ones we find the most inspiration in. This was definitely the case when my husband was told that he was being deployed to Iraq. We had plenty of notice, so our lives were not turned upside down, but my worries sure ate away at me.

The summer before he was to leave, I was jogging down Route 6 in Wellfleet, Massachusetts, and, as I always do when I jog, I was thinking. I wondered what each day would be like while he was so far away, and how the kids would get along without my husband. My mind wandered further, and I thought about where he was going, and the risks involved during his pending deployment. My husband is a physician, so I knew he would be in a fairly safe location. However, somehow “fairly safe” did not sit well with me, and I was hounded by thoughts and worries of the worst case scenario–what if he did not to return?

I’m a big believer in intuition, so it was easy for me to carve out my own belief–I would know if my husband were dead. I would feel it–and parlay that to my character, Tess Johnson. There is no doubt that my husband’s looming deployment played a major role in the inspiration for COME BACK TO ME, and the deployment also offered the perfect avenue for thorough research. I was able to gain information from local Iraqi residents as well as visiting soldiers.

Every aspect of life feeds my curiosity. What feeds yours? Visit Melissa’s website

Melissa Foster is the award-winning author of three International bestselling novels, Megan’s Way, Chasing Amanda, and Come Back to Me. Shehas also been published in Indie Chicks, an anthology. She is the founder of the Women’s Nest, a social and support community for women, and the World Literary Cafe, a literary community. Melissa is currently collaborating in the film production of Megan’sWay and hard at work on her next novel. View Melissa’s Books on Amazon