How are you similar to one of the main characters of your novel?

      Death. Death is the common factor that I share with Lindsay and Buckley Salmon two characters in my book "The Lovely Bones" by Alice Sebold. Their eldest sister, Susie, was murdered, and now not only are Buckley and Lindsay left to face the hardships of the mysterious murder of their sister, but the whole family is. As a child, close to Buckley's age, my older brother passed away. His untimely passing, much like Susie's, left a huge impact on me and my family. The suffering that Susie's parents face is much like the suffering that my own parents faced. I lived through it. It's easy for me to relate, mostly to Buckley because he is close to the age that I was at when my own brother passed. It's hard to fully understand what is happening at that age... you just think that they're on some sort of extended vacation. You see everyone around you struggling to smile for you, and although you're young you know this, you know when someone isn't truly happy. You do what you can to comfort them, to make them smile again, because you miss their smile. At one point in my novel, Buckley found Susie's dad sitting on the floor in Susie's bedroom, crying. Buckley was unsure of what to do, and Susie's dad called him over and they sat together. Susie's dad clung to Buckley and reminded him how special he is to him. Buckley just nodded head seriously and kissed his father on the cheek. I did something much like this when my brother passed away and I found my mom crying on the staircase the day I got home from school. I went up to her, I hugged her and I told her everything would be okay. She tried to explain to me what had happened but I had troubles understanding her... however as I looked around me and saw my family all together in the living room, and a house full of grieving strangers I knew that something awfully horrible had happened, and that from now on our lives would be missing something. I imagine this is how Buckley must feel too, therefore it is very easy for me to be able to put myself in not only his position but Lindsay's and Susie's parents positions as well. Losing a family member is not an easy thing. Watching your family go through a loss like this at a young age, and growing up with other peoples' memories of a person you should remember, you wish you could remember, but you just simply just can't remember changes you, forever.