Someone asked me today if I ever ask people if I can write about them. I told the person, it never occurred to me to ask.

I rarely write about a person as a whole person. I take a little bit of this and a little bit of that and I create a whole new character.

But even if I used the majority of the personality traits and quirks and characteristics, there’s little danger of them recognizing themselves.

The truth is people rarely see themselves as others see them.

So – when I have written about that rare person – name changed – they never even suspected.

And, if I’m not slandering, endangering their job, family, or life, or using their real name, and they can barely recognize themselves as I or others see them, there is little to no chance of getting sued.

The sad fact is that I’ve created characters who some people identified with and had the mistaken impression that it was a reflection of them. It wasn’t.

Creating characters and writing about people is art.

Understanding who you are and how others see you as opposed how you see yourself takes a lifetime of understanding misunderstandings.