The Dear Jane Club

The story of an unlikely friendship between four different women who all received a type of “Dear Jane” letter.

I’ve already written a short article on “Dear Jane” letters, which, of course, are similar in content to “Dear John” letters. I am in the process of writing a fictional story set during the end of WWII that follows the lives of four women who each receive a letter stating, in various ways, that their significant other will not be returning to them.

I love listening to people’s stories — their life experiences, their laughter, and their tears. The stuff that makes up history; the foundation of a life lived. Many of my stories have hints of things I’ve heard someone say. Some of the characters I create possess qualities of people I’ve met. I listen constantly, watch people, and sometimes those actions, words, or looks find their way into a story I write.

For example, I once read in an obituary about a woman and her husband and how they would go on dates “back in the day.” They would walk down the street hand in hand in a small little town in Georgia, and while talking, they would count how many streetlights were out that night. I’m sure they stopped under a few of those streetlights that were out.

Writing, like other art forms, allows you as the creator to immortalize those you like or don’t like — those who have hurt you or those who have blessed you. You get to tell the story how you see it, felt it, or lived it.

Lillian is one of those characters in The Dear Jane Club. My great-grandmother’s name was Lillian, and although she’s not based on her, I chose the name because it reminded me of something old, far away, and, on a different level, unattainable. The character in the book is a young woman — ambitious and smart. She lives with her father, who is sickly and feeling the effects of a life filled with struggles. He worked hard, took care of his wife and growing family, but his labor so early on, coupled with the death of his wife and a broken heart, left him frail and sickly.

Lillian is young and hasn’t yet left home, although she’s dating a young man who is off fighting in the war. The longer the war drags on, the less interested he seems in her — and in what’s waiting for him at home.

Her character is introduced in Chapter 2.

The next chapter, Chapter 3, is about an overwhelmed mother with two wild children who run her ragged. She works hard, helps her community, and is tirelessly waiting for her husband to come home from the war.