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Author in NYC working on YA novel about epilepsy
Wed, 09/23/2015 - 11:55Hello,
My name is Stacy Pershall, and I'm an author and writing teacher in NYC. If you'd like to look me up, I wrote a book called Loud in the House of Myself, and I teach for the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth.
I'm currently at work on a novel in which the main character is a 15-year-old girl with epilepsy. Her first seizure is triggered by a strobe light. In order to make the medical aspects of the book as accurate as possible, I've been talking with Derek Chong at the NYU Medical Center. However, I really want to talk to teens with photosensitive epilepsy about what their seizures are like and what sorts of medical tests they had the first time they had one.
If any adults reading this post experienced photosensitive seizures in the '80s, I'd be interested in talking to you too. The book is set in 1985, and I'm having trouble finding information about how testing has changed since then.
It's very important to me that I convey your experience accurately, without sensationalizing or incorrect information. If you'd be willing to speak with me, you can email me -- my address is my username (first initial, last name) at gmail.com.
Thank you so much to anyone who's willing to share with me! I promise credit in the book, and I'll happily knit you a hat. :)