We decided to venture into creative writing with our first novel “Who Cares? because we wanted to tell a story about the care sector which has been under the media spotlight over the last few years. We became aware of the need for improved care for the elderly through witnessing the experiences of all four of our parents. Two parents eventually became residents in care homes, and we noted both the excellent support and the less effective elements of care offered to vulnerable dependants. We also spent months visiting parents daily in hospital, receiving magnificent attention in Intensive Care Units but less impressive care on general wards. All these experiences inspired us to tell the story of a principal character who became a patient in hospital and then a resident of a care home. Unlike the usual expectation that all care home residents are elderly our character was younger but still in urgent need of support. We drew on our parents’ experiences in developing the plot, but we feel that the issues they faced are generally relevant to everybody. Covid 19 has shown how difficult it is to restore health to those who are severely ill. We hope our novel informs and intrigues the reader. We also hope that it encourages people to reflect on what, with more imaginative planning, could become a more rewarding life for the residents in care.
“Who Cares?” is a family saga, a story of love, tragedy and betrayal, so it’s about the challenges ultimately faced by all of us at the different stages in our lives.
Jo Leonard 