 Before she began writing it, Koen envisioned creating a story about the relationship between a young woman and an older man, a plot element riddled with emotional tension that required much planning and foresight.Koen also sought to create a story that featured issues relevant to contemporary women, such as the non-existence of "legal rights.If a husband wanted to beat his wife to death he could do it, and if her parents didn't care... No birth control.