characters | characters
Sep.04.2008
I became a character in his creation.
I had known him for almost ten years. It was a long-distance friendship that took its time growing. He was certainly not just another reader, although that is how we first 'met'. I found him to be perceptive and sensitive. The fact that he was a published...
|
Aug.22.2008
It's very hard to introduce a new character into a series.
Honestly, that's not true. It's easy to introduce a new character into a series. The difficulty lies in bringing said new character to life, giving them a purpose, a role, a reason. Doing it seamlessly is what's so hard to pull off.
There....
|
Aug.06.2008
Some of you were recently tagged in a meme to reveal eight things about yourselves. I’m tagging Alice, one of my main characters in Shiva’s Arms. Why not? When I was developing her, I made a biography for her, a useful tool for finding motivations and making connections.For instance, she has a...
|
Jul.26.2008
I've been reading the ARC of When Danger Calls. It's a different kind of reading, and requires a totally different mindset. It's not the same kind of editing I do with my critique groups, because at this point, it's strictly a 'typo or glaring error' read. It's hard not to want to make it better. I...
|
Jul.18.2008
Settings -Characters - Plots
Question of the day
Whatever happened to setting?
Much modern fiction, especially best sellers, seem to be content to add a famous place name here or merely mention one in a catchy pop tune there, calling for some sort of Pavlovian reaction on the part of the reader...
|
Jun.25.2008
It was Groucho Marx's mustache which enhanced the fact I'm a Google slut.
A character in the screenplay I'm writing referred to his mustache and said it was taped on. This is a long-ago nugget of information which this humble author thought he knew. However, best to make sure, and that's what...
|
Jun.11.2008
It's been a long time since I've blogged here, mainly because I've been writing a book that's due September 1.
I signed a new, two-book deal with NAL/Obsidian for a new mystery series. By writing this new series, I'm violating that tried and true rule of Write What You Know.
The new series features...
|
Jun.10.2008
In the first novella of Paul Theroux’s new The Elephanta Suite, he introduces the Blundens. Already I see them blundering. Should I? What’s in a name anyway, when it comes to naming characters in fiction? I collected some do-and-don’ts to see how the names in Shiva’s Arms stack up:
A name can give...
|
Jun.06.2008
I have written many plays with well-known characters. Sherlock Holmes is fictional and his creator, Arthur Conan Doyle was, of course, a real person. Using well-known people is a two-edged sword. Your audeince/readers may know something, even a lot about the characters before the play/book begins....
|
May.03.2008
As I writer, I’m fascinated by human motivation. Lately I’ve been really interested in how we respond to fear. A friend of mine said the other day, “sometimes you have to be the bad guy.” That struck a chord with me on several levels. No one wants to be the bad guy. Okay, maybe someone does, but...
|