Recently I hosted a little gathering at our local library and talked about my books and fiction writing. One of the questions I was asked during the workshop was how do I make my characters seem so real? What are the secrets to creating characters that seem to walk off the page? All of us […]
Do You Think I’m Crazy ‘Cause My Characters Talk to Me?
Okay let’s be clear, I’m a sane person. Or, at least as sane as the next guy. Nonetheless, I imagine my characters directing my stories. Yep, they tell me what to do. I’ve tried to direct them, but that usually leads to a dead end. Some people call that dead end writer’s block. But, in […]
Changing Your Character’s Name #Writingtips
When I begin a new book, I often stumble over the character’s names #writingtips Click To Tweet It’s very hard to name a character when you know little about them. Even writing a character bio requires my giving the person a name. And, that name then becomes part of the individual I’ve created. The name […]
What Are Your Characters Eating?
Do authors need to spend lots of time describing the hamburger their main character is eating? The juicy delight of a succulent tomato sandwich? The cool refreshment of lemonade? How much is too much? In my opinion the food must have a purpose in your story #amwriting Click To Tweet In other words, if it […]
Tips for Writing from your Imagination
I recently finished reading, My Name is Lucy Barton, by Elizabeth Stout. This Pulitzer-Prize-winning author created a compelling story in this new novel. I plan to review it next week. Meantime, I wanted to examine how writers write from their imagination. Terry Gross on the nationally acclaimed radio program, Fresh Air, asked Stout if the […]
#Tips for Creating a Supporting Cast
As creators or fiction, we must develop believable characters #writingtips Click To Tweet Often we focus on our heroes and villains and rightly so. But, we must also think about those people in the background. How important are they to our story? What are they like and how do they move the story along? The […]
When Your Hero becomes Your Villain #Inkripples
The hero/villain dichotomy has become very blurred in recent years #inkripples Click To Tweet With the rise of Walter White in Breaking Bad, heroes become villains and vice versa. Do you find yourself reading a book and rooting for the bad guy? If so, the writer has done a nice job of reversing roles. The […]
How do Writers Choose Character Names? Some Tips
One of the biggest problems in writing is developing names for the various characters #amwriting Click To Tweet When we write a book, a fully grown person pops up. They have a history and a life that we know nothing about. Who are these people? What is their history and what in the world do […]
How Do Your Characters Handle the Holidays?
With the holidays right on our doorstep, I thought it was a good time to look at the timing in your books. How do your characters handle the holidays? Do they purchase gifts? Do they see family members they may only see once a year. If you write murder mysteries, do tempers rise and murders […]
A Mystery with a Bad Good-Guy
I’m reading a mystery, Jo Nesbo’s The Son, with a bad good guy. I find myself cheering for him when he kills worse bad guys. But, he tends to kill them in the same way they’ve killed others, which isn’t pretty. It started me thinking about what creates suspense #amreading #amwriting Click To Tweet Usually […]
