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Tag Archives: Characters

The Story Question

16 Jul

As you may have surmised from my last post Pick a Story and Write, I have been battling with my Muse about my novel. In an effort to get back on track I went back to the beginning. No, not the opening scene, the real beginning. I opened up my writer’s notebook and re-read my story question. Story question? Yes, story question. What is this story about? Who is involved? What is the major plotline? What is the major conflict that needs to be overcome? Sometimes it’s called your elevator sales pitch. You know, you step into an elevator at a convention and standing there is the editor-in-chief of the publishing house of your dreams. It’s just the two of you and you decide to pitch your idea for a story. You have 12 floors to sell it. If it works you end up with a mutli-book contract. If you fail, your only route is self publishing. What do you say? If you have created the story question, you have half a chance. The story question is the 30,000 foot level view of your story. You shouldn’t give the details away. But you need enough the capture the person’s attention.

Since I’m not quite ready to pitch my story to the editor of my dreams, I use the story question to help keep me focused on where I wanted to go in the first place. When I review my story question, I ask myself, is the story I’m writing and the story question on the same track? Am I keeping with the flavor of the initial idea? Is the new direction better than what I originally intended? Do I need to modify the question or the story?

I strongly suggest that if you have not already done, take some time and craft a story question for your current project. Or, if you have a project that died too soon, try to craft a question for that story and see where you may have gone wrong with it.

My question has changed slightly since I first crafted it. However, the main points are still the same. Everytime I read it, I get a feeling of excitement that helps me press onward. I can see the individual scenes that need to take place to answer the question.

Here is my story question for “Smoke and Goblet”:

When a master thief tries to fence a stolen item, he finds out that it is not just another bauble but also, a phylactery that contains the source of all fear. The situation deteriorates when he finds out that the previous owner stole the item from a necromancer with an insatiable appetite for creating new thralls. With the necromancer, the previous owner, and even his own fence wanting him dead, can the thief find a way to dispose of the object without becoming dead, or worse and still make a profit?

I would love to read some of your story questions. Sell me on your idea. I have a twelve floor elevator ride to listen to you. 🙂

 
7 Comments

Posted by on July 16, 2012 in Other Strangeness

 

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Pick a story and write.

09 Jul

Dear Dennis,

As your muse I am asking you, no, begging you to pick a story idea and just write it. I have giving you world-class plot ideas, fascinating, multi-layered characters, and exotic locations only to watch you turn them over for a few weeks, maybe write a scene or two, and then set them aside in favor of a newer idea. It takes a lot of effort for me to create the ideas I send you. I would hope you would show me the courtesy of at least following through on one of them.

Frustrated,

Your Muse

Dear Muse,

I appreciate your concern and frustration. However, if you would just stop giving me new material to consider, I could concentrate on finishing one idea. Perhaps you could do what all those other muses do and provide inspiration for the whole story and not just layout a scene or two leaving me with a blank screen and 50,000 words to find on my own. There is supposed to be a beginning, a middle, and an end. Sure, I know what the plotline is. However, it would be nice if you could help out with the details.

Also, you must understand that I cannot type as fast as you can think. I’m not a touch typist and you should get used to that.

So, get back to work and give me a great gypsy fortune-teller scene.

Ready to write,

Dennis

P.S. You can still work on the Actress and the Warlock from time to time.

 
8 Comments

Posted by on July 9, 2012 in Other Strangeness

 

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How much is too much?

03 Jul

Really? You needed 723 pages to tell this story? Is it me or has the average page count of fantasy novels gotten out of hand? And it’s not just fantasy. Action adventure, historical fiction, romance, I look at the book shelves and all of the books seem to be expanding. Why?

First, let me say that I understand that everyone has their own likes and dislikes when reading a book.

Of the last twenty books I have read, fourteen broke the four-hundred page mark. Three were over five hundred and one was seven hundred twenty-three pages. When I finished this monster I realised I was less entertained than other books I’ve read that were half that size. I’m talking same genre, similar types of characters, similar plots, similar settings. I’m also talking about some of the most successful authors in the fantasy genre.

So, I asked myself why did this extremely successful book fail to live up to my expectations? The main thing that struck me was how many times the entire plotline up to the current time frame was replayed. Every time, each of the multitude of characters stopped to rest, they would replay, in their thoughts, all of the events of their journey up to that point (4-6 pages for each). Doing this for the main character once or maybe twice at a strategic point in the story can emphasize the character’s feeling of depression or frustration. But, using it every eight to ten pages for each of eight characters is just boring. I found myself skimming these sections after the first six or seven times. A conservative estimate would indicate that cutting these sections would have reduced the page count by nearly 100 pages! More importantly, removing them would not have taken away from the story. Why would the editor allow this? I am not criticizing the author directly because, for starters, he has sold millions of books and I have not. But as a reader I too have likes and dislikes. I have read well-written tomes that were page turners. I don’t mean flipping several pages ahead to skip the uninteresting character or the replay of the plotline for the umpteenth time. These books used every word to paint the story and move it forward in a meaningful way.

However, back to the original question. Why is it books seem to be getting bigger? It must be economics otherwise the publishing houses would limit the page count. Is it really cheaper to print and distribute 60 epics or 100 books that will still fit in the hip pocket of my jeans? Is longer better?

Interestingly, my brother-in-law just handed me three western novels to read. the Average page count is 160! Louis L’Amour wrote 89 novels and sold over 120,000,000 copies since his death in 1988. Hmmmmm.

 
16 Comments

Posted by on July 3, 2012 in Musings and Odd Thoughts

 

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The First Person

11 Jun

Most of my reading of late has been by authors, Jim Butcher and Kevin Hearne, who utilize the first person point of view in their urban fantasy series’. I enjoy the intimacy that this POV provides into the protagonist. I feel like I know these characters. I truly feel like I’m in their heads and feeling their pain. Usually, I end up screaming at them, sometimes out loud, that they should do something different because they obviously are too stupid to see what’s coming. My wife tends to look at me with disgust and shake her head when I get too loud. Anyway, I had not given much consideration to writing in first person for my fiction until a few weeks ago. I have written a few first person experiential vignettes but always looked to third person for my fantasy work.

During a writer’s group timed exercise I just started writing in first person. To say it was different would be a gross understatement. I had to keep telling myself to stay out of the secondary character’s heads. My protagonist would have no idea what the other individual was thinking except by watching and listening to other character’s reactions. Why I have not looked at this before is beyond me.

As I began to evaluate the exercise, it dawned on me that first person is a natural vehicle for a fantasy writer. When we fantasize, don’t we tend to put ourselves into the fantastic situation? We don’t know what the outcome will be and we certainly don’t have all the information of the universe at our disposal. We have to react without knowledge of other’s motivations.

The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of taking one of my favorite characters, jump into their body, and take it for a spin without regard to what I think I know about their world. I did create it after all.

First, I plan to take my original exercise piece and finish the scene the way it was playing out in my head when I wrote the opening. It is somewhat different from how my fellow writer finished it (see Dual Writing Exercise – Part Deux).

Then, I think Yursi Sonal, my protagonist from a short story and several flash pieces, will become my experiment. Don’t worry, she won’t mind. In my world, she trusts me. 😉 I have another short story idea for her that I will try with first person.

So, before I plunge headlong into this without a care in the world, I have a few questions for those of you who are intimately familiar with this POV. What are some of the major issues that you have struggled with? E.g. Exposition of information the protagonist needs to know, continuity of antagonist’s motivations and actions, internal dialogue, etc. Do you prefer writing is first or third person? Why?

 
13 Comments

Posted by on June 11, 2012 in Other Strangeness

 

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And this too shall pass…

20 Mar

Some of you may have noticed that my novel progress bar has remained stationary for  some time. Progress has been made. However, the word count has remained relatively static. Progress was made with characterization. I now know who my main character is and what makes him tick, at levels he doesn’t even know exist. Also, #1 antagonist is ready to enter the fray at a similar level of understanding. This information has given me the tools to move forward with the story. Time well spent, I say.

Reason number two for static word count comes in the form of a first chapter rewrite. A few weeks ago, I submitted my draft first chapter to my writing group, TC Fantasy Guild. As usual the comments were helpful and I made a strategic decision to rewrite chapter one so I have a strong beginning to work from. I made the recommended changes and though it still needs some work, I feel comfortable where it is at.

 Now, “If the good Lord is willing and the creek don’t rise”, I will finish up chapter three by the end of the month. After that, I will need to get busy. I would like to attend a writer’s retreat on Lake Superior in September. But I will need considerably more content than I have now before I register. I’ll keep you posted.

It’s time to write. I will give you the back cover summary in a future post.

 
11 Comments

Posted by on March 20, 2012 in Other Strangeness

 

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Character Traits

13 Mar

Last week I provided some commentary on the use of character descriptive tags. I promised that I would follow that up with one regarding character traits. So, let’s clear up the question that I know has kept you awake every night since my last post, “What is the difference between a tag and a trait?”

The correct answer is: It depends on who you ask. But, since this is my post you will get my opinion. Tags are primarily, descriptors of a character’s appearance. These are words you might use to describe a picture of your character to someone else. Hair color or style, eye color of shape, general body type, height, weight, clothing worn, tattoos, scars, jewelry, tools carried, weapons, are all examples of tags.

Traits on the other hand, are those descriptors that make your two-dimensional character jump off the page. In most cases they are action or sensory oriented. Traits help the reader create a motion picture that affects all five of their senses.

Physical:

How does the character move? Does she limp? Does she have grace? Is she a good dancer? Does she routinely trip over her own feet? 

What is the character’s mannerisms, gestures, and expressions? Two of my favorite bloggers have already addressed this, so here are the links to their posts. Carlie Macullen  wrote a wonderful post relating to this group of descriptors. Also, Nicolette Jinks wrote an interesting post on body language. They are certainly must read material.

How does the character sound, smell, feel, and taste? What does his voice sound like? Does she wear perfume or does she reek of garlic? Is his handshake cold and clammy? Does her throat taste like the apricot scrub she used this morning? The more senses you can include, the more real the character will become.

Psychological:

This where you should go back to the volumes of character information you generated at the airport, (See previous post) and dig through your character personality, family history, back story, life crises, etc. What you want to do is find quirks, oddities, phobias, likes, and dislikes that will give your character that extra spark of interest and make them REAL! If you did your home work you should have a boatload to choose from. Decide on a couple to use that help clearly define your character. Clearly, this is where you insert flaws into your character.

Some notable examples include: Indiana Jones was afraid of snakes. Dr. Robert Langdon had claustrophobia from being stuck in a well as a child. Felix Unger was a neat freak. Ocean Eleven’s, Rusty Ryan was constantly eating something.

Don’t be afraid you will hurt your character by making them unusual. Trust me here, we are all unusual. Even identical twins are not truly identical. Otherwise, my trip to the airport would yield a blank notebook.

Like tags, traits can be overused. If a character has too many flaws, the become unbelievable and the reader will get bored. On the flip side, if you don’t use them, your characters will come off flat and uninteresting. This results in the reader getting bored. We all know what happens when a reader gets bored, the book closes. Just like chocolate and alcohol, use tags and traits in moderation.

One more thing, while I’m on the subject, Do not forget your supporting cast. Unless your main characters are interacting with crash-test dummys, add a few tags to your minor characters. It would not be the first time that the ogre”s spanish accented, sword-wielding side-kick cat, became the star of his own story. (I love that movie.)

So, go forth and flaw your characters. Make them real. And please, let me know how it works for you.

 
16 Comments

Posted by on March 13, 2012 in Other Strangeness

 

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Character Tags

08 Mar

The last week or so has been busy to say the least. Sunny southern California looses something when the only time you are outside is to drive from the hotel to the office and back with just enough time to grab a quick dinner and collapse into unconsciousness. The upside of the business trip was the seven and a half hours of plane travel.

Yes, if you follow this blog and you were at the Lindberg Terminal, you know that I was the strange man watching you and taking notes on the way you dress and your behavior. There are some real interesting people out there. 🙂  Now back to the flights.

Having spent two hours collecting “data”, the task before me was to create two in-depth characters. Core personality types soon were expanded to include: family histories, tragic situations, love languages, physical looks, costumes, education, etc. All told there is twenty to thirty pages of notes for each character. This page count will go up dramatically as the writing unfolds. However, it is a good start.

Somewhere over Nebraska, at 36,000 feet, it struck me. From all of this material, what six or seven words or phrases would I use as tags for the characters.  Those descriptive words that help the reader identify who the players are. How do we as writers decide what, of the volumes of physical description, psychological detail, back story, and personal background will we use to create a vivid image in the reader’s mind? Tags are the physical descriptors. I will discuss Traits in a later post.

Physically descriptive tags can create a cliche’. For example: a witch with a wart on her nose, a pointed hat, a broomstick, poison apple, and a black cat familiar. How many stories have you read where the villan has beady eyes and wears black clothes? Or, how about the villan’s bodyguard is a hulking brut with the IQ of a slug and hands like meat cleavers? What turns my stomach is the hero with blond hair, blue eyes, strong chin, six-pack abs.

However, tags can also give the character…well…character. Doesn’t the villan become more disturbing when he looks like the boy next door, wears designer clothes, and is a great cook to boot? The fact that dinner consists of the census taker’s liver and farver beans just adds more flavor to the story. 🙂 Why can’t the hero have a wicked scar across her face, a crippled leg and dress in thrift store cast offs?. The hero in one detective show I watched as a child was short, always wore a rumpled trench coat, smoked a cigar, and came across as extremely forgetful. Yet, he always figured out who the murderer was and usually got a confession.

Try to stay away from the cliché’s unless you have a very good reason. To me, cliché’s are boring. I have the attention span of a gnat when I read. If I get bored during the entrance of the main characters, the chances of my finishing the book are slim at best,  

So, use the volumes of character details you have worked so hard on and pick out the most unusual descriptors you have. If you don’t have anything that is unique, go back to the airport and sit there until you do. It should take you all of about two minutes.

Now that you have six or seven interesting  tags, use them. Not just the first time you introduce the character, but often throughout your story. I am not saying to use all six every time the character shows up. but, one or two inserted within the action, help your reader create a picture in their head. When you are finished reading this post, go pick up a book where you really liked the characters and find where the main character is introduced. Look for the tags the author uses. Then flip back a chapter or two and see what tags the author is using. Are they the same tags? Go back a few more chapters and see if the tags are still being used. I will bet you a magic acorn that the author is using the same tags throughout the story. The repetition reinforces the character’s image.

Take a look at your current project and see if adding a few tags will help bring color to your story. Let me know if it works for you.

In an upcoming post, I’ll talk about traits which are the psychological and action descriptors that really bring your character to life.

 
14 Comments

Posted by on March 8, 2012 in Other Strangeness

 

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