Monthly Archives: August 2016

How to Give Supporting Characters Character

One of the chief complaints I’ve noticed in recent reviews on Amazon is flat one-dimensional side characters. There is a simple way to correct this problem. All individuals are motivated by self-interest. A man–or a woman–will act in ways that … Continue reading

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Two Little Frogs

There were two little frogs who fell into milk pots One tread milk, the other did not One went under and died, the other churned butter and thrived Never give up! by

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Your Murderer’s Motive

In the board game Clue, you attempt to discover who the murderer is, what weapon he or she used, and in what room the foul act was committed. But you are never asked WHY he or she felt compelled to … Continue reading

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Provoke a Thirst

All of the authors who have ever been on the bestseller list had one thing in common–they produced a product the public wanted. Some writers chase the latest trend. They write shifter romances because shifter romances are the hot thing. … Continue reading

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Imported Scripts

“Cindy Jones gave up on love, years ago, when her high school sweetheart, Biff Biffington, cheated on her with her best friend, Laura. Though crushed in spirit, she soldiered on, making a life for herself in the big city. A … Continue reading

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Who’s Your Hero?

One of the cardinal rules of writing a good book is carefully determining who (or what) is your best choice for a main character. Think of the Harry Potter Series. What would it have been like, say, if Hermoine had … Continue reading

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Character Study: Class 1

This blog post, and the three that follow it, will study characters from a novel by Maria Edgeworth called The Absentee (1812). The story begins with Lord Colambre, the hero of the novel, overhearing some of his mother’s supposed friends … Continue reading

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Making It Real

To draw your readers into your story, fully exploit their senses. 1. Quality. The dress was lemon yellow. The bath was scalding. The gum ball was sour. 2. Intensity. The tea was far stronger when Grandma made it. Susie’s ball … Continue reading

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Educating Your Character

Let’s say you are writing a book about a tyro skateboarder, whose big dream is to win a local contest with a lucrative cash prize. Let’s call him Ezekiel. Zek buys a Razor G RipStik Extreme Grinding Machine off a … Continue reading

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Habits as Characterization

We all have habits–and those habits, good or bad, define us in the eyes of others. The girl who is always late for work, the boy who never says “thank you”, the couple who drop in on their friends–and stay … Continue reading

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