More than Writers

Image Credits:  Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay images. Contrasts are great in stories. An obvious one to use is that of light and dark. Which of your characters will be “light”? Which will be “dark” in terms of attitude and behaviour? Could your story explore them going to the “dark” or coming over to the “light”? Star Wars famously played on this theme when it came to the Jedi “force”.  We are believers in redemption and our stories (and articles) can reflect on that. Stories often hold a mirror up to our foibles. Jesus shared His message so often through stories. People remember stories. What could your readers (potential or otherwise) take from your character’s redemption story? Does your character realise they are on the “dark side” and see the need to escape it? What or whom makes them face up to the need to change? What obstacles, including their weaknesses, could get in the way? Answering those questions will trigger ideas.  I think most of us, aware o...

Image Credits: Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. The Easter story is the greatest of all time but, within it, I have favourites. One is that of Mary mistaking Jesus for the gardener. You can picture it. Blinded by her grief, she literally couldn’t see who the man was. It was only when He spoke, she knew Him. We understand her here.   Little details in our stories will help convince a reader our characters could be real. There are plenty of little details in the Biblical stories which, for me, cement their truthfulness.  Someone would have queried the resurrection. It was and is an incredible story. It was unexpected for the disciples despite Jesus telling them about it repeatedly! They hadn’t taken it in. Mind you, I know I would’ve been the same. The story of Doubting Thomas makes the resurrection more real to me. I like to think of that as his ministry in a way. I always wonder if Jesus visited His mother after the resurrection. The Bible doesn’t say but I w...

Image Credit:  Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos Regardless of what the weather might be doing by the time this post goes out, we can say hurrah, spring is now back with us (well at least it is here in the UK!). I love the lighter evenings though the darker nights of winter do encourage me to stay at my desk longer and get more writing done. But there is something about spring which simply lifts the mood and I was wondering if you use that as part of your characterisation. Can you show us in your stories how a character is “lifted”? Can you show how spring affects them?  A reader will sympathise with a character who loves the spring flowers but is prone to hayfever (good potential for a humorous piece there I’d have thought. Bear in mind this is written by someone with a beautiful lilac in her garden which has a heavenly scent. Said writer can’t resist having a good sniff. Said writer ends up sneezing for ages afterwards! You would think said writer would learn...

Image Credit:  Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos We all have favourite characters. I love Sam Gamgee from The Lord of The Rings . He’s a quietly understated hero. I love characters like that.  I love Elizabeth Bennet from Pride and Prejudice for not caving into expectations when she rejected the odious Mr Collins. It would’ve been  much easier for her to just do what her family wanted. It’s hard to say who my overall favourite character is but a strong contender is Sam Vimes from Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series.  Over several books, Sam Vimes develops from being an alcoholic loser to becoming a brave, honourable man. Not perfect by any means but there is a decent man here and it is a joy to see this played out.  If you want to examine great characterisation, he is a fabulous one to follow. Start with Guards! Guards! and work your way through. Have fun! What can we learn from our favourite characters? Firstly, we can look at how the authors por...

Image Credit:  Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. I associate spring with new life, a world reborn, light overcoming dark winter, and energy as I see growth around me. How can this apply to our writing? It can apply to the mood of our writing. Spring is generally upbeat. So our writing can be upbeat. Some of the most positive stories are about characters who overcome darkness and come into the light.      There is no room for twee writing, ever. Something has to happen so your story is a story. A tale where Character A overcomes the situation they’re in will keep a reader hooked and you too as you write it. It is always a good sign when you want to find out what happens!  I say that as someone who plans their characters and what I must know about them. I don’t plan out every detail. I give myself manoeuvre room, space for creativity to kick in, and a “live” character will take you on their journey with them. You’re the first who wants to see wha...

  Image Credit:  Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. Which aspect of writing is your favourite?  I mentioned in a tweet on @ACW1971 I feel relief when I “hit the ground running” with my latest character because by this point I know them well enough to know they do have a story to tell. I’ve learned to accept it is their story. I am the conduit through which their voice is heard. That has proved, for me, to be the way to make sure my author voice doesn’t get in the way. What a reader reads is what my character feels, sees, thinks, and experiences. Writing to a strict word count for flash fiction helps a lot too. I must keep to the point as must my character!  I feel an even greater relief once I’ve got the first draft down because I’ve got something I can work with and improve. It will need improving - a lot!  It took me a while to accept the first draft is not meant to be perfect. It can’t be by its nature. You are, to quote the late great Terry P...

With the exception of one blog post for Chandler’s Ford Today and briefly here, I’m not planning to write about coronavirus. I am one of those writers and readers who, when trouble strikes, looks for comfort or light relief (or  both) so I turn to Terry Pratchett and P.G. Wodehouse to make me laugh. And when I just want to smile because it is irony I’m after I return to a certain Miss Austen. Wherever your stories are set, readers should be able to understand what drives your characters. Pixabay There is a place of course for writing about what is going on around us but I know it isn’t for me. If I have any mission with my writing, it is to try to entertain others. We all need somewhere to escape when life gets too much and for me that has always been in three worlds:  stories (reading and writing them), music (especially classical), and chocolate. What all characters should have. Pixabay image. I believe I have to be true to myself when I write. I won’t force ...