My Process for Writing (Z Minor)

Doesn’t matter if it is a short story or a novel – they all start with an idea. Some ideas are big like an historical fact or could be just a couple of words. Anything to start me thinking of characters, plots, and what if.

Once I take the idea I start thinking title. I have to have a working title, I think it keeps me grounded in the story. I must admit the title usually doesn’t change over time it takes to write the story – be it years, months or just weeks. In some ways I believe the title is most important as it can draw readers to your finished book.

After the title comes the characters, big and small. I heard one teacher call them fat characters - very developed, and skinny characters - they come on to the page and go off without much fanfare. Names of my main characters I have to have before I start writing. Other characters names I find as I write them into my story. I get names from phone books, there still is a use for phone directories besides being a great door stop. I also use magazines and baby books names. I have a good assortment, some even tell the origin of the first name and what nationality they are from. Last names I find in phone books or sometimes I find them looking at the assortment of books in my office. Many times I might not even need a last name, it all depends on the story line.

I also do an in-depth interview of my main characters before I start writing. I want to know something about them and their lives up to the point the story starts. Gives me ideas as to how they would react under certain circumstances. I ask about their families, what they like or don’t like. What is their pet peeve? - you can bet whatever it is will find its way into the story one way or another.

I usually write two to three chapters to see if I think I have a good work in progress. If so, I write the first draft straight through. By the end of the book I really know my characters and how they reacted to the plot etc. I go back and start the rewrite process and many times I use information found in the later chapters to flesh out the story more and in the process it can give it more depth. I have also started to do a little more plotting with the rewrite. I make sure all the loose ends are tied up, is the plot believable, and add anything that seems to move the story to a strong conclusion. All this works for me. Best of luck with your writing.  

Z. Minor

Author of Historical Romantic & Contemporary Suspense Novels

Where Do My Characters Come From? (Z Minor)

Where Do My Characters Come From?

Z. Minor

Author of Historical Romantic & Contemporary Suspense Novels.

First I have to have a title for my novel and determine what year the story is going to take place before I can think of any characters and their names. Names have to fit the time period especially historical novels. I have discovered doing research over the years, people and their actions haven’t changed much. Since the beginning of time people have loved, hated, cheated, and killed for numerous reasons. The landscape and style of clothes may change, but people and their motives not so much.

Some bestselling novel I have recently read came from recent headlines. Newspapers, newscasts, and magazines not only supply plot ideas but names, character’s motives, and locations for stories.

Once I have settled on a main plot. I can start thinking about the characters who will have an active role and help to shape the outcome of the story. They can be from any walk of life, rich, poor, male, female, and of course children. Animals add another dimension and will also need a name.

Character names come from baby books. Phone book are especially great for last names. If I hear an interesting name I write it down for a later date. I usually only start writing a story with the names for my main characters.

Juletta, my husband’s grandmother’s middle name, is the name of my contemporary heroine in “Artful Deception.” One of Juletta’s friends in the story is named Ray. She has known him since grade school, and calls him Raymo throughout the story. I believe this adds a personal touch just like everyday life.

I do an interview with my main characters and some secondary characters, but only if they appear throughout the entire novel. The depth of the interview depends on how important they are to the story. Some of my main character interviews are done before I start writing a new story and some are done no later than three chapters into the book. By then I know how important the character is going to be and if the story is worth continuing to write. Some interviews I do when a character appears as I am writing a scene.

The interviews usually cover their childhood or some aspects of it, their likes and dislikes. How they got to where they are, when they appear in the story. Lastly what are their dreams for the present and future? In some cases, I want to know how they plan to get where they want to go. Any information that will help me to give the characters added dimension. Most of the time I don’t use many of the facts I garner from the interviews and the reader will never know them. However, I need them to create a believable character.

Names for secondary characters I find when I need a name after I have written them into an important scene. Actions of characters I take from everyday life. Historical newspapers, like “The London Times”, has given me insights into everyday life during its publication. There are many books that show the life and time of a given time period. There are also dictionaries such as “Dictionary of the Old West” 1850 to 1900 which can help with dialogue.

Names are interesting to me and I have found them while on vacation, reading a book, and meeting new people. My characters actions are many times from something I have seen, read about, remembered from way back when, or heard second hand. I am a people watcher as I think most writers are.

So Beware!! Your actions and your name just might just find their way into one of my books.

Where do your characters come from? (Kathy Pritchett)

The blog topic for February is Where do your characters come from? Some days, I wish I knew.

           Take Scott Aylward, the hero of my upcoming novel What the River Knows. The idea for the book and character came to me over 20 years ago, but I didn’t dig it out to work on until the last few years. To come up with a suitable name for a dedicated police officer, I researched baby names, trying to find names that meant guardian or protector. Among the ones I found were Biron, Randy, William, Del and Aylward. I decided Aylward made a good last name, though Del found a home as the first name of Scott’s partner. Because Scott is ADD and tends to wander off task, I chose between Wendell and Scott (both mean wanderer) for his first name. Tell me, doesn’t Scott sound sexier than Wendell?

            For his wife, who is a real witch with a capital B, I searched for names that mean “rules the home.” I found Henrietta and Rica. Since her mother is Mexican, Rica seemed a better fit. She is closely based on the woman I NEVER want to be. Demanding, self-centered, angry. A recent Beta reader decided early on that Scott needed to ditch her.

            Scott’s mentor and “spirit guide” through the book is Al Conrad, a widowed newspaper editor. In its variations, Al means “wise.” Conrad means “honest, brave advisor.” Al is just the guide Scott needs to get through the changes that befall him in the book.

            The victim is named Delia Stillman Enfield. Both Dalia and Stillman mean gentle. Her ex-husband (also referred to as a “starter” husband by a motivational speaker on positive thinking) is a simple man, nicknamed “Joker” like his tattoo. His first name, Ellery, means joker, while his last name, Enfield, means simple. Delia was known as Margaret Stillman in high school but began using her middle name as a first name during college. The name change from Margaret Stillman to Delia Enfield mirrors the metamorphosis she underwent during the transition from teen to adult. Yet her change is not as drastic as that of her best friend.

            As is often the case, the characters in a novel embody traits of the author. Like Scott, I am attention deficit disordered (which is why I would never make a good cop. It’s not healthy to be holding a gun on a suspect only to be distracted by a squirrel as he’s about to shoot back.) Unlike Scott, I never played football, though I survived a divorce. I also understand the off-duty life of a cop, because I was married to one for 21 years. Like Scott, I often second-guess myself and doubt my competence. Like Scott, I also grew up in a stoic family of hard-working farmers.

            I guess the characters come from within—within the writer and within the story itself. They take on a life of their own and often defy the writer’s plans for them. And some days, they tell a better story than we intended.

My Favorite Heroes and Heroines

Thanks to getting smacked with an asthma attack, I missed my first blog date this month.  I would never do that--smack or miss--to a character.  Well, a villainous character, maybe, but not a hero or heroine.

Not the best segue into a blog about characters, but don't leave just yet.  There's more.  Good or bad, there's more. ;)

Most of us can't come close to knowing how many books we've read over our lifetimes, much less remember even half of the characters in them.  But many of us can talk about our favorite book or books and the characters who inhabited the stories.

I'll skip Trixie Belden and move straight on to more "adult" books.  After several years of swimming around in multiple genres, romance a main one, I fell into horror like a lead brick.  Stephen King horror, to be exact.  I won't go into the several characters in The Stand who had what we could call Starring Roles, but what I will say--and continue to do it often--is that SK knows how to write a character.  He knows how to do it so well that, in The Stand, each character gets chapters of his or her own (POV-wise, that is), and by reading only the first sentence or two, the identity of the POV character is clear...without the mention of the character's name.  No, I did not mix up Stu with Larry or anyone else.  They were clearly two different characters throughout the book.  Because of this, I bow down to Stephen King, Master of Characters.

The thing is, characters make a book.  The plot can be magnificent, the dialogue perfect, and the setting heavenly, but without good characters, who cares?

My trip back into romance from horror was ushered in by my oldest and dearest friend.  (We'll call her "G")  G called me on the phone one day, insisting I listen to the first few pages of the book she'd begun to read.  The problem was, she kept laughing, and it was hard to understand what she read to me, but between her giggles, I managed to grasp enough that even I started laughing.  Afterward, I went out and found my own copy of Susan Elizabeth Phillips' It Had to Be You, and I've never regretted it, having read it so many times I've lost count.

The heroine, Phoebe Sommerville, has just learned she's the owner of her father's football team, the Chicago Stars.  She knows nothing about football.  Phoebe has the body of...well, let's just say she has more than enough in the right places.  Voluptuous describes her best.  What Phoebe doesn't have is faith in herself.  She was her father's biggest disappointment, and he spent as little time with her as possible.  Phoebe plays it both soft and tough (and dumb and sexy) on the outside, and tough as leather (and smart, plus a bit frigid) on the inside, but she steers clear of relationships with men...straight men, anyway.  Gay men pose no problem.  It all goes back to an incident in her childhood.

Tough and sexy lady on the outside, scared child on the inside.   My three favorite SEP books all have that kind of heroine.

Ain't She Sweet's Sugar Beth Carey has that same tough exterior, and once upon a time, it was her interior, too.  But she's had some hard times since then, and she's learned a lot and grown up, leaving her with self-esteem that's seen much better days.  She's so tough that she carries through to nearly the end with that tough-gal attitude, thanks to her inner fears.

Blue Bailey, heroine of Natural Born Charmer, is down and out, with a smart mouth that doesn't stop.  But it isn't that outer exterior that wins over readers (and the hero!).  It's her heart, the thing she doesn't say that won this reader.  But Blue has to learn a lot of lessons, especially how to surrender, to get her happy-ever-after.

So there it is.  Tough on the outside, soft on the inside.  The funny thing is, the heroes for these heroines need to be much the same to be able to both keep up with them and keep our interest.  But that's what makes these characters memorable.  That's what makes them real.  As people, we aren't just one type, we're many.  We interact with some people one way, and with other people in another.  As human, we do our best to keep our weaknesses hidden, because if someone were to ever guess...  Well, you get the idea.  And that's the kind of heroines AND heroes I like to read.  I also like humor along with the angst.  Let me wring my hands one minute, then laugh at something the character said or thought the next.

Give me a character with many layers and facets, and you've won me over.  I'll read and re-read the book many times over.  THAT'S a KEEPER. 

Favorite Heroes. 'Nuff said? (Penny Rader)

What are your favorite kinds of characters to write?  To read?

That's our topic this month.  It took me a while to figure out what to write about because there are so many great characters out there.  I finally decided I’d go with books which have specific scenes that pop into my head when I hear the title.

Sometimes a girl just needs a hug. 

http://amzn.to/1juPsnd

A while back I read Widows of Wichita County by Jodi Thomas. I recently bought another copy because mine disappeared and I want to read it again . The book revolves around five women.  Four of their husbands die in an accident and the fifth is so injured he can’t be identified and can't speak.  My favorite thread of the story begins when Anna, originally from Italy and something of a misfit in Texas who is bullied by her aristocratic brother, confesses to one of the other widows during lunch that what she misses most is something she never really had but hoped might eventually happen with her husband – a hug. Not just a little bitty hug, but a huge hug.  You know, the kind of hug that warms you all the way to your toes.  

Zack, her neighbor to the north, had been at the same restaurant. He tells her he overheard her earlier conversation and that if she ever needs a hug he’d be happy to give her one.  No strings attached.  And that he’ll leave the light on for her.  She slaps him,   A few pages later, during a storm, she sees his light on and makes her way to his home, tearing her clothing on the fence she climbs over to get onto his property…but once he says her name she bolts.  He fixes the fence so if she comes back she’ll be able to do so without ripping her clothes. 

A few days later Zack still occupies Anna’s thoughts.  She still yearns for a hug and he did offer.  Maybe she could have one hug and then get him out of her head. Her brother, who has taken control of her life, hits her.  She runs.  To Zack.  And his hug.  He holds her close while she cries. No questions.  No strings. And an open-ended offer for hugs whenever she needs them.  My heart melted. Sometimes a hug, the warmth and comfort of it, is all a girl needs. Just to be held, without any further expectations.  Or is that just me?

A protector, who even when in pain, does what he knows to be right. 

http://amzn.to/1gMDOVK

Have you read Rachel Lee’s Conard County series?  The third book, Miss Emmaline and the Archangel, is my favorite, though the first one, Exile’s End, runs a close second. It could be because I read Miss Emmaline first.  I was hooked immediately and read the book pretty much in one sitting.  My copy is not on my shelf so I hope my memory doesn't goof this up.  

When the story opens Miss Emmaline Conard, a librarian, leaves work and discovers her car won’t start. Gage happens along.  I don't remember if Gage was able to get her car to run.  I do know Emmaline has a severe phobia that will not allow her to be in a car with a man.  Gage stole my heart when he walks her home.  He has many physical wounds and is nearly always in pain, yet he makes sure she arrives home safe and sound.  If memory serves, it was also freezing outside.  I’m bummed I can’t find my copy because I really want to read this story again.  I shall be doing an online search for this book after I finish this post.

A gentle giant

http://amzn.to/SlkfbS

In Small Treasures by Maureen Child writing as Kathleen Kane, Samuel is a BIG guy who just encountered Abby in his home, a cabin in the mountains he and Abby each believe they have the right to.  Thank you, Maureen Child, for your permission to share this snippet from early in the story:

“That curl of anger was coming back, and immediately Samuel began the familiar pattern to regain control.  Slowly, calmly, he forced himself to say the alphabet.  He could still hear his mother’s warnings. ‘Samuel,’ she’d say, ‘you’re just too big to allow yourself to get angry like any man.  Why, one hit from a hand the size of yours would kill a man! You just got to keep a tight rein on that temper of yours.’ And so she taught him to say his ABCs whenever his temper started to rise.

“Usually, by the time he reached K or L, he was feeling better.  Tonight he’d had to go all the way to Z.  Twice.  And it wasn't just temper riding him tonight.  It was something else.  Something he couldn't put a name to, but it scared the hell out of him.

“Samuel shook his bushy head. He had to admit, though, that this little woman was really something.  She hadn't been afraid of him at all.

“What was wrong with her, anyway? Didn't she have the sense God gave a beaver?  Didn't she know that everyone was afraid of him?

“Why, the last time a woman was left alone with him, she’d swooned dead away. Frightened just by his size.  And he’d been dressed then.”

How unique is this hero? I’m so glad I found this book again in my stash so I can reread Sam and Abby’s sweet, funny, sexy story.

A gentle giant with a code of honor and who isn't afraid to love another man’s child.

http://amzn.to/1k6Lzpa

Thank you, Robyn Carr, for allowing me to share a couple excerpts from Shelter Mountain.  This book is the second of her extraordinarily popular (and rightly so!) Virgin River series. 

A woman with a child comes into Jack’s Bar. Preacher, whose given name is John, can see her fear and suspects she’s been smacked around in spite of her insistence the marks on her face came from a car door.  He convinces Paige to stay the night in a room at the bar and she finally agrees because her child seems to be getting sick.  Here’s what happens next:

“The door was open a crack, like maybe she’d already been down to the kitchen. He could see a glass of orange juice sitting on the bureau inside the door and it pleased him to see that she’d helped herself.  Through the space of an inch, he saw her reflection in the bureau mirror.  Her back faced the mirror and she’d pulled her bulky sweatshirt up over her head and shoulders, trying to get a glimpse of her back and upper arms in the mirror.  She was covered with bruises.  Lots of bruises on her back, one on her shoulder and upper arms.

“Preacher was mesmerized.  For a moment his eyes were locked on those purple splotches. ‘Aw, Jesus,’ he whispered in a breath.

“He quickly backed away from the slit in the door and got up against the wall. It took him a moment to collect himself; he was stricken.  Horrified.  All he could think was, what kind of animal does something like that.  His mouth hung open because he couldn't imagine this. He was a warrior, a trained fighter and he was pretty sure he hadn't done that much damage to a man equal to him in size, in a fair fight.

“Some instinct kicked in that told him he shouldn't let on that he’d seen.  She was already afraid of everything, including him.  But there was also the reality that this wasn’t a woman who’d been smacked.  She’d been pummeled.  He didn't even know the girl yet all he wanted was to kill the son of a bitch who’d done that to her.  After five or eleven months of beatings, then death for the sorry bastard.

“She shouldn't know he was feeling that; it would scare her to death.  He took a few deep breaths, composed himself.  Then he tapped lightly on the door.”

Is Preacher awesome or what?  When I first read this I couldn't wait to see what would happen between the two of them.  I knew he’d do whatever it took to keep Paige safe and his gentleness would help her heal and discover a powerful, enduring love.

Want to see Preacher with Paige’s son a scene or two later?  Preacher’s making cookies and sharing them with Christopher, a little boy who has known great fear.

“They communed in silence for a while – Preacher, Chris, the three-legged bear.  When Preacher had all little balls rolled, he began mashing them with his fork, perfect lines left, then right.

“What’s that yer doing?” Christopher asked him.

“’Making cookies.  First you make the dough, then you roll the balls, then you smash with the fork, nice and easy.  Then they go in the oven.’  He peered at Chris from under the heavy brows. ‘I bet you could do this part. If you were careful and went nice and slow.’

“’I could.’

“’You’d have to come around here, let me lift you up.’

“’Kay,’ he said, putting his bear on the counter, getting off his stool and coming to Preacher.

“Preacher lifted him up to sit on the edge of the counter.  He helped him hold the fork and showed him how to press down. His first solo attempt was a little messy, so Preacher helped him again.  Then he did it pretty well.  Preacher let him finish the tray, then put it in the oven.

“’John?’ the boy asked.  ‘How many of them we gotta do?’

“Preacher smiled. ‘Tell you what, pardner.  We’ll do as many as you want,’ he said.

“Christopher smiled. ’Kay,’ he said.”

My insides went all warm and gooey as I read this scene.  I knew the little boy would overcome his fears, too, and I looked forward to Chris finding a place all his own in Preacher’s heart.

~~

Do you have scenes that linger in your mind, where you knew immediately the hero was going to be something special, a true keeper?  What are your favorite kind of characters to read and/or write about?

http://amzn.to/Sll2d0

Oh, do you mind a P.S.?

 I forgot to mention one of my all-time fave heroes: Roarke from J.D. Robb’s In Death series.  Gorgeous.  Brilliant. Oh-so-Irish. If I met him in person I’d probably hyperventilate and pass out.  Since I've taken up so much of your time I’ll share just one of his endearing qualities: He always carries a button from Eve’s coat.  He’s done so since book one, Naked in Death, and continues to do so 30+ books later.  Big sigh.  The newest book in the series, Concealed in Death, is patiently waiting for this weekend when I have an extra day off and plan to indulge myself in a serious readfest.

Casting Your Characters (Penny Rader)

Since we've been talking this month about who we'd cast to star as our characters in the event our book was made into a movie, I thought I'd poke around the Internet and see what I could find on the subject.  Below are snippets from a few articles about casting characters.  I hope you find them useful (and click the links to read the entire articles since I only clipped a few bits from each article).

Diane Lane Bing image

Advice: Casting Characters

“… typically I try to cast someone who I’m not super familiar with, because I’m looking for a physical model, not a personality model. So you should avoid casting people you know really well, like friends, classmates, family members, or favorite actors. This will help ensure that your character’s behavior is not influenced by the person or a role that they've played, if an actor.”

Robert Downey Jr Bing image

Cast of Characters (DL Thurston)

‘Casting my characters is a trick that I picked up when working on a spec television pilot.  It’s probably a natural extension of writing for the screen, but is less obvious in writing for the page.  Casting characters allowed me to see them in more depth.  Allowed me to impart mannerisms better than just having the characters as raw constructs in my head.  Since I've started using this trick, I've seen and heard of other writers doing the same, often to very positive effect in the writing process.”

 Casting Characters (Carole Bellacera)

Christina Applegate Bing image

“As a child, I was into paper dolls. Not those kind you could buy at the local five and dime like Patty Duke and the Lennon Sisters. Those were boring. I liked the kind I cut out myself from old magazines. I'd sit for hours with a pair of scissors and a pile of my grandmother's McCall's, and soon, I'd have a roomful of exciting characters. Of course, at the time, I didn't realize that's what they were—those stacks of paper dolls. This was just a way of entertaining myself—making up stories about these wonderful people I cut from magazines. I'm 41 now and a professional writer. But I still cut out paper dolls—from magazines, newspapers, sales catalogs—wherever I see an interesting face or intriguing body. Why? Because someday these people will become my characters.”

Mark Wahlberg Bing image

Casting Your Characters (Merry Farmer)

“So why bother casting your characters at all?

“Because whether you know it or not, writing is a sensual game.  You get the best results when all of your senses are engaged.  I feel like I’m able to describe actions and expressions and even motivations so much better when I have something physical and visual to pin them to.  In the past when I've created characters without knowing what they look like they've always turned out two-dimensional and lacking.”

Sandra Bullock Bing image

Character Development for Visually Oriented Writers; or, Be Your Own Casting Director (Kaye Dacus)

“Character Casting goes deeper than just finding images of people who look like our characters. Those of us who are compelled to find Real World Templates (RWTs) for our characters are looking for inspiration—for emotions, actions, and body language in addition to how they look. We use RWTs as one of many building blocks for character development.”

Characterizations: Try the Casting Approach (Steven Jordan)

“Like certain memory exercises, applying an actor to your characters is a good way of giving yourself a mental image of their character aspects, and how they would act or speak in particular situations.  If you know what kind of character you plan to create, and a particular actor in a particular role epitomizes that character, they become an easy memory cue to how to approach the character.”

Hugh Jackman Bing image

I Know Your Face: A Casting of Characters (Jennifer Melzer)

Lacey Brown Bing image

“Of course these castings aren't always concrete. Sometimes they change. When I first started writing Trystay, who doesn't physically appear in Edgelanders but will in future stories, I kept seeing him as Nikolaj Coster-Waldau with an almost Jaime Lannister arrogance and wickedness, but over the last few months, as I've actually started spending more time with him on the page, he’s mish-mashed into a cross between Coster-Waldau and Tom Hiddleston that works so well in my mind I want to just keep writing scenes with him because I can’t get enough.”

Keanu Reeves Bing image

Meet Dreamlander’s Cast of Characters (K.M. Weiland)

 “’Casting’ characters, à la the movies, is one of my guilty pleasures. Aside from just being plain out fun, it also offers the bona fide writing benefit of a real human being against which characters have to measure up, as well as built-in inspiration.”

Natalie Portman Bing image

 Screenplay Writing 101: Casting Your Characters on the Page (Will Stape)

“The IMDB … can operate as your casting central to help realize character development.

“Say your lead character is a youngish, Italian American. He is from the northeastern part of America. Why not visit the IMDB and peruse some vintage shots of the great Al Pacino or Robert DeNiro. Their roles in classics like The Godfather, Serpico, Mean Streets and Taxi Driver preserve youthful charisma. Browse over still shots of them in movies, recall their cinematic power. Immersing yourself in great films will offer up ideas for your casting challenges.”

Note from Penny:  You can find the IMDB here.

Jim Caviezel Bing image

Visualizing Characters—The Benefits of Fantasy Casting (Alexa Chipman)

“About halfway through a first draft, or before the second, I do a round of fantasy casting. By then I have written a character long enough to know what their personality is and what they look like. While using a rich internal imagination is important, having actual visuals to glance at while writing scenes can add a spark to the writing. I found fantasy casting helpful when writing sequels, or if I have not written a POV character in a few chapters and need to get back inside their head. Sometimes I fantasy cast for personality—that smirk a photo has, or their haunted eyes, but mostly it is for the actor who is closest in looks.”

Emma Stone Bing image

When They’re Dull as Dirt: Thoughts on Casting Characters (Stacia Rogan)

“I started actively casting people in the roles of my characters. I did so not necessarily based on looks but based on attitudes from previous roles I’d seen them star in or interviews I've seen. My main character is now embodied by Emma Stone. Do I really picture her as a fiery redhead? It’s not what I had in mind, no. But you can bet Emma Stone isn't going to wake up in the hospital and say “Huh, guess I crashed my car or something. Bother.” Physical looks are secondary but casting some sass should at least liven things up again.”

Original Cast Members of Sapphire & Gold (Penny Rader)

Sapphire and Gold

This month's topic is Your book is a movie!  Who is your dream cast?

When I first dreamed up Sapphire and Gold, a Colonial American historical romance, here's who inspired a few of my characters:

Nick Mancuso - Bing image

   







Derek Tremaine (hero)  - a sea captain on a quest

Morgan Brittany - Bing image

                                                                   






Alexandra Whittaker (heroine)  - a healer on the run

Robert Goulet - Bing image

   





Bartholomew Taylor  (villain)

Michael Bolton - Bing image

Travis (hero's best friend)

Kirstie Alley - Bing image

                                                                           





Jillian











Since this story first started rolling around my head 20+ years ago, Derek and Alexandra and the other characters would have to be recast for a movie being made today.

I can see these two as Derek & Alexandra:

Anson Mount - Bing image

Natalie Portman - Bing image

I'm drawn to pictures - for characters, for settings, etc.  How about you?  Are you a visual person, too, or are you lucky enough to have all the parts of your stories pop into your head without the help of images?

Who Will Play the Part?

Back in the day when I was a newbie writer, I had no idea that I would need photos of the main characters of my books.  Like Pat, I saw them in my mind, and they didn't necessarily look like anyone but themselves.

But Harlequin requests that we do something called Art Fact Sheets for the covers of our books, and I was suddenly thrown into the need to find photos of what I thought my hero and heroine looked like.  Yikes!  I found magazine photos and lurked on model sites for the "right" person.

After finally getting into the habit of choosing photos early on in a project, Harlequin changed the rules.  They want photos of "known" persons aka Hollywood people.  Not that they're going to use the "stars" we send for our covers, but they must be as visual as I've become, when it came to characters.  Feel free to compare the real deals with the covers.

 From the Desperation, Oklahoma, series aka Hearts of Desperation:

A NANNY FOR THE COWBOY

 I first noticed actor Eric Winter on the one-season-only GCB, when he played the character of Luke Lourd, son of Carlene & Ripp Cockburn (Kristin Chenowith & David James Elliott).  He was the perfect hero for A Nanny for the Cowboy.  Luke Walker hadn't had an easy life.  His parents were killed in an accident near the end of his sophomore year in high school, and he and his older brother, with a little help from their sister, managed to turn a struggling ranch into a profitable one.  He also had some trust issues, thanks to a wife who walked out on him shortly after their son Brayden was born, leaving Luke to raise the little guy on his own.  Desperately desperate in Desperation, he agrees to interview a nanny that his sister recommended and, well, you know what happens in romance.  You might also recognize Eric Winter as Craig O'Laughlin in The Mentalist, and Jason McCallister in Brothers and Sisters.


DESIGNS ON THE COWBOY



Whether it's those eyes that grabbed me or what, Colin Eggelsfield was the perfect Dylan Walker for Designs by the Cowboy.  Poor Dylan carried around a lot of guilt over his parents' accident, shortly before his graduation from high school, and someone needed to save him.  Enter Glory Caldwell Andrews, former cheerleader and prom queen at Desperation High.  After growing up with an emotionally abusive step-father, then marrying an even worse abuser, Glory returned to Desperation, hoping to make a mark as a decorator.  What she made was a mark on Dylan.  I saw Glory in my mind almost immediately.  The inspiration for her came from actress Clare Kramer, known by Buffy the Vampire Slayer fans as...wait for it...Glory, a god from a hell dimension.  No, not a cheerleader or prom queen.  But it wasn't the character of BVS's Glory that drew me, but more her determination to destroy the world.  Glory Andrews wasn't out to destroy anything and was obviously the complete opposite of BVS's god from a hell dimension.  Clare's All-American good looks did the trick.  BVS's Glory would never own a shopped named Glory Be Antiques and Decorating, but Dylan's Glory does.  Clare also appeared in the movie Bring It On.  She's now the executive producer of several cable series.


THE COWBOY MEETS HIS MATCH

Originally, a book about Erin Walker, older sister of Dylan and Luke Walker, wasn't a part of the plan.  I don't remember how it came about, except that I liked Erin.  She is basically a reincarnation of a long ago heroine of mine that I'd always liked.  Although not the same character by name, location, back story or GMC, the two had similarities.  Both were barrel racers who traveled the country from rodeo to rodeo.  Oh, and both had two younger brothers.  And their parents had died in an accident.  Smart-mouthed and sassy, both of them.  So Erin got her own book, a completely different character...except for those similarities and adjusted back story.  Lots of adjusted back story.  While still writing Designs on the Cowboy, I spent my mornings walking at a nearby park, letting my mind wander.  It wandered to the opening of Erin and Jake's story, and as soon as I got home, I wrote the beginning of that first scene.  Actress Keri Russell, who played Felicity in the TV series of the same name, also appeared in the movie, August Rush, and can soon be seen in a new movie, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.  But who work for Jake Canfield, the hero?  Not at all difficult and another GCB actor, David James Elliott (you should see him in a cowboy hat!), better known to many as "Harm" (Cmdr. Harmon Rabb, Jr.) in JAG.  Now in his 50s, he's a little too old to be Jake, but the younger version of him was perfect.  It's a reunion romance, with a surprise in the middle, and there's more "reunioning" than it might appear at the beginning of the story.  No cover yet, but it should be available in a couple of months.  The Cowboy Meets His Match will be out in August this year.


TO LOVE A COWBOY (working title)
The last book of the Desperation series (book 10)


You may not recognize the actress on the left, but if you've been paying attention to one of HBO's most-watched series, you might recognize the one of the right, even if only from previews.  Emilia Clarke plays Daenerys Targaryen on HBO's Game of Thrones.  As soon as I saw the real Dani/Emilia, without Dani's long, blonde hair, I knew she was Desperation's Lucy Dawson, the girl from the wrong side of the tracks--or so she believes--an on and off waitress at Lou's Place, the local tavern and now an out-of-work EMT.  With a secret.  Desperation newcomer and single dad Bowie McClure believes he's seen an angel, when his 6-year-old son breaks his arm, and Lucy arrives at his ranch to attend to the boy.  But Bowie lives with guilt over the death of his wife, 6 years before.  David Giuntoli (Nick Burkhardt of TV's Grimm) has the perfect haunted look in his eyes that I imagine Bowie would have.  And what a hunk! Working title for the book that will available early next year is To Love a Cowboy.  We'll see if it sticks.


Is it easy to find the right actor to fit a character?  Sometimes, but not always.  Before I dive into the next book, which I hope will be a much shorter--like 3 books--series, I'll have to start hunting again.  Of course, it might help if I knew who the characters will be, other than their names!  I'm open for suggestions of your favorite actors.

WARA's Mini-Retreat (Rox Delaney)

Due to the craziness of life, I missed writing my blog post earlier this month.  It happens to all of us.  We all have lives that are woven with have-to's and need-to's, and some things get missed in the process of day-to-day living.

If you look to the left, you'll see a photo of a group of women.  They're smiling.  Why?  The photo was taken at WARA's Fall Mini-Retreat, held last Saturday.

I can't remember a time when I didn't enjoy one of WARA's weekend retreats or mini-retreats.  If I had to count how many I've attended, I wouldn't get it right.  I've been a member of WARA for most of the past 17 years.  Although there have been a few times we've had to skip having a retreat, there have been many.  For me, they're a must-not-miss.

Retreats, whether over a weekend or only just a day, are a kick-in-the-backside.  A good kick-in-the-backside!  Not only is it a chance to hear where others are with their writing, but a time to Talk Writing.  Those who aren't writers have difficulty understanding people who hear voices in their heads.  Those who do write take it for granted and understand that if you aren't hearing those voices or seeing a scene played out in your head, something needs to be done.

It doesn't take much to hit a roadblock in a story.  Sometimes a character decides to make decisions or do something the writer never planned.  Or sometimes we discover we've written ourselves into a corner and don't know how to get out of it.  Talking with others who understand story structure or conflict or goals or motivation are a godsend.  Even many non-writers, but voracious readers can only help so much.  Writers are a writer's best friend.

Not only are those of us in WARA writer friends, we're also friends who write.  Add to it that we have families and the usual activities and difficulties that women (and men) face in the "normal" world, and strong friendships are often made.  I have writer friends, within WARA and without, and friends who've never written and don't have a clue what it takes to create fictional people and stories.  I value all of them.

So what did we do at the retreat?  We brainstormed, we offered suggestions, shared bits of information, had lunch and ATE CAKE that Reece baked and decorated. :)  We came away with possible answers to questions and the good feeling of having spent a day with friends.  Retreats help fill the well.  Who could ask for more?

As for WARA, itself, we've outgrown some things and are adding new.  We're looking forward to making our group better and stronger as we continue to make new friends and and meet with long-time friends.  Our retreats help with that and our writing.

Start BIC-HOKing, ladies!  Pat and I each have a whip. ;)

Shhh! (Penny Rader)

http://bit.ly/y5sr3x 

Do your characters have secrets?  I'm trying to figure out what secrets the characters in my wip are hiding, so I thought I'd poke around the Internet and see if I could find any tips.  I found tons of articles about the secret to writing characters, etc, but not a whole lot about secrets characters keep.

Character Secrets

"A secret helps define a character.  What we feel we have to hide from other tells us a lot about ourselves.  Maintaining that secret will influence every choice we make.  Every choice our characters make."

 5 Secrets about YourCharacters’ Secrets (Darcy Pattison)

This article gives 5 ways to use secrets to develop your characters:

1. Using the Secret as a Plot Twist
2. Source of Conflict – Making Sure the Secret Stays Secret
3. Tangible Secret
4. The Secret Revealed: Big Scene or Climax Scene
5. What Is YOUR Secret?

My Character’s Whispering Secrets (Darcy Pattison)

Sol Stein said, “I remind you that the best fiction reveals the hidden things we usually don’t talk about.”

~~~~

So...what secrets do your characters have?  What do they do to keep their secrets safe from discovery?

It's Raining (Regency) Men!

Fran wasn't able to post today, so I thought I would steal her date this month. Who doesn't like men in Regency attire? This link/video from Victoriana Magazine cracks me up every time I watch it. Love me some Mr. Darcy, although my favorite Regency hero is Fran's duke.

And since we're talking about heroes, one of my favorite tumblr sites introduced to me by my Canadian friend is called Hot British Men. What is it about those English accents?

Creating a Hero (Penny Rader)

Since our theme this month is Heroes, I poked around the internet for hints about creating a hero.  Here's a bit of what I found.  Enjoy!

Build Your Own Romance Hero (Nicole Jordan)     

• Hero appearance
• Hero name
• Basic personality type
• Making him human and unique

Characterization:Writing Romance Heroes (Aisa Morela)

1. Challenge stereotypes.
2. What matters isn’t WHO your character is, it’s HOW you’ll write him.
3. Be wary of the too-perfect hero trap.

Creating Your Hero’s Fatal Flaw (Laurie Schnebly Campbell)

Laurie gives an awesome program on creating characters using enneagrams and says “It's easy to find ideas for the fatal flaws our characters will have to overcome, because the enneagram theorists say that each of the nine types has a deadly sin within them. Although the math is off, because there are seven deadly sins and nine enneagram types, so they made up two more sins which fit the types.”

Find Your Hero in Category Romance (Catherine Mann and Joanne Rock)

• Give him flaws.
• Give him quirks.
• Make him studly.
• Give him an element of danger.
• Make him worthy of the challenge.

Hero, Some Assembly Required (Cynthia VanRooy)

So if writing your hero as a sexy, take charge kind of guy makes him merely ordinary, how do you create a hero so unique your reader is going to fall for him in a big way?--By showing the little boy within the man. 

I don’t mean you should have him exhibiting childish, immature behavior, but rather show what hurts him, excites his enthusiasm, makes him proud. Show his soft spot. Is he a sucker for kids, does he love animals, worry about his mother? You can get away with a lot in terms of macho behavior (romance heroes tend to be larger than life in this aspect) as long as he demonstrates what Suzanne Brockmann refers to as the save-the-kitty factor. 

How to Be aRomantic Hero (Diane Perkins)

 1.      Be flawed.

 2.      Be self-assured.

 3.      Be tough.

 4.      Be controlled.

 5.      Be trustworthy.

 6.      Be ethical.

 7.      Value equality.

 8.      Be physically fit.

 9.      Be sexually generous.

10.  Finally, be sure to have dark-as-night hair with a habit of falling waywardly across your forehead.

Romance Writing: Heroes (Loribeth Swanson)

• He must be well defined by the author to the reader.
• He is strong whether it’s obvious or subtle.
• He acts with integrity.
• If his actions are bad, then he has a good reason to act so.

Ten Steps to a Yummy Hero (Vicki Lewis Thompson)

1. Does he reflect current social values?
2. Does he possess universal hero traits?
3. Does he compare favorably with current movie and television heroes?
4. Does he compare favorably with the heroes of best-selling authors?
5. Does he conform to the specific kind of romance you are writing?
6. Does he reflect your personal style?
7. Does his behavior seem well motivated?
8. Have you put him in heroic situations?
9. Do you have a clear picture of what he looks like?
10. Have you fallen in love?

~~

What attracts you to a guy?  I usually notice eyes first.  And dark hair.  (You probably figured that out from the pics.) A great smile.  And a bit of a five o'clock shadow. Yum.

What traits are non-negotiable for you in a hero?  I'd love to hear your top three. Or five.  Mine?  Hmmm.  I'm going to go with brave/courageous, selfless, honorable, smart, and a sense of humor.