We’ve covered a lot about creating characters. In this last installment in the series, we’ll cover developing your characters throughout your story. If you thought you were finished with character development when you created that character chart or bio, you were wrong. Just as people grow and change in real life, so must your characters. … Read more
The late Baptist preacher S. M. Lockridge gave this powerful message when asked to deliver the opening prayer at a Baptist convention.
Characters in your story must have reasons for their actions. In real life, we don’t know what people are thinking or why they do what they do, but in fiction, readers will accept the characters’ actions only if they believe the reasons for them. They ask “Why did he do that?,” and they expect an answer—from words … Read more
Thank you to the 210 commenters who left 322 comments in May. I responded to every one of them. Your comments extended the conversation and added value and interest. Top Contributor (20 comments) C McCoffee The Coffee Bump Major Contributor (17 comments) Wendy Burt-Thomas Ask Wendy – The Query Queen Outstanding Contributors (5-8 comments) Karen … Read more
I’ve learned about dialogue since the first draft of my first novel. When I’d finished about half the book, a writer friend read it. When she returned the manuscript to me, she said, “Do you realize you don’t have one word of dialogue in this entire story?” My characters talked—there was just no dialogue. I wrote … Read more
Everybody loves free, and you can download your selections from two million PDF e-books for free until August 4th. The World eBook Fair makes it easy to find and download free e-books. The event is sponsored by Project Gutenberg, World Public Library, DPP Store, Baen Books, Ask.com, Internet Archive, MobileBooks, and MyeBook. Now is a great … Read more
In previous installments in this series, we’ve talked about what the author needs to know about her characters. You should know things about your characters that you don’t necessarily reveal directly to readers—things that cause the character to behave the way he does. In some cases, you will show, not tell, your readers. In some … Read more
Recently, Beth Morrow at Writer-in-Progress interviewed me for her feature Story Behind the Story She agreed to reciprocate with a guest post here, and I jumped at the chance. Let’s welcome Beth and get ready to learn about promoting books through social media. =========================================================== In the big scheme of things, I’ve noticed two types of social media … Read more
The theme for this month’s group writing project at Middle Zone Musings is What I Learned From Bloopers, Mistakes, and Embarrassing Moments. While I’d like to say I’ve never experienced any of those, you’d know I was lying. 🙂 The hard part was deciding which one to write about. When I was in physical therapy … Read more
O ETERNAL God, through whose mighty power our fathers won their liberties of old; Grant, we beseech thee, that we and all the people of this land may have grace to maintain these liberties in righteousness and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.