I am just going to brag for a moment…My son played Daddy Warbucks in this season’s Community Play’s fall show, and did it brilliantly. One of my favorite scenes is when Warbucks wants to adopt Annie, and she turns him down because she wants to find her parents. Warbucks, who loves her, is torn between wanting her to be his daughter, and wanting her to be happy. It’s a powerful scene, without words, and David played it with vivid emotion…first loss and grief, to pure love for Annie, then a determination to make her dream come true. As I sat in the audience, I also experienced a mix of emotions – pride at his performance, sadness that he is growing up so fast, and joy that he would be proud […]
Read the RestArchive | December, 2007
Ask the Doc: Using Coloring Emotions to create unique scenes!
Question: As I’m writing my wip, I find myself having to describe character’s emotional responses (show don’t tell!) but it’s being difficult to be original every time. What is a good way for describing emotional responses with originality? Answer: I love this question because it’s all about going deeper with your characterization, and really drawing the reader into the story in a way that connects. I believe there are levels to portraying emotion. The first, of course, is the most basic, just the facts. “He was angry.” Of course, this is boring, and holds the reader the farthest away. Second level is involving the body. “Anger filled his throat.” Not bad, because we can understand how that might choke someone, but again, it keeps the reader at arm’s length, unable […]
Read the RestBook Therapist Picks Karen Ball!
Karen Ball , bestselling novelist, is also the editor behind several of today’s bestselling Christian novels. Her love for words was passed down through her father and grandfather – both pastors who shared God’s truth through sermons and storytelling. Blending humor, poignancy, and honesty, Karen’s writing style is a powerful force for revealing God’s truth. She lives in Oregon with her husband, Don, and their "kids," Bodhan, a mischief-making Siberian husky, and Dakota, an Aussie-terrier mix who should have been named "Destructo." When I first met Karen, I was captured by two things – her great sense of humor, and her deep love for the Lord. Karen has a way of getting to the heart of the matter, in a way that resonates, and that is the hallmark of her […]
Read the RestPrescriptions: How to Hook your reader Wk 4
HOOKing the reader – it’s essential for a great story. I was watching television with my children who have apparently been listening to me rant about hooks for too long because my son paused the show (yes, Tivo!) and said… “Mom, there is nothing sympathetic about this heroine that would make me like her!” Ah, the sympathetic hook! We’ve been talking about stakes in a hook, but what is at stake for a character will only work if there is also a reason to CARE about the character. Which brings me today to: Hero/Heroine Identification – Or creating Sympathy (and thereby creating connection with the reader.) We’re only going to read a book about someone we can, at least remotely, relate to. Someone we at least a little understand. Maybe […]
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