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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About Susan May Warren
Former Russian Missionary Susan May Warren is the best-selling author of more than 40 novels and novellas with Tyndale, Barbour and Steeple Hill, and Summerside. A Christy award and RITA winner, and multiple finalist for the RITA, Christy and winner of Inspirational Readers Choice contest, Susan currently has over a million books in print. A seasoned women’s events speaker and writing teacher, she is the founder of http://www.mybooktherapy.com an online community for writers, and runs a fiction editing service teaching writers how to tell a great story. Visit her online at: http://www.susanmaywarren.com.Author Archive | Susan May Warren
Self-Therapy: An Interview from the Therapy Couch!
As promised, yesterday, I wanted to give you all a look, today, into my own interview/characterization process. These are the actual rough draft notes from Reclaiming Nick – my interview with my hunky hero, Nick Noble: Identity: Nicholas Noble, quiet strength, pensive, narrowed eyes, distrustful, coiled power, well of emotions, Age 30 6’1, hazel eyes Who am I? I’m a broken cop. A man who falsely put someone in jail…well twice, really because the first time, I blamed my father for betrayal, when in fact, I know now he didn’t betray me. I knew it then, also, but as a boy whose mother had died two years prior, it felt like betrayal to me to see him in Adele’s arms. It was a bad moment – I hit my father, […]
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Yesterday we talked about how to get your Hero to talk! Today, I thought I would give you a few pointers on WHAT to ask him once he starts talking! There are a few pointed questions to ask your hero (and it’s not what kind of car does he drive!) to unearth his deep issues and those things you can use to develop his character. Here are 3 Top Secret Questions to ask your hero: 1. What is the nightmare in your past that has made you the person you are today? Okay, so not everyone has turbulent pasts, but often, some decisive moment, a mistake, a tragedy, a misunderstanding, even a childhood prank can so deeply affect a character that he/she is still making choices based on that nightmare. […]
Read the RestAsk the Doc – Make him talk!
Q: My hero refuses to cooperate. He will only disclose bit and pieces about himself and it certainly inst’ about his dreams for his life. I do know his greatest fears. How do I get him to talk, or at least cooperate a little. Give me something to work with? A: I love this question! Yes, those dark, silent heroes can be the quiet types! And getting them to talk might need a little prompting. Get him started by giving him an identity – something or someone he stereotypes. Then, you can ask yourself what kind of issues might this kind of person have. For example, let’s say your hero is a forest ranger. But his identity is that of a hermit woodsman. Why? Maybe he prefers the quiet of […]
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