In every romance the key is making your characters fall in love, right? We’ve talked about HOW we fall in love…how we connect to each other’s core values, and how we complement each other and make each other into stronger people. However, how do you actually write that journey, step by step? How do you woo your reader into falling in love with your characters, too? You have to date your reader. Okay, let’s just analyze this for a moment. Remember the last time you fell in love? You saw him or her across the room, and something about their physical appearance intrigued you. It told you something about them—perhaps they were brave, or strong, or creative, or disheveled, or rough-edged. You probably noticed their […]
Read the RestTag Archives | creating characters
Unlock the Secret to Powerful Stories
This secret will change the way you craft stories. I’m not kidding. What I’m about to tell you will impact your writing all the way to the core and maybe even get you published. I’ve been judging a contest. I feel like I could cut and paste the same comments in each one. What does the hero/heroine want? What is the story question? What journey are they going on? Author’s inciting incident has nothing to do with the opening scene. What is his/her fears? Desire? Give a hint of these in the opening. What is the dark moment from her past? Show some sort of competence. Meaning, a superpower (what he/she does well.) Good at his/her job. Show confidence in the midst of failings and weaknesses. What is the black […]
Read the RestWhat are you afraid of?
No one likes to admit their fears…especially a guy. But deep inside we all have fears, something that creeps us out, or subconsciously makes us turn away. When we’re building our character, we need to know what he’s afraid of. Yes, he’ll have a Greatest Fear, something that is his worst nightmare, but usually it’s expressed in smaller fears. How do you find your hero’s fear? Remember the dark moment? That thing that caused you to find your hero’s noble cause? I’ll bet, embedded in that moment, you can also find a fear. For our fireman, maybe it’s the nightmare of his father burning to death, and the same thing happening to him. For Rafe, it might be becoming a laughing stock. Here’s a couple from two of my favorite […]
Read the RestBe Afraid, be very afraid! The third element of a Heart-Throb Hero
We had an ice-storm last night. Living in Minnesota, I’m pretty familiar with ice, even took a dive last week in our school parking lot (yes, right in front of my kids. I’m feeling old!). But last night, the storm, which actually started out as rain and morphed into sleet created a condition called “black ice” – it’s ice built up on pavement that causes cars to fly off the highway into ditches and other cars. It’s one of the most dangerous parts of winter in the northland. The thing is, having lived most of my life in cold (MN and then Siberia), I know how to drive on black ice. My 16 year old, rookie drive son, however, does not. Which is why I stood at the window, staring […]
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