Character Writer or Plot Writer
Nov 17, 2010 
A few years back I went to a conference, and Shannon Hale asked this question of us: Are you a character writer or a plot writer? Do you come up with characters and then discover their story? Or do you think of a fascinating plot or situation and build from there?
At the time, I wasn’t sure. I debated the finer points of my writing style, but couldn’t decide. Now I laugh at myself for that.
I am a character writer all the way. I discover a character, and then I learn their story through painstaking effort. Painstaking, I tell you. I have to work hard for that plot.
So what are you?
What Do You Do Well?
I was just thinking about how sometimes we don’t let ourselves admit when we do something very well. The world tells us we’re supposed to be humble about our talents or we’ll be hated like all those other conceited jerks out there.
So today I’m giving you a free pass: I want to hear what you think you do really well, and I promise not hate you and think you’re a conceited jerk. It can be anything! Maybe you are an exceptional teeth-brusher . . . you’ve never had a cavity (I wish!). Or maybe you have a talent for spinning a basketball on your finger. I don’t know, but I’d love to hear!
Okay, so me? I have a talent for making gravy. No lumps, perfect consistency, always yummy. 🙂
Ms. Bestower-of-Confidence
Have you ever been around someone who makes you feel like a million bucks? It doesn’t seem to matter the time or the place or the occasion, there’s just something about them . . . and it’s not just you. Everyone else feels the same way about them, too.
I so wish this was me. But alas, not to worry, I think most things in this world can be learned. So here are my 5 easy rules for being Mr./Ms. Bestower-of-Confidence (based on observation, of course):
- Smile. But not just with your mouth, and even beyond your eyes. Find your happy place and keep it at the front of your thoughts.
- Give compliments. The catch is they have to be sincere. None of that “I love your hair” crap, when you’re really thinking “What were they thinking?”
- Don’t give too many compliments. Then you just sound fake.
- Ask questions. About them. There’s a catch to this one, too. You have to listen to the answer. Not just with your ears, but with your whole body. Then ask follow-up questions. And yup, you guessed it, just keep listening.
- Enjoy life. Have fun. And I don’t mean the go-out-and-get-drunk variety. Look at kids, they recklessly dance to the music at the end of a movie without fear of looking silly. They get excited because they see two school buses in the same place. They laugh at the sheer pleasure of running as fast as they can. They don’t worry about getting chocolate on their noses, they just enjoy.
People who do this have a contagious happiness. These are the people I like to be around. So what rules did I miss?
The Votes are in
Yes, yes, November 2nd came and went, but this is a much more important vote than that. Fall vs. Spring. I know you’re all dying to know which one won . . . so on to the results!
Total votes: 20
Spring: 8 votes; 40%
Fall: 12 votes; 60%
There are two remarkable things about this vote. First it’s very close (unlike the Hawaii vs. Cruise vote). Second, this is the only time that no one added their own personal option. No one asked, “not winter?” And even though some claimed it was an excruciating choice, they were all eventually able to make it. . . . unlike times past. Very interesting, Holmes. So in case you wondered, I voted Fall. Something about the smell . . . mmmm, I get dreamy just thinking about it.
With Thanksgiving around the corner, here’s a thanksgiving-y question (yet one that all of you non-U.S.A. people can still answer . . . I know, I think of everything.) 😉
Dark Meat
vs.
White Meat
Thank you!
I wanted to thank everyone who weighed in on Friday’s post. So many good comments (and reminders)! Here is what I got out of it:
- Some of those balls are rubber and will be okay if I drop them. Still, some of those ARE glass, and I need to be extra careful with them . . . family and husband being good examples.
- Schedule my time. In the past I have done this, but lately (the last few years or so!) I’ve let it slip. I think it’s time to go back to the dark side of my OCD. Just a little. 😉
- I’m not alone. So maybe, just maybe, I’m not the mess I fear I am. I’m just human.
- Breathe and wear a helmet. I’ll get through.
Where’s your happy thought?
On Juggling
I’ve always been a bit of a sloppy juggler . . . rushing to catch the ball that’s about the shatter against the floor (oh yeah, the balls are glass, I’m just sure of it).
- My writing . . . oof! Phew, got 100 words in.
- My family . . . oh no! We’ve got 2 minutes to get to soccer, let’s move it people!
- My work . . . my deadline’s tomorrow?
- My husband . . . you don’t mind if we talk about my book on our date, do you?
- My blog . . . uh . . . I had an idea . . .
- My co-op preschool . . . It can’t be my week to teach already, can it?
- My friends . . . Wait, what are their names again?
- My exercise . . . I could just skip today, right? Surely the scale was wrong. Again.
- My cleaning . . . Do I really need to vacuum today?
- My laundry . . . I still have one more clean shirt, right? Oh wait, that was yesterday. . .
Anyway, you get the idea. So many balls, so hard to keep them all in the air.
What are your secrets for not dropping the ball? And seriously here . . .
What in the heck is Voice?
Five-and-a-half years ago, I had my first ever critique by an editor at my first ever writing conference. I went into the meeting with so much hope, and came out devastated.
While the editor was very nice, he basically told me that my writing stunk (my own word), and I needed to keep practicing. The only bit he liked was the part I was considering cutting, and he said it sounded like I just hadn’t found my voice yet.
I haven’t touched that book since.
Anyway, that was the first I’d heard of “voice.” What in the heck is voice? I wondered.
According to About.com “voice is the author’s style , the quality that makes his or her writing unique, and which conveys the author’s attitude, personality, and character.”
At Kim’s Corner for Teacher Talk she says: “voice shows the writer’s personality. . . . It contains feelings and emotions so that it does not sound like an encyclopedia article.”
But see, while good definitions, none of this really helped me “find my voice.” I do think that I’ve learned a bit in the past five years, and so here are some things that I think helped me:
- Don’t just read good books, study good writing. Ask yourself why you like it, and listen to the voice.
- Know what point of view (POV) is and how it should be used in writing. I know that may sound obvious, but I look at my first ever book, and cringe at my all-over-the-place POV. I’ve been re-writing it with a solid POV, and it the change is astounding. (trust me!)
- Write what you enjoy. No . . . more than just enjoy . . . write what you’re passionate about. For me, that made the difference. I wrote the book I really wanted to write on a subject I adored.
- Work with a critique group. I can’t tell you how many times my amazing group steered my writing to keep my voice on track. “This just doesn’t sound like something the character would say,” they told me. Or “This is a POV shift.” Little things that add up. (Thanks guys!)
- Write. Write. And write. There’s nothing quite like practice. We hear this all the time, but how can we expect to be good at something we rarely do? We can’t.
I admit, I’m no expert on voice, but hopefully this is a little helpful. And I’d love to hear your thoughts . . . How did you find your voice?
Wisdom of a Five-year-old
“The first rule of the game is to not get killed by the bad guys. Cause if you get killed, you’re dead. And that’s bad.”
Happy Halloween everyone! Have a great weekend, and don’t get sick eating too much candy. (It’s the mom in me. I have to say it!) 😀
GPS-ing Our Plots
Last weekend I went to the beach with my kids. I’d never been there, but I looked it up on-line, plus I got an address to enter into my handy, dandy GPS.
Fortunately I had google-mapped it, because the GPS wanted me to go straight through DC (which EVERYONE knows you avoid if you can). I went around.
But on the way home, I was in no rush. The kids had a movie going, so I thought, why not? Let’s see where the GPS takes me.
Wow.
A path I NEVER would have taken in a million years. Still, it got me home and it only took 15 extra minutes.
When I started my now-complete novel, I had a plan. The basic chapters laid out. It was to be a short, funny jaunt through fairydom. Apparently my internal GPS had a different idea. All kinds of elements and subplots snuck in there, and the book went a different direction than I had planned.
Was that a bad thing? I don’t think so. Was my first plot-line terrible? I don’t think so either.
That’s what’s so great about writing. Our books can go so many different directions, and it’s all up to us.
How do you decide where to go with a book?
Story time: When I was little, I wanted to be a cheerleader. Doesn’t every little girl?
I told my mom and while she smiled, I saw the worry in her eyes. “It’s really hard to become a cheerleader.”
I told my friends who looked at me with skepticism. “Why?”
I told my older sister. “You have to be popular to be a cheerleader. I wouldn’t count on it.”
The thing is, I’d always been taught that I could do whatever I decided to as long as I was willing to put in the effort.
So in 7th grade I convinced my mom to sign me up for a cheerleading class. I learned to do kicks and jumps. I learned how to hold my hands just right. I learned how to chant loud and clear so everyone could hear. I learned how to do back-handsprings. I tried to learn how to do the splits.
The day finally came, and I awoke to a single rose in the vase. A note was attached. “We love you no matter what happens.”
I was nervous! I knew I wasn’t the prettiest, the skinniest, the most graceful, or the most popular, but I had worked hard. When my number was called (22), I went out there and did my best. I was thrilled when I was given a call back . . . right up until I flubbed the dance in a major way.
They started calling the numbers. The first, second, . . . . when the seventh was called, I knew in my gut I didn’t make it.
But my gut was WRONG. I was the last one called. My years of work had paid off. I had done it!!
I tell this story because as a kid, I never doubted my abilities. I KNEW I could do anything I put my mind to. Even if it was hard. But now, as an adult, I let doubt seep in. Worse, I let it influence me. And really, what’s different? NOTHING.
Nothing has changed but my attitude. So I’m telling myself now: I CAN write, and I CAN succeed . . . even though it’s hard and takes lots of work and practice. It may take years of effort. But I CAN do it. And so can you.
How do you overcome doubt?