When and How to Introduce Your Character’s Origin Story
Your character has a dark, mysterious past. But what is his past? Will readers appreciate it or roll their eyes hard? First of all, how do you formulate a personal, unique character backstory? Who your character is today is explained by where he’s coming from. So, ask yourself: Who or what influenced him the most as a kid? Parents? Friends? Mentors? What was his environment, world, or home like? Did he relate to it, love it or hate it? What did he dream of most as a teenager? What goal was he working toward? Who or what hurt him, affected him, or took advantage of him when he was young? Was he a happier person before today? A sadder person? An angrier person? These questions will help you formulate a satisfying, unique origin story. After you’ve created an origin story that’s unique to your character, you’re ready to share it with the world, right? Well, what’s the purpose of an origin story? To do three things: Share with the reader why your character needs to change. Explain a character’s personality traits, reactions, or beliefs about the world. Emphasize the personal importance of the character’s journey. That’s it. No more, no less. An origin or backstory encourages character development, so treat it as you would a plot point in your story, not just an identity marker. The mistake I made when I was a newbie was that I treated the story like it was about this character’s past instead of his present. It got in the way of the story and became the character’s only identity. “Hey I’m Mr. Bad Boy Protagonist....
How to Pack More Punch in your Sentences
Economy of writing is an art form all writers must learn if they want readers. Why? For two reasons: It’s more difficult than ever to get noticed in a sea of self-published, best-selling, author-aficionados. And if you’re not Neil Gaiman or Rainbow Rowell, chances are your book won’t be ripped off the shelves. 2. The attention span of a normal human now equals that of a goldfish. Yep- a whopping 8 seconds. *Gets distracted by a cat video montage.* So if your reader must drag his feet through lengthy, descriptive paragraph after lengthy, emotional, existential paragraph, chances are your reader won’t make it past page one. But don’t panic jellybean. You don’t have to write stories that fit on page five of the Wall Street Journal. What you do have to do is: Tailor your sentences to pack more punch in less space. Weave words in a way that’s trademark to your unique voice. So how do you do it?: Study poetry. Understand what you really want to say. Widen your vocabulary. Study Poetry KM or Kimmery Moss and Solaire, or Ariana are both dear friends and incredible poets. They write raw, honest, emotional pieces. Please check out more of their poetry and their unique genius by clicking on the picture of their pieces above! Poetry dignifies the existence of every word used, every sentence crafted. Poetry strips emotions down until they are naked– until the truth is all that’s left. By studying poetry, we build up our creative writing...
Three Reasons Why Unlikely Character Friendships Should Be Included In Your Novel: My Guest Post for Jade Young
This week I want to draw your attention over to my friend and author Jade Young’s page theeducatedwriter.com. Jade kindly invited me to write a blog post for her awesome blog. So this week I am talking about : Three Reasons Why Unlikely Character Friendships Should Be Included In Your Novel Click to be redirected to the article! So why should you include unlikely character friendships in your novel? 1. They share a unique, previously unseen side of each character 2. They create an exciting twist in story development that readers will devour 3. They encourage character development See the importance these three reasons dissected through the examples of friendships like Steve Harrington and Dustin Henderson of Stranger Things, Legolas and Gimli of The Lord of the Rings, and Russell and Carl Fredricksen from UP. Read my guest post now! Check out Jade’s guest post...
Why Every Writer Should Use the Three-Act Structure for their Story
When I was about sixteen years old, I almost drowned. Our family was big on water sports ever since I was a little kid. And most of all, we loved surfing. Still do. But one day, while on vacation in Florida, I didn’t notice something that would’ve kept me from going in the water in the first place. What was it? Well, we’ll get back to that story in a minute… For now, you’re wondering what a three-act structure is. I know I sure did until I researched the topic. What I discovered was this: The three-act structure has been used in every best-selling novel ever. It’s actually an easy structure that makes story-crafting heckin’ easy. Novels that don’t use this structure deadline pretty dang quickly. The term comes from the literal acts in a theatre production. There are three acts and each act is determined by the rise and fall of a literal curtain. This phrase, also used by the writing community, is used in the same way. Except, in fiction, there’s no distinct rise and fall of a curtain signifying the end of an act. So, sadly it’s not obvious to us. But the curtain rises and falls nonetheless, invisibly parceling every story according to this structure. Our job is to train ourselves to see this curtain, understand it, and apply this parceling in our own works of fiction. Act One: Act one Introduces your main characters and shares what their daily routine is like in an appealing way. It sets up what their world is like. It lets readers know what the world is suffering or lacking, especially if it will be addressed in...
5 Ways to Make Your Protagonist More Likable (Take the Character Test!)
Not sure if readers will heart your protagonist as much as you do? (FYI, they won’t. No one will ever love your protagonist as much as you do because THEY ARE YOUR CHILD.) Still, why not take a moment to take this sweet little test I’ve prepared for writers? It will help determine if your character is: Interesting and likable (YAY). Could use a dash of awesomesauce. BOOORRRRRIIINGGGG or a total turn-off. Answer these questions honestly. This test will only help you, your novel, and your protagonist in the end!: Is your Protagonist Likable? Take the Personality Test! Click To Tweet Does your protagonist have serious flaws? A) Flaws up the Wazoo! B) No. Why should he have flaws? C) I think like one or two. 2. Does your protagonist win every battle or get himself out of every bind? A) Every time! He’s a hero after all! B) No, he fails hard sometimes. C) Lemme think about this one… 3. Is your protagonist’s motive believable? A) 110% believable B) If I’m being honest, no. I’m not even sure what a good motive is. C) Does wanting his pen back from that guy who borrowed it count as a good motive? 4. Does your protagonist fall under any of these tropes? A) Strong, young female character who kicks butt with a weapon but is somehow also clumsy and shy. B) A pouty (hot) male character with weighty responsibilities but no desire to fulfill his duties. C) An orphan kid who doesn’t know who they are (or who their parents were) and gets a magical “chosen one” journey...
How to Discover Your Unique Writing Voice
About four years ago, I discovered a powerful tool that helped me unearth my unique voice and hone my honest perspective. I’ll share with you what that powerful tool is, but for now I want to talk about your voice. Notice that the title of this post isn’t How to Write/Sound Like the Masters. No, it’s how to discover YOUR unique writing voice. As writers we fall victim to comparing our works of fiction to those of the masters: If only my writing echoed the simple eloquence of Jane Austen! If only I had the cornucopia of geek knowledge like Ernest Cline! If only I could write geeky teen romance like John Green! If only I had the wit of Oscar Wilde! Whether we are aware of it or not, we often compare our works to someone who is a history-making, best-selling author. We forget the fact that Wilde, Green, Austen, Cline- they all have been exactly where you are. They weren’t born best-selling authors. They weren’t even best-selling authors before their mid-twenties! So how is it fair to compare your works of fiction to theirs? It isn’t, cupcake. So don’t focus your energy on sounding like the masters. Focus on discovering what has shaped you, what you want to say, and what makes you proud to be who you are. That is the only way to discover your unique voice as a writer. This is what I call “thanking your scars and celebrating your strengths”. Now, what does this mean exactly? I want you to take a moment and think about three...
A Master List of 300 Fantasy Names: Characters, Towns and Villages
This week, for all you hardworking writers out there, I’ve created a MASTER list of fantasy names. The hardest thing sometimes for us to create, isn’t great characters, plot ideas, or shocking twists. Noooo siree. It’s original names for our characters and towns! So, I’ve done the heavy lifting for you. All you have to do is scour the page of 300 unique, original fantasy names and keep this list a reference while you write that fandom-worthy novel of yours. Enjoy and happy writing! (PLEASE NOTE THIS LIST IS BETTER VIEWED ON A DESKTOP BECAUSE WORDPRESS SUCKS SOMETIMES AND MAKES VIEWING FROM A PHONE MISERABLE) 100 Fantasy Male Character Names: A list of 100 Fantasy Male Character Names. #amwriting #amwritingfantasy Click To Tweet Lydan Syrin Ptorik Joz Varog Gethrod Hezra Feron Ophni Colborn Fintis Gatlin Jinto Hagalbar Krinn Lenox Revvyn Hodus Dimian Paskel Kontas Weston Azamarr Jather Tekren Jareth Adon Zaden Eune Graff Tez Jessop Gunnar Pike Domnhar Baske Jerrick Mavrek Riordan Wulfe Straus Tyvrik Henndar Favroe Whit Jaris Renham Kagran Lassrin Vadim Arlo Quintis Vale Caelan Yorjan Khron Ishmael Jakrin Fangar Roux Baxar Hawke Gatlen Barak Nazim Kadric Paquin Kent Moki Rankar Lothe Ryven Clawsen Pakker Embre Cassian Verssek Dagfinn Ebraheim Nesso Eldermar Rivik Rourke Barton Hemm Sarkin Blaiz Talon Agro Zagaroth Turrek Esdel Lustros Zenner Baashar Dagrod Gentar Feston 100 Fantasy Female Character Names: A list of 100 Fantasy Female Character Names. #amwriting #amwritingfantasy Click To Tweet Syrana Resha Varin Wren Yuni Talis Kessa Magaltie Aeris Desmina Krynna Asralyn Herra Pret Kory Afia Tessel Rhiannon Zara Jesi Belen Rei Ciscra Temy...
Should You Choose a Career in Writing Fiction? Three Ways to Tell if it’s What You Really Want
Does choosing a career or a college course intimidate the heck out of you? Are your interests pulling you in various directions and you’re not sure which you should choose? I was in your same position years ago. When it came time for me to make decisions about my future, I actually made a choice that would shock you. You probably think I majored in writing in some prestigious college. Well, stay tuned for that funny story later. But for now, let’s talk about you. Let’s talk about your wants and let’s put the future in perspective. Let’s talk three ways to tell if choosing a writer’s life is the one for you by Listening to your voice Listening to your gut Doing your research Your Voice, Your Choice “You should be a lawyer! There’s good money in that and it’s a prestigious career!” “Be a doctor. You’ll save lives and you’ll make good money while you’re at it.” “A business degree is a must if you want to make it in this world and support your future family.” Jeez. A lot of people in your life sure do have a lot of opinions about your future. You trust your family, friends, coaches, and teachers because they all want what is best for you. They all want to see you lead a happy, healthy life with little to no problems. So, they’re right, right? Choosing a prestigious college and getting a degree in a field which promises a high income is the only way to secure your future. Right? Well, here’s the thing, sweet pineapple: they mean well,...
Four Things Young/New Writers Should Know Before Writing a Book
There’s nothing as exciting as discovering your calling. If you’re anything like me, then you knew from a young age that writing was your deal. Now you’ve decided to get serious about it. You want to take your hobby and turn it into a career, following in the footsteps of your favorite authors. You want to write fiction so compelling, a mass of crazed fans dress up as your fictional characters for Comic Con. Here’s the thing though: some writers enter the game with a skewed vision and find themselves giving up prematurely. So I want to share four things all young, fresh-faced unicorn writers like you must understand about the writing journey before you even begin: Writing is hard You must write for the love of writing It’s not about the finish line, it’s about the journey itself Joining a community of writers is a must So let’s break this down a little more… 1. Writing is Hard You probably already figured this one out. Writing is never easy, especially when you put pressure on yourself to write your best all the time. Great writing takes time. It also takes patience, perseverance, and repetition. If you aren’t dedicated to the process, you’ll wander with no ultimate goal in view. There are also universal rules to writing great stories that can intimidate and confuse writers. Those rules can potentially leave you feeling inadequate. So can you still do it? Absolutely. You don’t have to write your best work all the time. In fact, you must allow yourself to fail because hey- you’re not perfect- and you can learn...I’m Rae Elliott: Author, Blogger, Geek
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