Eight Lies Your Character Might Believe

By Pamela S. Meyers

One of the eye-opening things I learned after I began writing fiction was that most people—if not all—believe certain lies about themselves. If you write in Deep POV, assigning one of the lies to your POV character is a sure-fire way of taking your readers deep into the whys and wherefores of the character as the storyline develops.

I recently Googled “lies people believe about themselves” and came up with a couple lists that cite ten lies. Then, someone gave me a list of eight lies from a psychology-related university study, and that list is below. I think most of us can look at these characteristics and find themselves--perhaps not believing the lie now, but have believed it in the past. People can and do stop believing the lie as they grow and learn more about themselves and their circumstances. I'm living proof of that, but I'll spare you the details. Authors should strive for to determine their characters' lies while developing the character arc for their heroine or hero. It's so much easier to work it into the first draft rather than later when you are on the umpteenth draft. 

 Here’s the list. 

1. I'm a disappointment.
2. I'm not good enough (this is a very strong lie, often used for men and strong female leads)
3. I'm not enough – or defective (similar to #1, but not exactly the same)
4. I'm too much to handle and will get rejected. 
5. It's all my fault. 
6. I'm helpless – powerless to fix (this leads to a fear of being controlled).
7. I'm unwanted
8. I'm bad (which could possibly be used as a symptom or excuse for another lie) 

When I’m developing characters for a new story I keep this list handy and as their backstories present themselves, I search for these hidden lies.

A while back I wrote a story called Love Will Find a Way. It’s no longer available except for used copies on the Internet, but I plan to republish it under a different title after I’ve edited the story and deepened the characters.

Included in the story is a friend of April Love, the heroine. Lonnie shows up without warning on April’s doorstep. A relatively new widow, she’d recently walked out on her job as a sous chef and began traveling north from Georgia on her Harley and ended up in Wisconsin. April senses Lonnie is troubled and it involves something more than grieving her husband’s death.

Lonnie believes that the motorcycle accident that caused her husband’s death is her fault and hopes running away from the weight of that guilt will make her feel better. But the guilt came right with her. A reasonable person can see that she had nothing to do with the accident which took place miles away from where Lonnie was at the time, yet she believes the accident was her fault. Here’s what I wrote while developing Lonnie’s story. I free-write my storyline and backstories before I write the actual scenes and this is how that looks.

What if Lonnie feels Keith’s accident is her fault. That the accident happened because he was on his way to do something that she didn’t do. If she’d done it, he wouldn’t have been on the road at the time the guy cut him off and sent him flying off the road and hitting the bridge head-on.

People have tried to convince her it was not her fault. That she had every good reason to not have done what she didn’t do, but she can’t let go of the guilt and along with that, the grief of losing him in a senseless accident. She’s directed her anger onto herself and not even at the guy who caused the accident.

Unable to handle this and unable to focus on her work, she quit her job, thinking that leaving Atlanta and going somewhere else will fix it.

Susan May Warren talks about another element related to showing the lie in her new book on craft called The Story Equation. Not only do we need to know the lie our character believes, but what the wound is that started the lie.  In other words, something had to have happened a long time before Lonnie’s husband’s death that caused her to think so irrationally. And that’s what I need to explore before I rewrite the scene.

Have you been employing the lies your characters believe about themselves? If not,  why not go to your current WIP and work that element into the story? You may be surprised at the results. Please share your thoughts in the comments!

TWEETABLES

Eight Lies Your Character Might Believe by Pamela S. Meyers (Click to Tweet)

When I’m developing characters, I search for these hidden lies~ Pamela S. Meyers (Click to Tweet)

A native of Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, author Pamela S. Meyers lives in suburban Chicago with her two rescue cats. Her novels include Thyme for Love and her 1933 historical romance, Love Finds You in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin Her novella. What Lies Ahead, is part of a novella collection, The Bucket List Dare, which is now available at Amazon in both print and Kindle formats. Second Chance Love from Bling!, an imprint of Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas, will release in January 2017. When she isn’t at her laptop writing her latest novel, she can often be found nosing around Wisconsin and other Midwestern spots for new story ideas.

.

Read More

Romancing the Idea ~ Colleen Coble

Romancing the Idea

Colleen Coble

People always ask how a writer gets an idea. Ideas can come from anywhere and generally reflect the kinds of things that interest us and that fit in with the kinds of stories we write. Read the newspaper, watch TV with the thought “what if?”

Plot and Structure by James Scott Bell says the best books come from who we are.

• What do you care about most in the world? What are your passions? The best novels come out of outrage.
• How do you feel about your physical appearance?
• What do you fear the most?
• What are your major strengths of character?
• What are your major flaws?
• What are you good at? What do you wish you were good at?
• If you could do one thing and know you’d be successful, what would you do?
• What three events from your childhood helped shape you into the person you are?
• What are some of your annoying habits?
• What secret in your life do you hope is never revealed?
• What is your philosophy of life?

Now think about your story and distill the basic premise to one sentence. What’s a premise? The main “hook” that lifts the story out of the ordinary. For Mermaid Moon it would be: a young woman must find her father’s killer before her past catches up with her.

Figure out the setting. Setting is much more important than most writers realize.

I want you to figure out an interesting place to set your novel, then go online and read news stories set in that area. Jot down things that can ONLY happen in that area.

1. Research setting. Come up with different ideas based on the setting. It can add to the plot. For example, in writing Beyond a Doubt, I read about how they’d taken copper mines and turned them into plant growing facilities. Part of the plot sprang from that research.

2. Flip a genre. Take a look a genre other than the one you’re writing in—westerns, for example—and see how you can flip it and make it a romance. See what makes it work and figure out if the elements of that other genre will raise your own story a notch.

3. Take a look at trends by reading current magazines like Scientific American, TIME, Newsweek, and USA Today. Maybe you can pick up on a coming wave and ride it for a while.

Okay, now you have your idea. But are their problems? Has this type of story been done before? Almost always the answer will be yes. But what makes your idea stand out? What makes it different from others?

Is the story BIG enough? Can you come up with a great hook that will catch the reader’s attention?

Is there some other element you can add to make it more fascinating? Quirks, obsession, a fresh angle?

Let’s talk about plot layers.

Ever since I started writing, I’ve heard that it’s tough to get published. And it is. But it’s not really tougher today than it was last year or the year before. It’s always been hard. Good layers are often the key to making an editor sit up and take notice. So much of the time, stories that hit the editor’s desk are so similar. Romance especially can be tough to make fresh. But it’s all in the layers.

Here are the layers I work on with every story:

1. As I mentioned, setting is huge for me. A character who lives in Boston is very different from one who lives in Indiana. The culture that shaped him/her is different too. Think about where your characters are. Read newspapers from that area and see if you can find a plot layer in what is going on currently there. Is there a culture group that’s strong there?

2. Character types. Take a look at character types and pit different types against one another to play off weaknesses and pet peeves. This can add a really great layer of conflict that’s ongoing. Maybe your female lead loves the wilderness and the hero’s idea of a great vacation is a cruise where everything is served to him. Maybe your heroine makes gourmet chocolates and the hero breaks out in hives from the aroma on her clothing. Do your research by reading obituaries and noticing people around you.

3. Can you give your protagonist an obsession? That can really springboard you to plot ideas as she pursues it. This is often where to layer in your theme.

4. Interesting occupation. This leads me to story ideas all the time. I’ve written about a SAR dog team, a dolphin researcher, a smokejumper, an antique quilt expert, and an old time telephone operator at the turn of the century.

5. Think of plot layers that are problems for your main characters. Try to come up with at least three. For example, in Lonestar Homecoming, Gracie is running away in her wedding dress from men who just killed federal agents in front of her. She has no money and no way of supporting her daughter so she agrees to be a nanny to a man’s two children. She’s estranged from her father because only she knows she was responsible for her mother’s death. The problem with many manuscripts I see is that there isn’t enough conflict and it isn’t varied enough. It’s not enough to have just ONE conflict.

Layers will life your book out of the rejected pile. They will add depth and interest to your characters and your plot. If you’ve already written the book, it’s still not too late to tear into it and make it something special. Don’t be afraid to start from scratch and add the things that need to be there.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Best-selling author Colleen Coble’s novels have won or finaled in awards ranging from the Best Books of Indiana, the ACFW Carol Award, the Romance Writers of America RITA, the Holt Medallion, the Daphne du Maurier, National Readers’ Choice and the Booksellers Best.

She has more than three million books in print and writes romantic mysteries because she loves to see justice prevail. Coble is CEO of American Christian Fiction Writers. She lives with her husband, Dave, in Indiana.

To keep up with Colleen Coble, visit www.colleencoble.com, become a fan on Facebook (colleencoblebooks) or follow her on Twitter (@colleencoble).

Read More

Creative Characterization - Like a Good Neighbor ~ by Shelley Gray

Characterization: Like Meeting Your Next-Door Neighbors

By Shelley Gray

I’ve often told people that creating characters is a lot like meeting new next-door neighbors. Whenever new neighbors have moved in near us, I seem to go through a four-step process. At the risk of seeming like a nosy neighbor, I thought it might be fun to compare the process of characterization to starting a relationship with the folks next door.

Step 1: Peek and Greet. When someone new moves in, it’s human nature to take a quick peek at them. You form a first impression. You look to see about how old they are, if they have kids, if they look friendly.

When I begin a new book, I concentrate on physical information such as hair and eye color, ethnicity, age, glasses, scars, etc. I keep track of things in a spiral notebook. I write each character’s name at the top of a page and write down the characters’ basic information as I create it. Sometimes I even cut out magazine pictures and tape them in.

Step 2: Go Visiting. A few days after a someone new moves into our neighborhood, it’s customary to give them some cookies or a loaf of bread. Usually, we end up visiting for a couple of minutes and learn basic information about them—jobs, where they moved from, do they seem warm and friendly? Standoffish? Grumpy?

I ‘visit’ with my characters when I’m done with the first three or four chapters. During this time, I’ll go back over the part I’ve written and add information about each character. Of course, a big part of all that is developing their goals, motivation and conflict. I try to do this with every character in the book, not just the main characters. I figure if someone wanders into my book’s pages, I need to be kind enough to give them a personality and backstory.

Step 3: Bus Stop Talk. When my kids were little, all the moms would usually congregate at the bus stop and visit until the kids hopped on the bus. This was the best way to get to know other moms better. We discovered who got up early and looked like they were ready to conquer anything by eight am. We learned who worked out all the time. Who was patient with their kids. Who kind of wasn’t. You get the idea.

Around the time I’ve written a hundred pages, I revisit my characters to make sure that I’ve gotten to know them pretty well. If the characters seem flat, I spend sometime ‘fleshing’ them out. I give my characters likes and dislikes. People are interesting because they have quirks. Sometimes they’re big quirks, like a fear of some sort. Other times, I create favorite foods, activities that they like or don’t like, favorite sayings or words. Habits, too. For example, maybe a character always checks in with her best friend or mother at nine o’clock every night. Yep, I do my best to add all this in my spiral notebook, too.

Step 4. You Now Know Your Neighbors Next Door! Usually, by the time the new neighbors have lived next door for a couple of months, we’ve sized each other up. Sometimes we’ve clicked. Sometimes not so much. But usually after four or five months, we know each other pretty well. We have a relationship now.

By the time I’m three-fourths of the way through a manuscript, the plot is set, I know my characters, and I know exactly what is going to happen to them by the time I type The End.

This is the time to really check the whole cast of characters to make sure no one seems superficial or forgettable. Little adjustments are made here. Sometimes it’s giving someone a new name, sometimes it’s writing a little bit more of a backstory or giving them a red bike or car or coat. I basically try to give each character the opportunity to shine, even if it’s in a not-so-nice way.

If you’ve never taken the time to really get to know your characters, I hope you’ll give this method a try.

And if you happen to get some new neighbors sometime soon, I hope you’ll enjoy getting to know them as much as your readers will enjoy getting to know the characters in your book.

BIO:

Shelley Shepard Gray writes Amish romances for Harper Collins inspirational line, Avon Inspire and historical romances as Shelley Gray for Harper Collins Christian Publishers. Her novels have been Holt Medallion winners and Inspirational Readers Choice and Carol finalists. Shelley’s novels have appeared on both the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists.  

To date, Shelley has published over fifty novels for a variety of publishers. Her novels have been highlighted in the Philadelphia Enquirer, Washington Post, Time Magazine, and USA Today. She has also been interviewed on NPR as well as numerous regional radio stations.

Read More

Flawed characters have flawed thinking

by +AneMulligan  @AneMulligan

In my debut book, Chapel Springs Revival, my main character, Claire Bennett, is sprucing up Chapel Springs and her marriage. 

Spoiler alert! She married before she became a Christian and now wonders if her hubby is God's best for her. And yes, this came from an overheard conversation. 

What Claire learns is that God always has her best in mind, and we see, rather than get told, how perfect her Joel is for her. That's her character arc.

Spoiler over. What surprised me was when someone said in a comment that she thought it was wrong of Claire to think like that, let alone look, for a new husband.

But that was the whole point. How could I show her misconception without taking her through the journey? Even as Christians, we can get the wrong idea about what God wants us to do. If we want it, then we tend to put God in a box that agrees with our desires. 

And that works well in Christian fiction. 

In Lisa Samson's book A Thing of Beauty, I love how her main character, Fiona, buys junk all the time, so she can turn the stuff into a thing of beauty...someday. Ten years later, her house is filled with junk and she's out of money. What a great character flaw. I wanted to shake her and tell her to do something with it or trash it. Samson used that flaw as the perfect metaphor for Fiona's life. Her character arc was excellent.   

If we don't have flawed thinking in flawed characters, then we have no character arc. Without a good character arc, there's no overcoming obstacles, and the result will not leave readers with a satisfying end.

Another book with fantastic character flaws is Invisible, by Ginny Yttrup. She has three main characters who all have flaws that are obvious, yet metaphoric for their internal flawed thinking. 

As Christians authors, we can't be afraid to give our protagonist a flaw they have to overcome. Katie Ganshert took on this task in A Broken Kind of Beautiful, where she takes us into he fashion industry.

Each of these novels is a great example of flawed characters. What flaw in your character's thinking have you capitalized on? 

Ane Mulligan writes Southern-fried fiction served with a tall, sweet iced tea. She's a novelist, a humor columnist, and a multi-published playwright. She resides in Sugar Hill, GA, with her artist husband, their chef son, and two dogs of Biblical proportion. Her debut novel, Chapel Springs Revival, released Sept, 2014, to be followed by Chapel Springs Survival, Oct 2015, Home to Chapel Springs, May 2016. You can find Ane at her website, Novel Rocket, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Google+

Read More