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Monday, January 21, 2013
Character Profiles
My muse is refusing to come out and play today, so I’ve been
working on Character Profiles instead. These are pretty hard to do,
imo, and I’m wondering how many of you do them?
A Character Profile is a list of questions regarding each of your characters. You’re supposed to fill them out and they’ll help you to identify all the characteristics of your characters. Things like their looks, their hometowns, their childhood hopes and dreams, temperament, etc. Then you have something to refer to as you’re writing or as questions crop up. How would my character react in this situation? Does my character have siblings? Things like that.
I don’t typically do these Character Profiles. I tend to create and ‘see’ my characters in my head and they evolve as the book evolves. I have a basic idea of their temperaments and know how they’d react in any given situation. Sometimes I forget details such as names of siblings or parent’s names or similar items and I have to refer back in my story. But the overall character is cemented in my mind.
So, are Character Profiles a waste of time? Are they only for certain authors? Or is it something that gets easier to accomplish the more you do it?
A Character Profile is a list of questions regarding each of your characters. You’re supposed to fill them out and they’ll help you to identify all the characteristics of your characters. Things like their looks, their hometowns, their childhood hopes and dreams, temperament, etc. Then you have something to refer to as you’re writing or as questions crop up. How would my character react in this situation? Does my character have siblings? Things like that.
I don’t typically do these Character Profiles. I tend to create and ‘see’ my characters in my head and they evolve as the book evolves. I have a basic idea of their temperaments and know how they’d react in any given situation. Sometimes I forget details such as names of siblings or parent’s names or similar items and I have to refer back in my story. But the overall character is cemented in my mind.
So, are Character Profiles a waste of time? Are they only for certain authors? Or is it something that gets easier to accomplish the more you do it?
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
A New Title for London Love
When I begin a new idea, I try to give it a title. One, it helps me to distinguish it from all my other ideas. And two, it helps me to keep the focus of what the story will later become.
With London Love, I've never been 100% thrilled with the title. Since finishing the story, and realizing that soon it could be a published novel, my anxiety over the title has risen significantly.
I've been wracking my brain for a new title, but nothing I come up with seems to fit. Some recent ideas that have passed through my mind: Kate's Fate, A Second Chance at Love, Finding Love Again ... Next to the story itself, and the cover image - the title of a book is quite important, in my opinion.
How do you choose your titles? Do you have an idea of what I could name this novel? Or do you think the current title fits?
With London Love, I've never been 100% thrilled with the title. Since finishing the story, and realizing that soon it could be a published novel, my anxiety over the title has risen significantly.
I've been wracking my brain for a new title, but nothing I come up with seems to fit. Some recent ideas that have passed through my mind: Kate's Fate, A Second Chance at Love, Finding Love Again ... Next to the story itself, and the cover image - the title of a book is quite important, in my opinion.
How do you choose your titles? Do you have an idea of what I could name this novel? Or do you think the current title fits?
Monday, January 14, 2013
Dream Sequences
I've been playing around with dream sequences for my new project, True Love's Revenge. I love the idea of using these dreams as a way for Flynn to communicate with Libby. (Flynn is Drake, changed the name.) I was writing the sequences as I was writing the book, but I'm finding it hard to switch back and forth. I finally took all the sequences out of the story and put them in another document. My plan is to work on either the sequences or the story, not both at the same time.
Has anyone else tried this? How did it work for you?
Has anyone else tried this? How did it work for you?
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Time For A New Project!
Well, now that London Love is off to my writing group...it's time for me to start a new project! While I had planned to pick up my first novel Emily's Choice, I've actually decided to work on an idea I had a few years ago...True Love's Revenge!
It was a windy night and the air was crackling with energy when I took my dog Tobie out for a walk before bed. While I was standing outside, waiting for him to do his business, I started to feel a bit creeped out. The idea for my newest project came that night. Instead of going to sleep, I went upstairs and wrote the outline for this novel.
It's a story about unrequited true love and the lengths to which a couple will go to find each other again. Can Drake prove his love to Libby and will Libby be able to remember all the reasons she fell in love with him to begin with?
It's time to find out...
It was a windy night and the air was crackling with energy when I took my dog Tobie out for a walk before bed. While I was standing outside, waiting for him to do his business, I started to feel a bit creeped out. The idea for my newest project came that night. Instead of going to sleep, I went upstairs and wrote the outline for this novel.
It's a story about unrequited true love and the lengths to which a couple will go to find each other again. Can Drake prove his love to Libby and will Libby be able to remember all the reasons she fell in love with him to begin with?
It's time to find out...
Monday, January 7, 2013
London Love - Complete!
Well, after a marathon writing session over the weekend, I got the second draft of London Love complete! It's a huge relief to have that story worked out and completed. I sent it off to my writing group and am eagerly awaiting their thoughts and opinions.
It's an odd moment when one finishes a project they've devoted over a year to. I'm happy that it's finished, sad that it's finished, worried that it's not up to par, excited to be so close to publishing. I'm a kaleidoscope of emotions.
And now that London Love is done, I'm trying to decide which project to pick up next. I have ten novels started, and one that needs a complete overhaul. I don't know if I should devote myself to the complete overhaul or pick up one of my starts and work on that. Decisions, decisions...
What are your thoughts?
It's an odd moment when one finishes a project they've devoted over a year to. I'm happy that it's finished, sad that it's finished, worried that it's not up to par, excited to be so close to publishing. I'm a kaleidoscope of emotions.
And now that London Love is done, I'm trying to decide which project to pick up next. I have ten novels started, and one that needs a complete overhaul. I don't know if I should devote myself to the complete overhaul or pick up one of my starts and work on that. Decisions, decisions...
What are your thoughts?
Thursday, January 3, 2013
Welcome to the New Year - 2013
Happy New Year!
I've made it my goal to finish this novel and get it published digitally this year. My plan is to finish writing by the end of February. Then do any necessary editing in March. And finally publish in April.
I was able to make some headway around Christmas on a part that I'd been blocked on for most of December. It took re-reading those troublesome chapters to get myself back into the place I needed to be to finish that scene. It's amazing to me that all it took was re-reading those pages. Sometimes it's just the smallest thing that leads to bigger and better things.
Once I finish London Love, I'll go back to work on my very first novel, Emily's Choice. It was originally called Matoaka and I started writing it in High School! It's been through a few drafts, and I want to be done with it this year and get it published!
Those are my goals for 2013...What are yours?
I've made it my goal to finish this novel and get it published digitally this year. My plan is to finish writing by the end of February. Then do any necessary editing in March. And finally publish in April.
I was able to make some headway around Christmas on a part that I'd been blocked on for most of December. It took re-reading those troublesome chapters to get myself back into the place I needed to be to finish that scene. It's amazing to me that all it took was re-reading those pages. Sometimes it's just the smallest thing that leads to bigger and better things.
Once I finish London Love, I'll go back to work on my very first novel, Emily's Choice. It was originally called Matoaka and I started writing it in High School! It's been through a few drafts, and I want to be done with it this year and get it published!
Those are my goals for 2013...What are yours?
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