Category Archives: Reflection

Struggling to Define Love

Character Craft & Skills Guest Posts Narrative Voice POV Reflection Self-Awareness The Writing Life Tropes & Archetypes Writing Tools 4 Comments

A guest post by Stephan McLeroy.

Acid bubbled in my gut as I stared down at Jamie from the front door of my double-wide.

“Pat, come on, just let me in, just for a second.”

I took hold of the screen door’s aluminum frame and gripped it for support. The urge to look away so I could think through things for a moment itched at my eyes. But I didn’t. Jamie’d seen through my bullshit yesterday. Now I had to at least seem resolute as I made my choice: would I let us be together, or would I keep running the safe play.

“Damnit, Jamie, why can’t you just cut your losses and get the hell outta town.” I said, my voice stumbling over every syllable.

Jamie moved up onto the first step below the screen door. The rubber of Converse high-tops scraped against the sandpaper laminate, shaving away the edges of composure. Bright eyes, the color of pool table felt, stared at me with an understanding that called my bluff.

“Pat, come on, this isn’t cards here, I’m tryin’ to show you that you can have something better, something real, and I’m willing to work through all that baggage you got, but you haveta stop pushin’ me away.”

Without warning, I felt my sinuses tighten up, and fluid fill my eyes. I started to close the screen door, but Jamie had mounted the second step. Long, rough fingers slid over my hand and I felt my tight grip on the aluminum melt to butter. I tried to inhale, ready to make some excuse neither of us wanted to hear, but the air caught in my mouth as Jamie pressed against me. A river flowed through me, washing away the fear, the doubt, crashing through the calloused sphere I’d worked around myself. I’d loved and lost, loved and been hurt, but all of a sudden, with Jamie’s soft lips pressed against mine, it all didn’t matter anymore.

*

Whew! I hope that was as fun for you to read as it was for me to write. Love is fantastic isn’t it? For me, I’ve always been keenly interested in the subject. It’s incredibly challenging to try and define love for others, but the task is extremely important when writing love relationships between characters. When it comes to love, however, there is one thing you can always count on: Everyone’s version is unique.

Let’s go back to the little scene I wrote above. You might have noticed I kept the two characters gender neutral. For fun, I let three friends read the scene and then asked them two things. First, I asked them what gender the two characters were. As you might have guessed, the genders of the characters changed with the gender of the friend being asked. Then I asked them to describe Pat’s relationship with love prior to the events of the scene. All three agreed that Pat, whether they were male or female, had been hurt and, as a result, had developed a fear-based relationship with love.

Now, don’t get me wrong, gender is a major source for experiences we utilize while building our individual definition of love. We use experiences to decide what we associate with love. For some that love feeling could come from a sense of security, for others, it’s centered on unconditional trust. Then you have other people who associate love with something specific like height or weight or how obsessed the person is with the band Gwar. A definition of love for any given person can be associated with almost anything. This can create great differences between two love definitions, but it can also allow for some similarities as well. We empathize with friends and connect with stories of love gained and lost because the love definitions we encounter resemble ours. However, at some point, deep down, these definitions will all diverge from your own.

Okay, let’s get back to your characters. As with real people, each of your characters will have been formed by their unique experiences; their current and former relationships create the patterns for how they love someone. With this in mind, you’re going to have to define love for them. Then the problems arise: how do we define someone else’s love without having lived through every single moment in their lives that could have affected their love definition? Ah, the glorious struggle of character development. I’ve found that dealing with this problem is often quite similar to dealing with other character development issues. For each writer it might be different, for me, however, it came back to that idea of people with similar life experiences. Who do I know that would be able to empathize with a character I have no shared experiences with?

To answer this question, I revisited some of my favorite fiction for characters I felt would have connected in the ways I was struggling to define. Not for a mirror but for a frame of reference. More importantly, I began talking to the people around me. At first, my intentions were to go about this wholesale; I intentionally went to people who either grew up in extremely different cultural environments or had very different love relationships from myself. I found that having these conversations expanded my view of what could mold love into definitions completely different than mine. Although I couldn’t experience the feelings associated with those different kinds of love, I could at least begin to see how my characters could begin to form their own love definition.

Love is a tricky thing to nail down in the real world and in fiction. Your definition will be different than anyone else’s, including your characters. If you choose to speak with other people about defining love, consider how the elements of their experiences could help to frame the ways in which your characters love. By reaching outside your own personal frame of reference, you can, in a way, ‘experience’ many definitions of love; perhaps foreign to you, but perfect for your character.

Stephan McLeroy is a historical urban fantasy writer based out of the San Francisco Bay area. He is currently working on a new novel, The Adventures of Lockwood and Blackfox. If you’d like to hear more of his thoughts on things like writing and Elder Fashion Cocktails, check out his blog:http://stephanmcleroy.com/

The Monster Mash: Writing Sex Scenes, Part One

Character Craft & Skills Guest Posts Joshua Essoe Reflection The Writing Life Tropes & Archetypes 1 Comment

A guest post by Joshua Essoe.

This is an intimidating subject, and one I think many authors have a lot of questions about. Should the characters indulge in a little horizontal refreshment? Do they or don’t they? Should I or shouldn’t I?

In loving someone else, we really do discover things about ourselves. The act of sex opens up all kinds of emotional territory for us, and it’s great to show characters discovering themselves through their physical loving of one another.

First, let’s decide if your story needs a love scene. Just like any other scene, ideally, it should do three things–advance the plot, show character progression, and turn you on . . . I mean entertain. If the sex can reveal character, or advance plot, or increase tension, you should consider including a little limb mingling in your story. Especially if the genre encourages it.

I read an awesome quote from Delilah S. Dawson who writes the Blud series:

“Remember in Mallrats, where they were doing the dating show, and the suitors were asked if their kisses were like a soft breeze, a firm handshake, or a jackhammer? Gil answered, “Definitely a jackhammer, I’m in there with some pressure and when I’m done, you’re not the same as before. You’re changed.” And we laughed, because he was a douche. But your sex scene should be like that: it should move the story forward and somehow affect the characters emotionally. Maybe the hero learns to open up, maybe the heroine decides she wants to be more aggressive in her real life, maybe they’re just having what they think is a last fling before a giant orc battle. But it has to mean something, or else it’s just porn.”

So here are some things to consider:

A) Is a character’s personal life necessary to the story?

B) Should the sex be explicit or implied?

C) What genre is it for?

Each genre is going to cook the meat and potatoes a different way, and have different expectations and limitations. Do your research and find out what is required, and what is prohibited. Keep in mind that just because a story has a sex scene in it, it doesn’t make it erotica any more than an action story becomes a romance because there is a romantic relationship in it.

Sex scenes and romances are all about the tension. They’re about building that moment that readers are waiting for. That moment where one thing turns to another. That first kiss after all those “innocent” touches, or all that longing. It’s that slow build to that first moment where the clothes finally come off, or the first time that one character finally admits that they love the other. The buildup is where it’s at. That’s what’s interesting and engaging. The reward of the actual kiss, or the I-love-you, or the sex is nice, but it means little without the buildup of characters and those characters’ desires. Wine and dine your readers before taking them home. Everybody enjoys some foreplay.

Terry Goodkind did a masterful job of creating romantic tension in his first few Sword of Truth books. We really wanted Kahlan and Richard to get together just as much as we were invested in the central conflict being resolved. When they finally kiss and when they finally get together, however briefly, it is immensely satisfying.

Another excellent lesson from that series is that the tension of their love affair decreased exponentially with each new book that kept them apart. With the repetitive pulling apart and coming back together, it became frustrating. You can’t be a one-trick pony, no matter how good that trick is; you have to show your readers new problems, give them new conflicts. There’s only so long readers will be willing to wait, and only so much they’ll be able to stand before getting frustrated or bored and putting your story down.

You have to keep up the cycle of tension, but it has to be fresh tension.

So, okay, the characters really do need to do the pickle tickle. It’s necessary to the story, okay? How do you handle it?

Unless the tone and mood calls for it, unless the characters and the story call for it, don’t be needlessly crass. There are plenty of ways to describe things, and use implied information to inform your readers of exactly what is going on.

In one sci-fi manuscript I read, the writer plunged me into gratuitous sex scene after gratuitous sex scene with no build-up or tonal foreshadowing, and seemingly without purpose besides the writer’s desire to write raunchy sex scenes. It was like having a picnic on a cloudless day that abruptly begins raining frogs on you. It didn’t make sense and was quite jarring.

Language is important. The specific words you use are important. Don’t write a book that has a little flirtation, and then jump into a chapter where one character is practically raping another. Don’t abstain from using any harsh language, and then use all the filthiest words you can come up with when you get to your sex scene. Your story needs consistency and everything must be set up so that you are appropriately managing your readers’ expectations.

Tone is important, but don’t be afraid to have a funny sex scene either. Coming-of-age sex scenes, for example, could be just as much about the humor in the awkwardness as it is about that life-changing event for the characters. You can still do funny, and tender, and sexy all in one scene if you want. Life is nuanced, and so should your sex scenes be.

In part two, we’ll take a deeper poke at how far to go, tropes, and character penetration. Until then, don’t write anything you’ll regret in the morning.

Joshua EssoeAbout Joshua Essoe:

Joshua Essoe is a full-time, freelance editor. He’s done work for best-seller David Farland, including the multi-award winning novel, Nightingale; Dean Lorey, lead writer of Arrested Development; best-seller, James Artimus Owen; and numerous Writers of the Future authors and winners, as well as many top-notch independents. He is currently the copy editor at Urban Fantasy Magazine.

Together with tie-in writer Jordan Ellinger, indie success-story, Michael J. Sullivan, and traditionally published author and NY Times best-seller, Debbie Viguie, he records the weekly writing podcast Hide and Create. 

When not editing . . . ha ha, a joke. He was a 2014 finalist in the Writers of the Future contest, and lives with his wife, and three horrible cats near UCLA.

Threads in a Tapestry

Character Craft & Skills Guest Posts Reflection The Writing Life 1 Comment

A guest post by Victoria Morris.

When I think about characters and the relationships between them, I see a vast colorful representation of the story I’m trying to create.  People, emotions, gifts, and flaws all trying to balance together on the edge of something amazing, if I can weave them all together.

It’s all very much like a tapestry for me, only I use words, character traits, and behaviors to weave my story instead of threads. Relationships and each character’s strengths, weaknesses, reactions and experiences creating the story’s overall tone and feel, are like the color and types of thread weavers use to bring a tapestry to life on a loom. Every connection is important. And all of them have different markers, and identities.

Each of these — characters, and single threads of my woven picture — can be defined symbolically the same: color, thickness, strength, positioning within the pattern.  Whether it has corse, or fine build.  What it is that connects them to their surroundings, the place in the image on the tapestry, and setting in a story.

Every thread has its own story, very like a character in a novel.  A character’s backstory — the sum total of his experiences and how he reacts or is forced to react — are the shades of those colors that create the same feel as the words an author chooses to illustrate with.  The shades of color can equal the genre or tone of the writing. If the character’s been jaded, the colors are stormy or dark. Grays are prevalent. But if the story is an upbeat, happy one, those shades become much whiter, much brighter.

On the loom, the heart of the picture or tapestry, joins the single thread to other single threads.  At first, nothing much is visible in the weaving.  A bland line not connected to the wall, that seems shapeless as well as mundane.  But then something happens.  Forms start to emerge. “Nothing” begins to look like something. By sprinkling in some love, adding a dash of creativity, and a sudden burst of magic, the resulting mixture forms something fantastic.

I almost always have feeling first, when I come to the loom of my writing tapestry.  That feeling is represented in different ways, but usually first by color.  Light or dark permeate my thoughts, as the character builds him or herself into my mind’s eye.  From that color, I extrapolate other important data, the relationships with other characters — new or as yet unknown — begin to show themselves.  It’s here in this step I sense a lot of who my characters are as people.  What do they care about? What would they give everything for? Whom do they love… and why?

I interview them, and as they answer these questions and others, their shape appears.  And with color and shape, I begin to see what it is that is unique to them, what it is that only they can bring to the story.

At the loom, separate threads soon expand to thick sections. Patterns emerge that can help an onlooker begin to understand what’s happening.  Perhaps the sky has now appeared,  or a rushing waterfall can be seen in the forming image.  Huge chunks are missing, the perspective is not yet clear, but some of it is there, and it’s enough to know that each piece is special.

Here is where the reader is going to see me become animated, and excited. I know the players now.  I see them, and I care deeply for them.  Sometimes I care so much that they begin to haunt my dreams, sending me stories inside the story.  I always write them down, because almost always they lead to more of the magic.  Dream tales are the clues I need to know that my heart is truly vested in these people. And in their greater project. Now, I need to know where they’re going to take me.

And to do that, each character has to bring something of value to the table.  Something important that will move this work forward on its projected path. The job of prominent main characters, or even the seldom seen ones, is to make sure the scenes move — expertly woven in, so they can bring a zap of inspiration when least expected.

It’s in secondary and tertiary characters that I like to deepen the imagery with.  They fill in the blanks, and liven up the view. The story perspective widens, and everyone coming along for the ride, can see what I see.  Together with the main character, be it their best friend, their spouse — however the story is being told — each character combines their colors, differences, strengths, loves, and weaknesses, to make the grand picture stand out.  Just like when the weaver adds in the next sections of color, building up the scene with each new thread.

When our weaver sits back from their work, having spent many hours staring at single threads, small sections, grafting in a bigger picture.  They’ll notice the image as a whole.  Our weaver will see their mistakes.  Smile at their favorite sections.  Maybe they’ll nod at the parts they like the best.  They may even tear sections out to reweave, retouching in places to make sure the colors blend well, so the scene comes to life.

Putting all of our hearts into our own work really shows here.  Every weaver has a personal story that carries into the piece.  Each of us have things that excite us… inspire us.  People whom we love that enter our works be it by thoughtful intention or subconscious message.  I truly believe every part of us comes to bear when we sit down and tell our story.

Creating good character composition and interaction is a specialized art, very much like a weaver at their loom.  Making people come alive on paper, capable of eliciting emotion from a reader by that character’s actions and reactions is a true gift, and a tough job all-in-one.

We as writers weave our darlings every single day, one sentence — one thread — at a time.  We take all the things we know, all the emotions we have, all the colors in our rainbow, and we push them through a loom of chapters, page breaks, and revisions to let the Tapestry in our mind’s eye come to life.

As an artist, I love being able to see my characters in living color, and I can create them visually in simple pencil sketches to surround and inspire me as the hard weaving work of actual writing progresses.  I think we All have something special in our tool box that helps us do this.   

When the loom lies quiet this last time, the onlooker sees the image of a woman with her hand outstretched pulling a drowning man to safety from the raging waterfall that had been visible near the beginning. Within that first perspective, and very little emotion invested, a viewer would see only water.  But now, looking down, they see a life-saving gesture.  And they are filled with the emotion that the weaver brought to their work.  They are thrilled. They are relieved. They are happy, or sad.  They hold onto their child’s hand tighter, feeling a rush of intensity that the water alone would not have given.  The story in this work, couldn’t tell itself without those first threads, just as it couldn’t without the middle or the last ones.   It takes time, love, patience, and more time, for the final vision to emerge.  Just as it takes to give each written character and story, life and breath with words.

Each of our stories will grow, form, and find their way.  Some of the greatest tools a writer or a weaver possesses, are patience and tenacity.  And greater still, a love so strong and compelling in each of our hearts to work creatively at all.  All of us here are word-weavers.  And as such, we all have threads of imagination, and stretches of story on our own personal looms.  I love seeing each character and story start with beginning perspectives of single thread ideas, get woven into the intricate Tapestries we each can and will create.

victoriaMorrisAbout Victoria Morris: 

Victoria lives on the edge of a mysty magical forest in the Pacific Northwest with one husband, two daughters, a big white dog and one huge resident bald eagle that likes to circle over her house when she brings in the groceries. A lifelong artist and not quite as long writer, Victoria is building a universe inside her head that has taken form in a six book fantasy series, with a middle grade trilogy on the side. While illustrating the world and all its characters is always on her mind, she draws portraits in her spare time to relax. Find out more here.

Do You Wanna Know What Love Is? Do You Want Me To Show You?

Author's Perspective Character Craft & Skills Doing Good in the World Goals Guest Posts Kristin Luna Motivation Narrative Voice POV Reflection Self-Awareness The Writing Life Tropes & Archetypes Writing Tools 2 Comments

Some like it hot. Others just plain don’t like it, hot or cold. I could either be talking about oatmeal or love. Unfortunately, we couldn’t figure out a month’s worth of posts about oatmeal, so we opted for love.

But not just any old love. Complicated love. Confusing love. Forbidden love. Exhausting love. Unique love. Carnie love. Maybe not carnie love, but maybe someone should start talking about it, gosh darn it, because love is love! And while we have our individual experiences, we share one thing: we’ve all been touched by it. How we’ve been touched by it is a whole ‘nuther conversation.

But we’re about to have that conversation. How can you make love between two characters unique? Should you or should you not marry your cat? How do you reach outside your own experience to create unique, surprising love between characters?  How can you get that guy to stop stalking you? We hope to answer most of these questions this month.

You can look forward to posts from all of your favorite bloggers, along with special guest posts by author Lisa Mangum, her talented filmmaker husband Tracy Mangum, Cthulhu convert and author Stephan McLeroy, aspiring author and illustrator Victoria Morris, and editor/hair god Joshua Essoe. Join us as we celebrate love and relentlessly pound the crap out of it this month!