Showing posts with label character arcs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label character arcs. Show all posts

Friday, August 28, 2015

Character Posts

Happy Friday, everyone! Because I'm running around like a crazy person, trying to get caught up on things today, I'm giving you an awesome list of all the character posts I've written since starting this blog. Yeah, there are a lot! Get your clicking fingers ready, and let's get going!!

From the archives:
Characters, You Say? - A breakdown of characterization
Writing as the Opposite Sex - Getting into the mind of your character
Character Flaws - Why perfect characters, aren't
What's in a Character? - Character bios and what they should include
Flipping the Switch - Good guys, bad guys, and where the lines blur
Knights in Shining Armor - Causing your hero to have a fatal flaw
Is Your Character Sexy or Beautiful? - Know the difference, use it to your advantage
Character Arcs - More on creating great characters that feel real
Bringing Truth to Fiction - All about being true to your character even when writing BS
Your Supporting Cast of Characters - Talking about minor characters and how to keep them from taking over
Complex Villains - How to keep reader empathy in check when crafting a super villain
What's in a Name - Why the names you choose matter
3D Characters - More on making rounded characters
Coffee and Writing - How to use coffee to add dimension to your characters
Female Protagonists - Why Women Love Them - How to connect with women
EnneaApp - One way you can give your characters depth by clicking a couple of buttons
Being Emo - Emotional Triggers for Creating Rich Characters - Exactly what is says
Stealing Characters - How to use a character from life and other places
Character Bios - Visually - How to keep up with all the stuff about your characters with ease

I hope you enjoy the heck out of these :)

Which one is your favorite?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Friday, February 28, 2014

Female Protagonists - Why Women Love Them

Happy, happy Friday, everyone! I'm thinking maybe the title of this post should be Strong Female Protagonists - Why Women Love Them; because I'm speaking from a female point of view, and I read a LOT of book reviews by women that cite that very thing as what makes the character great. Either way, let's get on to the discussion. I think this post may help female writers, but it might help some of the guys, too. Grab your pens and notebooks and let's get going!


I suppose you all remember the post about your characters being too perfect. Well, that also plays into this discussion. Since all characters are on a journey from page one to page five hundred, we'll assume you're starting out with a flawed female who thinks she needs one thing, but will find out that what she's looking for isn't what she needs.

Being flawed is what makes us human. Remember: To err is human, to forgive is divine.

So, why do women love female protagonists?

It's not just any old protagonist with a vagina we ladies love to read about. It's the ones we want to be more like that move us emotionally (and women are driven by emotions). We have to connect with them on a deeper level. Here's a quick list of things that make a strong female lead (and some of the females that rock):
  • She doesn't know she's awesome and doesn't preen like a peacock (Jane Bennet-P&P).
  • In a fight, she'll always come out on top. Maybe not because of her brute strength, but because of her brains (Hermione - Harry Potter).
  • There should always be self-doubt as to whether she can do what she's about to attempt (Katniss - The Hunger Games).
  • These ladies don't need a man, and they don't whimper in a corner when things get hard (Millie - The Help).
  • Hard times or abuse have fallen on them in the past, and they grew from the experience (Kate - First Visions).
  • Many of these women are completely selfless and put others first (every lady listed above).

Now, that's not everything that makes a great female protagonist; but it's a good list to start with. Add to that some skill with a sword or bow, a successful line of self-employment (all of Fern Michaels's leading ladies), some serious self-doubt that's overcome, or a hidden power, and you have a winner.

But she must also be the underdog. We must have some reason to root for her to succeed and the fear that she won't. A girl whose never seen the other side of the tracks is difficult to get behind. Let's face it, life isn't easy or fair for 99% of the population. If you make it fair, 99% of the population won't connect with your character.

If you do these things well, your readers will fall in love with your characters, identify with them, and want to be more like them. That's the key.

I bet you've heard of most of those women. Guess why? Yup, they were strong. If you haven't read Kate's story in First Visions, you should. It's free. Forever. On Amazon.

I'm going to let you in on a little secret: If your female lead is weak, annoying, leans on a man all the time, or acts childish, female reviewers will ding you for it. Give us someone we can really root for.

Who's your favorite leading lady?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Friday, August 16, 2013

Character Arcs

Happy Friday, good people of the blogosphere! I'm looking forward to the weekend SO much. Melody is in round three of edits (see this post for the editing steps I take) and Coralie's story is flying from my fingers. I've been an emotional wreck the last few days because her story is truly terrifying. But, today isn't about those books, though I may use them for reference, it's about Character Arcs. What the heck is a Character Arc? Well, grab your pens and notebooks and let's get going!

If you've been a regular visitor to the blog, you've probably read a lot about doorways and change. I'm always talking about how a character should pass through the doorway of no return and how that moment should end up changing your character in a profound way. But what are the steps from doorway to epiphany?

An excellent character arc has these things:
  • Meeting
  • The Doorway
  • Impact on the Persona
  • Moment of Change
  • Finale
Meeting is where we're introduced to the character and learn a little about them. This isn't full disclosure, it's a tasting of the character's basic beliefs, values, attitudes, and opinions. Now, the basic beliefs and values a person holds are a direct result of their attitudes and opinions. Change enough of the opinions and you end up changing a core belief.

This is where The Doorway comes into play. Your character must waver on the threshold. Because of their beliefs and values, they won't want to step through that door. Find a way to shove them through. Leave them no choice in the matter. This is the beginning of change.

A few examples: In Mystic ~ Bronya, she has to leave the town she's in and give up on the possibility of love. I shoved her through the door by taking away all she cared about and leaving her no other option. While she answers the letter from WSTW with gusto, she almost turns around at the airport because she's still trying to retain hope that she'll end up with Cecilia. In Mystic ~ Lily, she's made to face the person in the mirror and practice self-love. She fights it because drugs and alcohol have served her well in taking away the pain up to that point. I added Markaza to the mix to shove Lily through the doorway; kicking and screaming.

Impact on the Persona happens throughout the story. These are what lead a person to begin to change their beliefs. Maybe hate is erased or judgment tendencies are quelled. But there are always outside forces at work. People the character interacts with or things they witness will begin to change their opinions, thereby changing their attitudes, values, and beliefs.

There has to be a Moment of Change. From everything that happens to the character from the doorway beyond, it will bring about the epiphany. It's that "ah ha!" moment. And it can't come out of nowhere. Outside forces are always at work on all of us. It's the same with your character.

You don't have to write out the moment. It can be shown via actions during the Finale. New things the character does or says can show the reader just how monumental the change was, and how the values and beliefs of the character were altered.

In a series, the Moment of Change doesn't usually happen in the first book; but in the last. For example: In the Mystic series, none of my ladies have really had that moment yet. Markaza is off collecting the girls,  each book is a sampling of their individual doorways, and some of the Impact that occurs to force the girls to pass through. There's no outside forces changing their belief systems just yet (though there was a hint of it in Mystic ~ Shelia when Aunt Ivy shows up).

Now, how to keep it straight?

Try creating a Character Arc list. Four columns on a sheet of paper, each with a heading. Here's an example:
Temujin begins life believing he's the end-all be-all and has very astute ideals about how things should be. When he breaks his values during the story, he ends up with a lot of humility and understanding about life and love. This can be ramped up with a little bit of tweaking, but it'll give you a map to work from. I didn't show what I have in store for the women of WSTW because that would spoil the last book.

I hope you all have a good grasp of Character Arc and a handy tip that will help you formulate a plan.

Question of the day: Do you plot out your characters beyond page one? How has it helped you/hindered you?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo