Category: Uncategorized

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

I belong to a group that gathers several times a year.  The group is filled with moms like me.

During these gatherings, everyone works very hard to be very pleasant.  They’re friendly and seem to work very hard to fit in with the other moms there.

Unfortunately, for someone like me (and my horrid memory), this makes it very difficult to remember who’s who.  I decided to keep a secret notebook that I refer to before going to the next event. After each event, I sit in the car, list all the names I remember, and jot down descriptive notes after each name.  I do like to remember names and use them when I’m speaking with someone, so I have to work hard at it.

My husband came across my notebook and glanced through it.  “You are so dead if this ever comes to light,” he chortled.

That’s because I had to resort to describing their various physical traits to tell them apart.  They all act so mom-like that I couldn’t find any other distinguishing characteristics.  If they had jobs, they didn’t mention them. I certainly never mentioned my writing, so who knows? Maybe they had secret notebooks mentioning a tall woman with long, straight hair who didn’t talk much. We never seem to get below that superficial small talk to show who we really were.

Obviously, this isn’t what we want in our stories.  We want our characters’ personalities to be different enough so we don’t need the physical crutch as much.  Or, we might still need the crutch, but not as much.

Other ways of making our characters stand out from each other:

Diction.  Word choice is one way to help a character stand out in dialogue.  Mystery writer Margot Kinberg had a great post on character catch-phrases in her post, She’s Got a Way of Talkin’.  It also could be how they say what they say.  Some characters might be very precise.  Some characters might be impatient with others and the impatience comes through.

Mannerisms.  Biting nails, slouching, fond of hand gestures, etc.

Quirks.
 
Hobbies, interests, jobs. 

Gifts/skills.

Their motives.  What do they want?  What’s important to them? How does this impact the story?

And yes, a distinguishing physical trait. Looks do play into distinctive characters.  Dimples, moustache, bald head.

You can show a character’s distinguishing characteristics through his actions, his reactions to events, through dialogue (either by what he’s saying or by what others are saying about him), by his manner…and even by his name.


What are your favorite ways to help readers tell your characters apart?

Image: MorgueFile by ManicMorFF

 
Knot What it Seams, book two of the Southern quilting mysteries, released Tuesday, February 5. 

Available in mass-market paperback and digital versions.

_{Guest post by
Khanh Ho, @LAMysteryWriter}

Ed Koch (1924-2013) died the other day.  And
as with all great men, almost immediately, there have arisen tributes.  One of the most moving tributes was a video
interview, originally shot in 2007:  The Last Word.  Why? 
Because you got to see the old man, grappling with the imminence of sure
death, sum up his career.  He talked
about his goals and achievements, failures and successes, enmities and deep,
abiding friendships. “I want to be remembered as being a proud Jew who loved
the people of New York and did his best to make their lives better.” 

There
is something in us that craves the Huckleberry Finn moment—that voyeuristic
moment when you can watch your own funeral: 
the eulogy, weeping, chest beating. 
It’s probably the best episode in Huck
Finn and it really is the instance when Huck becomes closest to an
author:  manipulative, all-seeing—the
young barefoot boy sits in the balcony above everybody and gawks at the
spectacle he has contrived.  Ed Koch’s
video, whether he intended it to or not, is a moving tribute video…because it
feels as if it were planned with full knowledge that this would be the mayor
making his own eulogy.

At
the end of life, when you’re forced to sum everything up, you have to be
blunt.  Ed Koch is quite straightforward;
he spells out all his beefs.  Rudy
Giuliani was a mean-spirited person who was terrible to be around with.  Mario Cuomo, the mayor always despised for
the ugly gay-baiting campaign slogan: 
“Vote for Cuomo, not the Homo.” 
Few of us can be so straightforward. 
We are taught, in fact, that to be straightforward is socially undesirable.  It can make you appear crude.  So we censor ourselves.  And we often censor our characters.

If
you’re having trouble developing a character, this exercise will get you
going:  Spend a minute and watch the
video—it’s a half hour but worth it. 
Then, start off with this basic question addressed to your
character.  What do you want to be remembered
for?  Koch could reel these things off in
a list:  1)  Getting the city out of bankruptcy 2)  Giving back spirit to the people of New
York  3) 
Taking politics out of the selection of judges.  “I’m the sort of person who will never get
ulcers. Why? Because I say exactly what I think. I’m the sort of person who
might give other people ulcers.”

So, here’s your task.  Get your character to answer the eulogy
question.  Make it the entryway to the
beginning of a short paragraph long monologue. 
And get them to channel their inner-Koch to lay it all out in crude,
straightforward, no-holds-barred language. 
Get them to own up to their beefs and failures, fears and tribulations.  So what if your character is quiet, reserved
and prissy and they would never talk like this.   Inside all characters is a voice that knows
what it’s about—an inner Koch.  This will
easily jumpstart you into a deeper understanding of your character and, if you
do this write, it will deliver a bonus: 
it will get you a plot.

Khanh Ho spent
many years living in a small town in rural Iowa, teaching Creative Writing at
Grinnell College—a small liberal arts college, nestled in a windswept prairie
whose distinguishing feature is the presence of a Super Walmart. But then he had
a light bulb epiphany: he’ll never produce writing if he persists in teaching
it. So, now he is happily pounding away at the keyboard, knocking out not only
his first mystery novel but, also, the first mystery novel featuring the first
Vietnamese American detective. Why? Because, yes, he’ll be the first; yes, it’ll
be a power trip; and yes, because he can! Follow him on his great adventure at
www.losangelesmystery.com

Image: by Camera Operator: PH3 PATRICK J. CASHIN (ID:DN-ST-88-09107 / Service Depicted: Navy) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

*********

Guest post by L. Diane Wolfe, @SpunkOnAStick

Many of us have seen ads or commercials for some really odd products. I’m sure you remember Big Mouth Billy Bass, the mounted fish who sang. If you were like me, you watched those commercials in morbid fascination, wondering who on earth would want something that cheesy in their home. Ironically, that singing bass found a niche and became a best-seller and an icon.

Today in the book industry, we have the equivalent of the singing bass in the Fifty Shades of Grey series. Some of us look at those books with the same morbid fascination, wondering who would want to read poorly-written, trashy porn for women. And yet, the books found their niche and have sold millions.

Most of us will never find that large of a niche. (And many of us don’t want to find that kind of a niche!) But we want to be sure our writing fits a niche and fills a need. It’s easier to do that before we pour years into a single writing project, too.

Imagine having an idea for a product. You spend months, maybe years perfecting your product, which you call the Widget. Once done, you show it to everyone. You’re asked, “What does it do?” You give a vague description, but you’re not really sure. Then someone asks, “Who would want it?” That’s when you realize you have no idea who would want your Widget, either. In the excitement of creating, you forgot about your target market.

Now, often you’ll hear “Don’t worry about the market – just write what you love.” And to a degree, you should write according to your passion. If you don’t, it will show in the poor quality of your story or work. The market is always changing, so writing for trends is difficult and risky. But if you can identify a need and a niche for yourself, your goal should be to use your writing strengths to fill that niche.

As the author of both genres, I will admit non-fiction writers (not counting poetry) have an advantage over fiction writers in this area. They are writing with an audience in mind, one who is seeking information on a subject, location, or moment in history. Of course, even they might only have a vague idea of the real need for their book or the niche it might fill.

There are a couple questions you can ask yourself when trying to find your niche:

1 – What is my genre?

The Book Industry Systems Advisory Committee lists all genres and sub-genres on their website – http://www.bisg.org/ Go through the lists and determine which genre(s) best describe your story or book idea. You want your book to be unique, but without an established genre, you won’t know which publishers or agents to query, nor will book sellers or libraries know where to place your book.

2 – What is the market like for the genre?

Again, don’t write for the market only, but be aware of trends. What is growing right now? What has potential to grow? What is oversaturated? Will you stand out or be lost in the crowd? If writing non-fiction, do you have the expertise to compete?

3 – Who is your target audience?

Create a detailed reader profile. What is your audience’s age, gender, and interests? Where does your target reader shop? What magazines and websites do they read? What are their needs?

4 – What are your book’s benefits?

Will your book amuse people or help them escape their everyday lives? Will it enrich them? Will it expand their knowledge? Will it better their lives? Place yourself in your reader’s shoes – what will your book do for them?

5 – Does your book fill a need?

Does your book provide new information people are seeking? Is your book tied to a specific event or location? Is your story part of a new or growing trend? This last question is easier to answer if you have answered the first four in depth.

You don’t want to be a machine churning out pieces just to satisfy the masses, nor do you want to be the writer who pours his or her soul into a project that has no market. But it is possible to line up your passions and writing strengths with an audience eager to buy. Find your niche and fill it!

L. Diane Wolfe Professional Speaker & Author

Known as “Spunk On A Stick,” Wolfe is a member of the National Speakers Association and the author of numerous books. Her latest title, “How to Publish and Promote Your Book Now,” covers her publishing seminars in depth and provides an overview of the entire process from idea to market. “Overcoming Obstacles With SPUNK! The Keys to Leadership & Goal-Setting”, ties her goal-setting and leadership seminars together into one complete, enthusiastic package. Her YA series, The Circle of Friends, features morally grounded, positive stories. Wolfe travels extensively for media interviews and speaking engagements, maintains a dozen websites & blogs, and assists writers through her author services. http://www.circleoffriendsbooks.blogspot.com

HOW TO PUBLISH AND PROMOTE YOUR BOOK NOW!
BY L. DIANE WOLFE Publishing and promoting made simple!

Have you always dreamed of publishing a book but didn’t know where to begin? This book walks you through the steps of identifying markets, budgeting, building an online presence, and generating publicity. Get the whole story on:

· Traditional publishing
· Self-publishing
· Print and e-book setup, formatting, and distribution
· Finding your target audience
· Generating reviews and media interest
· Networking and developing an online presence
· Promotional materials and appearances

Uncover your ideal publishing path and numerous marketing options before you begin. Writing is your dream. Give it the best chance for success!

Available February 5, 2012 for $4.99 at
Barnes and Noble
Amazon
Amazon Kindle