Bonding With Characters, by Melissa Foster

November 2011

You would think that creating a character would be like designing the perfect person. You, the writer, have full control of everything from the looks, personality, and style of this new person to when you will allow them to speak and what you will allow them to say. Given the nature of control that you have over your characters, you would think that liking or hating them would come easily. As an author, I don’t necessarily think that is true.

There are many times when I’m developing a character with one personality in mind, and something happens—the character speaks to me and tells me I’m wrong, and they’re allowed to create themselves, so to speak. This happened with the creation of Alice in COME BACK TO ME. When the story began, Alice was set to be a stoic, conniving woman with no ability to bond with others. I expected her to remain that way throughout the book. She had other ideas.

What happens next in these situations always takes me by surprise. I end up bonding with the characters I thought I would not. They take over more of the story, weaseling their way into the hearts of the author (yeah, that’s me), and when the writing process is over, I find myself thinking about them and their pasts, what made them the way they were.

It would be interesting to create a whole book one each character’s backstory. Yeah, I get a little too bonded to my characters. They never seem to go to sleep!

As a reader, do you put characters away easily or do you bond with them?

Melissa Foster is the bestselling, award-winning author of three novels, Megan’s Way, Chasing Amanda, and Come Back to Me.  She is the founder of the Women’s Nest, a social and support community for women, and the WoMen’s Literary Cafe. Melissa is currently collaborating in the film production of Megan’s Way, and hard at work on her next novel. Visit Melissa’s Website and Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and on her  Facebook Fanpage

Are you looking to get to know each of your characters better? For fun, try asking them these 30 questions and you might just get the answers you’re looking for. Be as detailed as you can for each character and it will make writing them, so much easier.

1. Tell me about yourself in detail.
2. Who are your parents? Tell me about them in detail.
3. Do you have siblings? Tell me about them.
4. Who is your best friend? Why? What makes them special? What do you like about them/not like about them?
5. Who was your first love? Your second love? Why? What made these relationships work and subsequently not work?
6. Tell me about your first kiss. Who was it with? What made it special/awful/perfect/memorable?
7. What is your definition of love?
8. What are your dreams?
9. What did you eat for breakfast today? And lunch? And Dinner? Are these typical meals for you?
10. It’s 8pm, tell me about your day today in detail.
11. Tell me about your week so far.
12. Tell me about this month so far.
13. What did you wear today? Describe what you wore in detail and then explain what your favorite thing to wear is.
14. Describe a special moment.
15. Tell me about your favorite memory.
16. When is your birthday? Tell me about your favorite birthday so far?
17. What are your beliefs in life?
18. Tell me about your most memorable first ____? You fill in the blank.
19. What are your short term goals? Long term goals?
20. What do you regret having said or done? Tell me about it.
21. Tell me about your favorite childhood memory.
22. What upsets you or makes you angry? Why?
23. What makes you cry? Why?
24. What do you do to make yourself feel better when you’re having a bad day?
25. What are you scared of? What do you worry about?
26. Describe your favorite place in detail. Why is it your favorite place?
27. Do you miss someone? Tell me who it is and why.
28. Do you miss something? Tell me what it is and why.
29. What kind of vehicle/mode of transportation do you drive? What’s currently in your vehicle, if applicable? Be sure and check the glove box, the center console, the trunk and the seat pockets. Check under the seats too! Why is each item there?
30. What’s in your bag? Purse? Tote? Backpack? etc. Why is each item there?

Writing Natural Dialogue

by Liz Borino

In my day to day life, I talk a lot. Or I would, if I didn’t spend so much time by myself. Therefore, when I write my fiction, it’s riddled with dialogue. It’s important for me to make this as natural and realistic as possible. Any author can benefit from improving their dialogue use. Here’s why:

1. Good dialogue enhances a story. It shows the emotions your character goes through during a given scene. Being able to accomplish this through the words a character uses cuts down on those dreaded adverbs. Below is a few lines from a scene in What Money Can’t Buy, the sequel to Expectations. You’ll see there’s no confusion on the emotions the characters are feeling.

“What the hell happened to you?” Aiden sat up on the couch and turned off the television.

Matt put his hands up, “Where. Is. Chris?”

Chris walked out of the kitchen before Aiden could answer. “Jesus Christ.”

“Yeah, let’s talk about what happened today. Because you know what? I missed something huge.” Matt rubbed his arms and watched Chris and Aiden exchange a look. “No, no secrets. I have a right to know what’s going on.”

1. Dialogue is also an effective way to give information without exposition. In the following excerpt from Expectations, Aiden reveals a few things about himself, he’s bi, dated an older woman, and kept his private life private until he and Chris began dating.

“One of the designers we’ll be working with is my ex.” Aiden said tentatively to gauge Chris’s reaction.

“Man or woman?”

“Woman, quite a bit older then me.”

“What’s quite a bit?” Chris asked.

“When we dated I was 18 and she was turning 45.”

“Jesus Christ!” Chris practically screamed and then quickly lowered his voice. “What’d you two possibly have in common?”

Great sex. Aiden thought, blushing. “Oh, we found things to talk about.”

So, what’s the best way to accomplish strong dialogue? I don’t know, but I can tell you what works for me.

1. Know your characters. Every word they say, every thought they have has to make sense for them. Factor in things like education level, family life, past experiences, and religious belief. A college educated man is going to speak very differently than one who stopped going to school after eighth grade. Perhaps if your character is very religious, they’ll be less likely to use profanity.
2. Make a habit of listening to conversations around you. You’re likely to notice one person dominates most of them. It can switch, but usually one person is more passionate about a given topic than the other person is. It should be like this in writing too.
3. Read your dialogue aloud. If it seems off, it probably is. Most people use contractions in informal speech, something else to keep in mind when composing it for your characters. If you decide not to use contractions, make it deliberate. Use it make a point.

Finally, have fun with writing dialogue. It’s a great way to introduce the world to your characters, allowing them to show their story, as opposed to you telling it.

Liz Borino is the debut author of Expectations and its sequel, What Money Can’t Buy published by Lazy Day. Throughout her education, including a Bachelor’s Degree from Hofstra University, she’s kept her stories to herself, but this only child is all grown up and wants to share them with the world. Her roots are in Bethlehem, Pa, but she loves to experience new cultures. As fun as that is, Liz likes nothing better than curling up at home with a good book or her work in progress.

Expectations:

Expectations depicts the struggle between what we desire for ourselves and our familial obligations. The struggle is personified by Chris and Matt Taylor, identical twins, who are trying to win their overbearing father’s approval and acquire their trust funds. Love, money, and desire collide as Matt and Chris decide what’s really important to them.  Amazon: http://amzn.to/gBh9M3 B&N: http://bit.ly/e7mwDj

What Money Can’t Buy:

What Money Can’t Buy, the sequel to Expectations, finds the two couples, Chris and Aiden and Matt and Carley, eagerly anticipating parenthood. However, their personal struggles continue. Though Matt overcame his dependency on alcohol, new temptations present themselves. And with Carley on bed rest, these temptations put a greater strain on their relationship. Chris continues to deal with issues regarding his father. These issues increase with greater proximity.  When tragedy strikes, the best and worst in everyone is revealed. Can they stick together, or will their reactions tear them apart? B&N http://bit.ly/lzDLqY and Amazon: http://amzn.to/iYZ5vk

http://community.sparknotes.com/2010/10/15/what-literary-characters-would-be-for-halloween

I also found these cool ideas for actual Literary Halloween Costumes.

First, there is a costume contest taking place here.

Last year, there was this post naming some great literary costume ideas.

I found these cute ideas for kids, but figured adults could use them too.

This particular post has a few that I hadn’t seen anywhere else for some Book Character Costumes.

If you are part of a couple and looking for couples costume ideas, here are a few His and Hers Literary Halloween Costumes.

There are also these literary Halloween costumes from the New Yorker which are compiled from Flickr. Nice for visual ideas.

If you want to just buy a costume and not making something on your own, here are a bunch of Book and Movie character Halloween Costumes.

Here and Here are some more ideas for Book Character Costumes.

So, with all that out of the way – what are you going to be for Halloween? (it does not have to be Literary!) LOL

Oh, and one other question – what does the photo up there make you think of?

It wasn’t very long before I realized that while I had a great story and plot, I was still in need of some characters that would fit into the story.

I am a people watcher. I love going places and taking in the people that are there. I do it unintentionally too. Last night I was at a bar with my friends band and obviously my mind was pretty far away from writing. Well, as of this morning, I have added three new characters to my novel all based on people from last night. I’ve been writing almost since I got up and I love the direction the story is going. I am assuming that I was supposed to see/meet these people last night. In a million years, I never thought I would ever find a character at a bar unless I was looking for someone drunk (which incidentally, one of the characters actually sort of is).

My favorite places to find characters for my novels have been the coffee shop, restaurants and the food court at the mall (a lot of interesting people pass the food court at a mall!)

Do you ever unintentionally eavesdrop? I feel like such a bad person, but that’s something I am finding myself doing a lot, and then sticking that dialog or simply a sentence or two that was said, into my books.
I’ve heard entire stories and then improvised the things that were left unsaid and written them into a chapter of my book. In fact, I have several notebooks FULL of dialog, character traits and things like that, that were seen or overheard somewhere, just waiting for the perfect character to use it with.

So, where are your favorite places to “character find” (people watch)?

• Adopt a Character
• Adopt a City/Town/Village Name
• Adopt a Death
• Adopt an Ending
• Adopt a Hero Catch Phrase
• Adopt a Hobby
• Adopt a Line
• Adopt a Motive
• Adopt a Name
• Adopt an Opening Line
• Adopt a Plot
• Adopt a Plot Twist
• Adopt a Quirk
• Adopt a Romantic Line ♥
• Adopt a Secret
• Adopt Some Dialogue
• Adopt a Subplot
• Adopt a Title
• Adopt a Villain Catchphrase
• Adopt a Weakness
• Adopt a ‘What If’

And just to get more ideas from – the following threads are archived from previous years. You cannot comment or add your own, but you can certainly get ideas from them.

• Adopt a Character
• Adopt a Character (2)
• Adopt An Ending
• Adopt a Line
• Adopt a Name
• Adopt An Opening Line
• Adopt a Plot 2007
• Adopt a Plot 2006
• Adopt a Plot 2005
• Adopt a Quirk
• Adopt a Sub-plot
• Adopt a Title

More character development questions abound from the NaNo forums. Some of these questions tend to get repeated but worded differently. So ignore my one word answers for those. LOL So far, only my male MC has been officially named. Declan. My female wants to be called Liz or Lizzie, but I really don’t like that name for my story, so I’m working with her on it.

Would your character ever have a phobia?

I don’t think Declan would, but my female might. It would depend on the phobia, and it would be a common phobia.

Would your character ever go on a blind date?

Declan would not, but my female probably would, but would be dreading it.

Would your character ever kidnap someone?

Nope.

Would your character ever volunteer at a hospital/orphanage/whatever?

I think my female would, Declan wouldn’t have time.

Would your character ever start a food fight with a priest?

No.

Would your character ever work in a Fast Food Restaurant?

No. A diner or cafe maybe, but not a fast food restaurant.

Would your character ever eat ketchup from the packet?

Declan might.

Would your character ever go vegetarian?

Nope.

Would your character ever harm an animal?

No. Not intentionally.

Would your character ever scream fire at the movies just to see how people would react?

Certainly not.

Would your character ever throw a penny from the top of the Empire State building?

Declan might, if someone told him about it. I’m not sure he would think of it on his own.

Would your character ever live in New York, or your world’s equivalent “Big City?”

Declan wouldn’t. My female would consider it, but she would feel very out of place.

Would your character ever work in a factory?

Yes, if that was what they needed to do to make a living.

Would your character ever have an affair with someone outside their normal sexual orientation?

Nope. Totally against anything they stand for.

Would your character ever pretend to be a hippie?

Maybe at Halloween, but even that is doubtful.

Would your character ever work at an ice cream parlor given the opportunity?

Probably.

Would your character ever become a killer?

No.

Would your character ever read War and Peace?

Both would, yes.

Would your character ever sing in the shower?

She would, but I am thinking Declan is more of a ‘humming’ kind of guy.

Would your character ever go several days without bathing, out of their own free will/laziness?

No, not because they were lazy. Neither are lazy.

Would your character get in a prank war with someone?

No.

Would your character ever sleep 30 hours straight?

No.

Would your character ever sell themselves or their friends as a way of making money for something they really wanted?

Definitely not.

Would your character be a good parent?

Declan has been a father, so yes. She would make an amazing mother.

Would your character ever live on a farm?

Yes, they both do.

Would your character ever listen to Country music?

Yes, and they do.

Would your character win a fight with a bear?

She would not. But he might. Depended on whether he saw it coming or not.

Would your character ever pose for nude photographs, if they were really hard up for money?

Nope. Never.

Would your character ever hitchhike?

Probably, but only in their small town. Not on the open road.

Would your character ever pick up a hitchhiker? (uncreative, sorry. it’s too early in the morning D:)

Only if they knew them.

Would your character go hungry to be able to buy a book?

I don’t think so.

Would your character ever go to group therapy for something? (addiction groups and grief counseling count)

Yes, I believe they both would.

Would your character ever eat healthy food?

Declan is a meat and potatoes kind of guy, so probably not. But she would.

Would your character ever binge on oreo cookies or equivalent?

Yes, they both would.

Would your character ever fight for a cause?

Yes.

Would your character ever want to be the ceo of a big company?

No, they wouldn’t enjoy that type of work.

Would your character ever espouse an unpopular belief or oppinion (ie, most people would thnk of them as the villain)

No.

Would your character ever dress up as a cookie for halloween?

She would. She would think that was funny. Definitely.

Would your character ever streak across the football field at the SuperBowl?

No way.

Would your character ever admit to being wrong?

Yes, they both would, though they are a bit stubborn, so it might take a little bit.

Would your character ever have an animal part grafted somewhere on their person? If so, where?

Uhm. No.

Would your character ever own a really big dog?

Yes, they both would. Though they are much more into horses.

Would your character ever do a voice-over for a cartoon?

I don’t think Declan would. But she might.

Would your character ever let another person talk them into something very much against their inclination and better judgement?

No.

Would your character ever commit matricide?

No.

Would your character ever wear a large, feathery, pink hat all day, just because they felt like it?

I doubt if either would.

Would your character ever eat live squid?

Not live squid no.

Would Your Character Ever…wear rubber gloves?

No to Declan. But she might.

Would your character ever… trash a hotel room?

She wouldn’t, he might if he got really angry. He wouldn’t ruin anything.

Would your character ever do the Electric Slide?

Sure, they would.

Would your character be willing to sacrifice an innocent child for his/her ideals? (or their just cause)

No way.

Would your character ever…go to a Star Wars movie marathon?

Hell no!

Would your character ever turn in their best friend for a bad crime?

Yes.

Would your character ever plant a garden?

Yes, she would. Declan has a farm, pretty sure that counts.

Would Your Character Ever…read tea leaves?

No probably not.

Would your character ever physically attack a family member for any reason, and if so, why?

No. Wait, yes. If they were about to cause harm to another family member Declan would.

Would your character ever memorize the periodic table?

Doubtful, though they might know some of it, because both are pretty intelligent despite their lifestyle.

Would your character ever leave someone he/she loves to make them safe.

I believe Declan would yes.

Would your character ever stay up till three to browse NaNo forums?

hehe if they had a computer, yes!

Would your character ever just look up into the stars on an especially clear night.

Yes, all definitely they both would.

Would Your Character Ever…row a boat?

Yes.

Would your character ever buy catfood and/or toys and donate them to an animal shelter?

Yes, I think my girl would. Declan would if he thought of it, but he wouldn’t probably think to do it. Plus, there are no animal shelter’s in their town.

Would your character ever live on the street?

Mmm.. I doubt it.

Would your characters ever consider changing religions?

Well, no.

Would your character ever find a spider in their room and decide to keep it for a pet?

No.

Would your character ever deliberately kill anyone, for any reason?

No.

Would your character ever hijack a dragon (for fantasy writers) or polar bear (for other people) and take it for a joyride?

No I really don’t think they would.

Would your character ever stow away on a space shuttle?

They would love to, but no.

Would your character ever put mentos in a 2 liter gallon of coke?

No. They don’t know about that trick, they don’t have a computer yet. LOL

Would your character ever enter American Idol?

Probably not.

Would your character ever date anyone of the same sex?

*Nope.

Would your character ever rally or protest for something?

Yes, if they felt strongly.

This site is AWESOME for creating simple anagrams and advanced anagrams. You can just randomly create all Anagrams based off a word or set of words, or you can narrow it down a little bit more and use only proper names, etc. by using the advanced anagram area. Love it!!

Internet Anagram Server

What do you think??

Oh, and this year, I believe Mari Onnow and Ami Nornow will be appearing somewhere in each novel. I think one is going to wind up being an old friend from high school, the other will be more strategically blended in.

Are you going to try using anagrams in your novel?

I came across many posts that offered ideas and things people were doing to help get them in the NaNo mood. So here are a few ideas to get you started.

* Beginning October 1, write a short story everyday until November 1. It will help get you in the writing spirit, and hopefully each day your stories will get longer.

* Play around with a different writing prompt each day.

* Organize and listen to a soundtrack that fits or goes along with your novel. Listening to music can be almost as good as getting along really well with your muse.

* Create an outline of some kind to get you into the minds of your characters, plot out what major situations might take place.

* Create a character profile, all the way down to favorite music, favorite food, color, thing to wear, place to go, etc., for each character in your story.

* Organize and decorate your writing space. Paint if you want extra inspiration, clean it out, add decorations or toys, that help get your creative juices flowing.

* Put together your writing kit. Make a shopping list of things you might need before November 1. Example: coffee, pens, notepads, sticky notes, chocolate, special rewards for meeting word count goals, etc.

* Read Chris Baty’s book, No Plot, No Problem. If you’ve already read it, read it again. It’s awesome.

* Spend a little time editing last year’s novel or other projects you have in the works. Or jot down ideas for other novels, and projects that you can work on after November (or even begin working on now.)

* Read a few books in the genre you are planning to write for this year. Often, it gives you a new perspective and its nice to see what other authors are doing.

* Create a fun inspiration board. Use magazine photos, words, quotes, and drawings to make it fun.

* Create a novel scrapbook. I did this last year actually. I create a scrapbook ahead of time of each character (found photos online and in magazines that looked enough like my characters to keep my on track), include photos of where they live, where they might work or go to school, favorite activities, etc. I made mine small, but I referred to it a lot during the course of my novel and I love having it now. If that novel EVER gets published, I plan to try to market the scrapbook to go with it.

So what are YOU doing to prepare for NaNo?

Looking for a first name?

First Names and What They Mean

Looking for a last name?

Last Names and What They Mean

Looking for a pet name?

Pet Names

More Pet Names

Looking for a location?

Street Name Generator

Small Towns

Most Popular Cities World Wide

Want a Blue Print of your house, castle, store, building?

Blueprints

Looking for a house?

Figure out what city you want it to take place in, then in google type the city name plus real estate or homes for sale to find what would be commonly found in that area.

Looking for a job?

This is one of my favorite sites for finding your MC an occupation – this site not only gives you ideas for occupations but also tells you the training and education needed for that job, how much you will make at that job, what types of places hire that type of occupation and what kind of working conditions each occupation has. It’s awesome!