I can't.
Here's some proof.
A couple of days ago (a few days into November), I realized something strange. I was working on my NaNo project and had accomplished my daily word count goal and had an extra thousand words padding the story. In all I had about 6500 words written.
For the first time in my life, I'd written an outline. This outline consisted of:
- character sheets for my main characters
- a story path for each of my MCs
- a path outline for the story (main outline)
- descriptions of 2 of the main settings in the novel
In all, I had over 6000 words written in preparation to write the story.
Altogether, that's 12 000 or 13 000 words.
As I was writing, I came to a part where my female MC takes off her helmet and tries to fix her hair. And that's when it hit me... I had NO IDEA what my MC looked like.
I didn't know hair colour, length or style. I didn't know her height or build.
I didn't know any of that about my male MC either.
I knew them as people but I wouldn't have recognized them on the street.
Of course, not recognizing people on the street is a special talent I have...
How about you? Are you a visual person? Do you know what your characters look like?
Showing posts with label description. Show all posts
Showing posts with label description. Show all posts
Monday, November 6, 2017
Monday, September 11, 2017
Mollie Blake & Dressed To Tell
Please welcome Mollie Blake to the blog today!
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When I’m reading a book, I want to get to know the characters. If it’s well written, with a good story line to keep me hooked, they will get inside my head. One way I “see” them and begin to understand them, is from the way they dress. I won’t have much thought for a sophisticated business woman who isn’t wearing a suit. I’ll have more respect for her if it’s one by Ralph Lauren, for example.
And that’s the way I work in my writing. My characters are defined by their actions and words, but I also like to dress them appropriately. I will often scour magazines, photo websites, even high street advertising boards to find images that fit my characters.
Let me give you some of examples.
In Guiltless the hero is a photographer who doesn’t earn very much. This is quite an important factor in his make-up. Byron wears jeans and T shirts, drives an old Nissan truck and lives in a rundown farmhouse. This is one of my favourite images I have for him:
There is a scene in the book where Byron appears in “a black suit, grey waistcoat and stark white shirt with a narrow black tie.” This attire is totally out of character with the man Lauren, the heroine, has come to know. There is a reason he has to dress like this so I go into detail about his clothes, underlying their significance.
I have great fun “dressing” Lauren, the CEO of her own fashion house, who also wants to model their next range of lingerie herself. Here is an image I have on my website:
The high heels are important – Lauren is only five feet four inches and she wants to be taller. She is very comfortable wearing four-inch heels.
The images help me to use words so the reader can visualise the characters. Of course, if someone was ever to make a film of my book, my idea may not quite work. Anyone who has read Jack Reacher and watched one of his films will know what I’m talking about.
I also use visuals on social media. It’s a great way to connect with an audience and try to promote your book without splashing the cover everywhere all of the time. When you’re character is well developed and has been “living” inside you for a long time, it’s hard to pick out photos that make a good match. One way I avoid this is to use silhouettes, but I don’t want to over-use them. In some instances I take a photograph and cut the head off. It’s not as drastic as it sounds – the photo of Byron above is a good example.
I was lucky with the protagonist of my third book, Keeping You, which will be published end 2017,early 2018. When the reader meets this guy, Lawrence, he is quite the opposite of Byron. Lawrence Bane only wears designer labels. The reason for that lies in a damaged past when he never had control of his life. I drop names such as Hugo Boss, Calvin Klein and Karl Lagerfeld into my descriptions as often as he drops his pants! But there comes a time when Lawrence has to revert to bargain clothes. I have great fun contrasting descriptions, and again imagery helps me.
For example: Suit man
and Hoody man
My aim is to describe clothing to help both explain and determine the scene. In this example, one scene is about a proud man, protective of his privacy and his past. The other is a man filled with shame as he is forced, once more, to become the man he used to be.
In this article I stick to clothing, but my laptop is full of images of buildings, furniture, bouquets, cars… I could go on. Let me know what helps you to “tell” your story.
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Mollie Blake is a published author of contemporary romance. A lover of reading sexy stories, Mollie decided to go one step further and write her own. Her romances are filled with danger and peppered with hot sexy scenes. She is a member of International Thriller Writers and UK Romantic Novelists Association.
Connect with her on the web:
Managing Director of her own successful fashion house, Lauren Chandler should have everything going for her. But at twenty-nine, she finds herself single again, and bored. Seeking a new challenge in her life, under the guise of saving her company money, Lauren embarks on a mission to model their latest range of lingerie herself. She just needs a photographer. When Byron Lord makes an unusual proposal, Lauren is adamant he won’t win the contract.
Co-owner of Broadway Studios, Byron Lord is determined to provide job security to his off-beat workforce, and he needs Lauren Chandler’s help to do so. Byron may have underestimated how far Lauren would be prepared to go. He had definitely underestimated how much she would demand of him.
And with an ultimatum of her own, Lauren gets far more than she bargained for.
Co-owner of Broadway Studios, Byron Lord is determined to provide job security to his off-beat workforce, and he needs Lauren Chandler’s help to do so. Byron may have underestimated how far Lauren would be prepared to go. He had definitely underestimated how much she would demand of him.
And with an ultimatum of her own, Lauren gets far more than she bargained for.
Buy links:
Enter to win signed copies on Goodreads!
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Wow! I'm NOT a visual person so this is fascinating to me! I can't even tell you the hair colours of the MCs in the new book I'm attempting to plot! Very cool ideas here - and they totally work.
How about you? Are you a visual person? Do you use clothes in powerful ways like Mollie?
Wednesday, February 1, 2017
IWSG & Reading
The Insecure Writer's Support Group is the brainchild of Alex J. Cavanaugh. He, his clones, minions, friends, and fellow authors make it an amazing event every month.
Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!
FEBRUARY 1ST QUESTION: How has being a writer changed your experience as a reader?
Wow. Great question.
I'm much more aware as a reader now, although I still tend to get caught up in the stories. Probably always will - which isn't a bad thing. Means the writers are doing their jobs well!
I'm learning to pay attention to the way authors incorporate description. This is an area where I need a lot of work. My brain isn't visual and I really couldn't care less what colour anyone's hair is! I've gotten stronger at realizing where and when those details are helpful for the reader -- mostly thanks to crit buddies and reading books by talented authors!
How about you? Is incorporating description easy or difficult for you? What do you pay attention to as you're reading?
Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!
And we’re revving up IWSG Day to make it more fun and interactive! Every month, we'll announce a question that members can answer in their IWSG Day post. These questions may prompt you to share advice, insight, a personal experience or story. Include your answer to the question in your IWSG post or let it inspire your post if you are struggling with something to say.
FEBRUARY 1ST QUESTION: How has being a writer changed your experience as a reader?
Wow. Great question.
I'm much more aware as a reader now, although I still tend to get caught up in the stories. Probably always will - which isn't a bad thing. Means the writers are doing their jobs well!
I'm learning to pay attention to the way authors incorporate description. This is an area where I need a lot of work. My brain isn't visual and I really couldn't care less what colour anyone's hair is! I've gotten stronger at realizing where and when those details are helpful for the reader -- mostly thanks to crit buddies and reading books by talented authors!
How about you? Is incorporating description easy or difficult for you? What do you pay attention to as you're reading?
Monday, February 15, 2016
Description Woes
As some of you've heard before, I don't include a lot of description in my stories.
I'm not an especially visual person. I'm not able to see a movie in my brain of the action in my story. I'm not able to visualize faces of the characters.
I can see snippets of the setting, although sometimes its more of a map that a 3D visual. I get some scattered images of the places as well. Not many, though.
This is probably connected to the fact, that in real life, I have an incredibly difficult time recognizing people if I haven't seen them in a while. I always tell my students that they'll have to approach me in the future with their names because after a year or two, I won't have a chance of recognizing them, unless I recognize the voice. I will remember them, just not recognize them.
I know that when I say the word cat to a room full of people, some will see a cat in their head, others will hear the meow, some will see the word spelled out in front of them, a few will smell the kitty litter or the cat, another couple will have their hearts warm up because of the love they feel for their pet (or shrivel in fear if they've been attacked), and still more will feel the fur against their arm.
Our brains are fascinating and unique.
So, while I wish I could do the whole visual thing, I've learned to live with it.
It's probably why I skim over descriptive passages in writing (both mine and that of others). I can imagine that once I publish, some of the negative reviews will focus on that. Readers who crave description will give my stories a pass.
But, I can't bring myself to care what style and/or colour of shirt my heroine is wearing or what the room looks like. If it's not somehow relevant to the plot, I don't notice it.
For me, the story is about the emotion. That, I can describe pretty well.
What about you? Are you a visual person? Do you include a lot of description in your writing?
I'm not an especially visual person. I'm not able to see a movie in my brain of the action in my story. I'm not able to visualize faces of the characters.
I can see snippets of the setting, although sometimes its more of a map that a 3D visual. I get some scattered images of the places as well. Not many, though.
This is probably connected to the fact, that in real life, I have an incredibly difficult time recognizing people if I haven't seen them in a while. I always tell my students that they'll have to approach me in the future with their names because after a year or two, I won't have a chance of recognizing them, unless I recognize the voice. I will remember them, just not recognize them.
I know that when I say the word cat to a room full of people, some will see a cat in their head, others will hear the meow, some will see the word spelled out in front of them, a few will smell the kitty litter or the cat, another couple will have their hearts warm up because of the love they feel for their pet (or shrivel in fear if they've been attacked), and still more will feel the fur against their arm.
Our brains are fascinating and unique.
So, while I wish I could do the whole visual thing, I've learned to live with it.
It's probably why I skim over descriptive passages in writing (both mine and that of others). I can imagine that once I publish, some of the negative reviews will focus on that. Readers who crave description will give my stories a pass.
But, I can't bring myself to care what style and/or colour of shirt my heroine is wearing or what the room looks like. If it's not somehow relevant to the plot, I don't notice it.
For me, the story is about the emotion. That, I can describe pretty well.
What about you? Are you a visual person? Do you include a lot of description in your writing?
Monday, January 16, 2012
Weather or Not
I'm over at From the Write Angle today talking weather - and whether or not I'm a good enough writer to include some of it. I hope you'll pop on over and join the discussion! Any hints are MORE than welcome :)
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Appearances are...
Aesop said: Appearance are often deceiving. Hmm. What about lack of appearances?
I've come across a lot of people discussing description of characters around the Bloggy-verse lately. And the comments are flitting around in my brain while I'm revising my Steampunk.
I've come across exactly 4 references to physical description of my 2 main characters in my ms. One is to the female's eye colour, the other three are size references. The size references are because she can't reach something she needs, people move out of his way, and she can squeeze into a small space.
That's it. No hair colour. No description of their faces, other than her eyes remind him of something. Even though there's an element of romance, neither character waxes poetic about the other's face or phsyique.
When I'm reading, I prefer to make up my own mind about characters. I prefer to create pictures based on their actions and words. So that's the way I write.
But... is this going to drive people batty? There are places I could incorporate more physical description of course, but to me it's just not important to the story.
Some of my favourite authors use a fair amount of character description, others use it rarely. When there is a lot, I tend to skim through it or skip right over it. One of favourite authors uses some description, but not a lot. I have a great image of one recurring character in my head. Then she tells me he's a blonde - which is NOT how I've pictured him. Thankfully she doesn't mention it often, but I shake my head each time she says it. He's much more suited to a darker complexion! :)
So what's your preference when reading and writing? Do you like having the author tell or show you what a character looks like, or do you prefer to make up your own mind?
I've come across a lot of people discussing description of characters around the Bloggy-verse lately. And the comments are flitting around in my brain while I'm revising my Steampunk.
I've come across exactly 4 references to physical description of my 2 main characters in my ms. One is to the female's eye colour, the other three are size references. The size references are because she can't reach something she needs, people move out of his way, and she can squeeze into a small space.
When I'm reading, I prefer to make up my own mind about characters. I prefer to create pictures based on their actions and words. So that's the way I write.
But... is this going to drive people batty? There are places I could incorporate more physical description of course, but to me it's just not important to the story.
Some of my favourite authors use a fair amount of character description, others use it rarely. When there is a lot, I tend to skim through it or skip right over it. One of favourite authors uses some description, but not a lot. I have a great image of one recurring character in my head. Then she tells me he's a blonde - which is NOT how I've pictured him. Thankfully she doesn't mention it often, but I shake my head each time she says it. He's much more suited to a darker complexion! :)
So what's your preference when reading and writing? Do you like having the author tell or show you what a character looks like, or do you prefer to make up your own mind?
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