· Who Are These People and What Are They Doing In My Head? · I'm having so much fun thinking about the fictional characters coming alive since the last blog! In the blog titled "More Seeds to Sow," I introduced you to a veteran with PTSD who relied on a flock of ducks to help keep him calm; a woman who was nearly evicted from her home but was able to adopt out her two dozen beardless dragons in time; and a criminal duo who landed in jail after their third armed robbery in which the woman … [Read more...] about Getting to Know Your Characters
Archives for September 2017
More Seeds to Sow
· Fourteen Therapeutic Pet Ducks, 24 Bearded Dragons, and a Masked Batman Caper · "You can't make this stuff up!" I tell other writers. We're all in agreement. If you want any ideas for your writing, you don't need to read fake news online. Just take a few "real" headlines and start writing. Free-writing is one form used by writers to get started. You just take a topic, start writing, and see where it leads you. Today I'm using three brief AP news stories as examples of how topics … [Read more...] about More Seeds to Sow
Seeds to Sow
· Questions to Ask · Recently, in a Hutchinson News article, there was a story about a long-time bar being forced to close due to dwindling customer support. The owner was sharing a lot of memories with the reporter, but there was one that I knew immediately would fit into many a novel, maybe one of mine. Surprise! It's not a drunken fight scene. The owner recalled how when she and all her female employees took the night off to attend an event, they left a few male employees in charge at … [Read more...] about Seeds to Sow
Seeds to a Story
· Listen, Read, Write, Repeat · If you're a writer, or want to be a writer, do you save story-starters? Do you file newspaper clippings, save Pinterest images, or write down bits of overheard conversations, certain you'll use the comments or pictures in future dialogue? Maybe your file is labeled, "Save - to Use Later." I'm reading the Hutchinson News, and I glance at the obituaries and see the name, "Billy Goodenough." I don't know him, but his name just sticks in my … [Read more...] about Seeds to a Story