A Character Development Tip I Learned from Divergent

Post by Catsi Eceer, co-founder

Hello all, sorry I'm a day late. *winces* I spent the weekend at a friend's house to celebrate her birthday, and, of course, forgot to write a post beforehand.

I read Divergent by Veronica Roth last week, and watched the movie with my friend yesterday. While I must admit that I'm not unduly impressed by either, it did get me thinking. There were several very interesting aspects of the movie, and-- at least in the book--a good deal of character development. I felt that I actually knew the characters, though really, there wasn't a lot of "developing" that I could see. (Tris, to be honest, seemed rather flat for the majority of the story.)

I sat for a while and thought about it. What is it about these characters that make them feel more real than so many others in different stories?

Answer: We see their fears.

It's such a simple thing, really. What is your character afraid of? Four is afraid of four things: heights, small spaces, killing an innocent, and his father. Tris's list is a little more extensive, but to the same effect--we see what she's afraid of, and we see her.

After I'd finished ranting to my friend about how terribly the movie had ruined several of the characters, I pulled out a piece of paper and started making a few lists. (Because I love lists. I really do.) I grabbed a few of my nearest characters, and wrote down all of their fears.

(And I'm proud to say that one of them only has three fears. Take that, Four.)

Here's an exercise for all of you: Open up a Word document, or find a notebook and a pencil. Write your character's name at the top of the page, and then list everything they're afraid of. Every last thing. If you feel like going deeper, try to figure out why they're afraid of those things.

Was that hard? For an undeveloped character, it probably was. Even for a character you thought was developed before, it might have been a very difficult exercise. Fears are harder for us to give our characters. We might give them one or two random fears, like fear of spiders or claustrophobia, or maybe a deeper fear for those particularly messed up ones--fear of their abusive parent, or of being forced to hurt someone they love.

But you know what? Everyone's afraid of something.

Most everyone is afraid of several somethings, actually. I, for one, am afraid of scorpions, swimming in places I can't see the bottom of, heights, small spaces, being trapped, calling adults on the phone (yes, go ahead and laugh; I'm used to it), and losing one of my family members.

Does your character seem more real now that you know their fears? They should. Humans are fearful creatures; seeing someone with weaknesses similar to our own helps us bond with characters far faster than with a character who seems perfect.

So take your list, and figure out how to show those fears in your writing. Make your character fear, and make them human.

What are some of your character's fears? How do you show those fears in your writing?

7 Things to Do Before You Give Up on Your Novel

Post by Catsi Eceer, co-founder

     I bet we've all been there at some point--your novel is just too boring/cliche/unbelievable/plotless/whatever that you feel there's no point in writing it any more.

     You loved this story at some point. It was a shiny plot bunny then, and you could just picture it on the shelf at the bookstore.

     But now it's lost all its charm, and you dread opening up the document. In fact, most days, you don't open it up at all.

     What do you do? Do you give up on the story, and start something new? Do you take a break? Do you force yourself to keep writing, even though you hate it?

     I think the answer is different for each writer. Sometimes you're really just burnt out writing-wise, and taking a few days off will clear up any problems. Or maybe you've taken off for too long, and you're having trouble getting back into the routine.

     But sometimes, the answer might really be that the story just isn't worth continuing.

     Now, before you enthusiastically pump my hand and thank me for giving you permission to ditch your story, there's a few qualifiers. You need to get through the list I have below, and you need to think each item through before moving on.

1. Are you really sure your story is boring? Or is there just another "better" story that you want to write?
   
   I won't pretend that I've never had this happen to me. Plenty of times, I'll be about halfway through a rough draft, when I'll get a new story idea--one I'm sure is far better than this story will ever be.
   
   Sometimes, that really is the case. If you started this story spur of the moment, maybe there's just not a lot of good plot to keep the story going. It might really be best to drop this story and work on something else. But be careful--if you start writing that new story idea right away, what's going to keep it from doing the same thing halfway through?
   
   Just make sure to identify the difference between a good story idea, and a "shiny plot bunny." Plot bunnies are not reliable, shiny or otherwise. Develop, develop, develop, until you've gotten down to the core of the story. If it's still worth writing, go for it.
   
   
2. Have you taken a break from the story?
   
   Try taking a break, if you're stuck. Spend the day with your family, or go somewhere with your friends. Watch a movie. Go for a walk. Do something away from your computer, laptop, or notebook.
   
   If you're just stuck on a story problem that needs to be solved before you can keep going--a very crippling issue; I know this from experience--chances are, just ignoring it for a few days will actually help. Your subconscious will be at work solving the problem while you get a break from your story.
   
   
3. Have you gone back to writing after the break?
   
   I'm serious. After you're done with your break, sit down and write. Don't just say, "Okay, I've gone for three days without writing this story and I still don't feel like writing it. Goodbye, story!" Of course you're not going to want to write. Imaginations are lazy. When you go for an extended period of time without using it, it's going to be tricky getting back into the swing of writing.
   
   Do it anyway. After your break, spend a few more days writing. If you're still having problems with your writing after a week, maybe it is time to think about moving on.
   
   
4. Identify what your story is really about. Are you still writing that?
   
   I've had this happen to me very often. I get so caught up in the words, the actions, the scenes, that I forget what the story is about. I have to take a step back, take a deep breath, and remember what I'm writing.
   
   What is your story goal? What does your main character want? What about that unnamable feeling you get when you think about your climax? Are you still writing that?
   
   
5. Is it really a bad story, or do you just have Chapter Seven Syndrome?
   
   Chapter Seven Syndrome is my word for "I'm about two-thirds of the way through the story and I'm very sure that this is the worst thing I've ever written." It's not usually at chapter seven for most people, but when I started writing using a twelve-chapter outline, chapter seven was always where I lost my enthusiasm.
   
   If this is where you're at, take heart--it's a passing phase. Take a day off today, and start writing again tomorrow. Write as much as you can, even if it's awful. Eventually you'll get to a scene you've been wanting to write, and hopefully you'll start enjoying it again.
   
   
6. Remember the enthusiasm you had for this story when you started. Is there any of that passion still left inside of you?
   
   I've found that writing a little note of encouragement to your future self when you start writing a story is very helpful. Take all of your enthusiasm and passion and love for your story, and write a few paragraphs about how amazing this story is. Go ahead and make it all flattery. Just make it sincere. If you have a good writer friend, ask them to write a little bit of something too. Then hide it all away somewhere, and don't look at it again until you're completely stuck and hating the story.
   
   Can you blow on that ember and relight the fire you had for this story?
   
   
7. Are you really willing to give up?
   
   It sounds kind of harsh when I say it like that, but it's the truth. By giving up on your novel, you're doing just that--giving up. Are you ready to admit defeat?

     If you've gotten this far, and nothing is getting your interest back in your story, maybe it is time to start something new. Something you're truly passionate about, and something you'll see all the way through to completion.

     Just make sure you won't burn out halfway through again. Develop, develop, develop. Make sure this is a story you truly love. Make it something you'd want to read, and read again. Daydream about seeing it on a bookshelf, on Amazon.com, on a random review blog, read by somebody you've never met and probably will never meet. Imagine what the cover will look like, and the movie that will be made from it.

     Go ahead and dream. That's how we write, isn't it?



Catsi Eceer is an aspiring author of fantasy and dystopian novels. To learn more about her, visit our "About Us" page.

We have currently have a holiday poetry contest open, which you can find here.

Outlining for NaNoWriMo

Post by Catsi Eceer, co-founder

Hey, everyone! Catsi here, back (finally!) from the hiatus. So excited to get into posting again!

I'm also pretty excited for the event coming up in a few weeks, to be specific, on November 1. If you don't know what I'm talking about, I'll give you a hint: It's the time of year that most writers either love or hate, or a combination of the two.

Give up?

(Come on, this should be easy. The answer is also in the title of this blog post.)

NaNoWriMo is the abbreviation for National Novel Writing Month. It's an organization that challenges you to write 50,000 words (a novel) in one month (November). Sound insane? Yeah, that's pretty much how we writers are.

This will be my first year doing it, so as always, I've been researching a ton. What I've found is that since I'm such a structured, planning writer, I should definitely spend as much of October as I can spare outlining. If you want to do NaNo the traditional way, you don't outline a speck and just start writing on November first. Knowing me, I'd be excited for the first few days and then burn out by the end of the week and trash the novel. So I'm outlining.

Now, I don't want to outline too extensively. That's also a recipe for burn-out. I'll spend all of my enthusiasm sketching chapters and developing motives, and then won't ever start writing. (Not a great way to get a book published, trust me. No one wants to read an outline.)

So I have to do it somewhere in the middle. Where exactly in the middle varies from novel to novel, writer to writer. I still haven't pinned down exactly what works for me. Everyone outlines differently, so I do my best to try several different outlining methods, and then keep what works and toss what doesn't.

With my last novel, I wrote out the "boring facts," and then wrote a step-outline--a list of scenes in the order I thought they would go in the novel. (They weren't all at the right place, but the good thing about using Microsoft Word is that you can just move things around to adjust your outline. Or you can just ignore your outline completely while writing. I think I have a little bit of OCD, so I have to keep my outline accurate the whole way through the rough draft.)

This is what I've found works best for me, and what I'm doing to outline my fourth novel. It isn't going to work for everyone--chances are, it'll only work for me--but maybe it will give you some ideas to try out.

Step one: Find a piece of paper and sharpened pencil. (Harder than you would think.)



The Boring Facts

Characterization
Plot
Setting
Style
Theme 

If you've ever taken a literature class, chances are you've heard these five words before. They're the "Elements of a Story," and my literature textbook loved to make sure I knew them. (And here I am, three years later, and I still know them by heart.) Dry and uninspiring as they may be, they're still important, and they can be useful during the outlining process.

Characterization
Characters are one of the most important parts of every story. The reason should be pretty obvious--A story has to be about someone. If it's just a bunch of events, we won't feel any sort of emotional connection. There won't be someone for us to care about, to root, cheer, and cry for.

Take the time to develop your characters. Give them all a goal, a reason to be in the story. Something they want, something they want to stop, someone they care about. A backstory, some family and friends, and a good antagonist. (Spend plenty of time on the antagonist--he's important.)

Plot
Here's the second most important story element. (Or, at least, for a character-driven writer it's second important. If you write plot-first, you probably think differently.) Your characters need to do something besides sit around and look pretty.

One of my favorite ways to figure out the plot of a story is to ask "What does my main character want?" and then follow that up with "What can stop them from getting that?" Explore any plot threads that come up until you have a main goal, a villain, and maybe some subplots too.

Setting
Where and when is your story set? It can't be floating out in nothingness. (Or can it?)

I read somewhere that if you can pick up your whole novel and drop it somewhere else without affecting the story, you haven't found the right setting yet. Make the location an important part of the story, and maybe it can tie into the characters too. If your character is terrified of water, maybe it's on a ship. Or if they're claustrophobic, caves would be an interesting place to put it.

Style
The exact definition of this is a little different than how I use it when I'm outlining. (Creative license, okay?) By this, I mean the obvious details: Past or present tense, first, third, or even second person, the genre, target audience, and whatever else you feel like writing down.

The actual writing style, or your voice, isn't something that can be easily noted down. Some people have a very informal, laid-back writing style. Some have a wordy, where-is-my-dictionary-because-I-have-no-idea-what-this-word-means style. It all depends on the author.

Theme
What is the moral of your story? What does it mean?

I don't recommend spending a ton of time on this, especially if you're a beginning writer. Preaching a moral through a story is very difficult to avoid when you have a specific theme in mind. I've always found it best for me to just write the story, being true to the characters, and see what theme comes out. Then during rewrites I work it in more. (Although during this story, I have a far more specific idea for a theme than I've ever had for one before... We'll see how it goes.)


Once I've gotten everything figured out, I write a quick synopsis for the story, like one that you'd find on the back cover. It tends to get me excited about the project, because I can picture it as a published book.




The Outline

Now I start figuring out exactly how the story will go. Usually, I have a few ideas for scenes in my head already at this point, but I still need to brainstorm more and put them all in order.

Five Important Scenes:
The Inciting Incident (The day everything changed)
The Choice (Accepting the call of the story goal)
Plot Twist (A surprise halfway through the story)
The Black Moment (Everything that could possibly go wrong goes wrong.)
Climax (The final clash between hero and villain)

After I've figured out those scenes, I'll start filling in between them as best as I can. This gives me a list of "scene summaries," each scene summarized in one or two sentences. I can move scenes around, add more, and take some out at will. This also helps me see where any plot holes may arise, and do my best to fix them before they become a problem.

Once I'm happy with the way the story goes, I'm ready to write!

 How do you outline? Are you doing NaNoWriMo this year? Let me know in the comments!

To learn more about Catsi, visit our "About Us" page.

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6 Ways to Spice up that Boring Chapter

I'm sure all of us writers have experienced it before. We're writing along, exciting scenes, developed characters, deep plot, and then, BAM! We're stuck.

Actually, a better word would be, "Bleh," we're stuck.

There is nothing more frustrating for me then going from a scene I'd already planned out in my head that goes almost exactly as it's supposed to, and then hitting that one scene where I still needed to do a bit of work. Or, you know, two or three scenes like that. In a row.

Boring scenes. I hate them. I've figured out that I can sometimes skip them, and it won't even make a difference to the story. (In fact, some of my exciting scenes are like that too...) However, lots of the time I can't skip. They're necessary to the story. Without it, there will be something not quite right about the transition between the two chapters. But the scene is just plain boring.

So how do you spice it up? How do you get your reader's interest (and, more importantly, your own interest) back into the story?

Here are a few tips that I came up with:

Bring in some necessary details. What are some things that your reader is going to need to know by the climax that you can put in this chapter?

Add some conflict. I don't mean that you need to have your main character fight someone. It doesn't need to be literal. Just make their will clash against someone else's. What do they want in this chapter? Who or what could be against them getting it?

Make them fail. What is the main character trying to accomplish in this chapter? How could they fail?

Introduce a plot twist. What would be an unexpected event that could happen in this chapter?

Leave it out. Is this scene really necessary to the story? Would the story suffer if you left it out?

Think about it from a different character's point of view. What do other characters think about the events of this scene? How could they affect what happens?

And when all else fails, just skip the scene giving you trouble and write something else (such as a blog post on what to do with boring chapters...). Taking a break from the scene will give your brain time to subconsciously figure out the problem and come up with a solution.

What do you do when you get stuck on a scene? Let us know in the comments section! I'd love to hear from you. :)