Category: Writing

Birth Order and Character

This month, I’m blogging around the blogosphere on various aspects of the science of birth order, looking at how a person’s position in their family – oldest, middle child, youngest, or only child – affects their personality, decision-making, education, career and even their marriage.

I’ve read a few books on the subject, but my favorite is The New Birth Order Book, by Kevin Leman. I bought the book because I was interested in understanding my kids better…and along the way I gained some insights into myself and my husband. I’m an oldest child; he’s a psychological oldest (meaning, in this case, there was a big age gap between him and the next kid up the line) with a heavy dose of middle child thrown in.

How does this affect our personalities, and our relationship? We’re both fairly strong-minded…oh, okay, I’ll come right out and say it. We’re both bossy control freaks! As you can imagine, that leads to sparks. But I can console myself with the fact I’d rather have a healthy discussion with someone as opinionated as I am, rather than deal with one of those complex, brooding middle children, or an undisciplined, never-serious youngest child. Of course, I’m probably the worst nightmare of those other birth orders, too!

Now, I know this is generalizing. But there are lots of insights in Dr. Leman’s book that provide food for thought about how we recognize and deal with our own flaws, plus how we deal with conflict with others.

The book also gave me insight into the characters in my novels. When I read it a few years ago, I realized that in most of the romance novels I’d read, and all of the ones I’d written, the heroes were oldest or only children, or psychological oldest children. Not surprising – romance novel heroes are usually successful, commanding, often bossy, and those are often traits of the oldest or only child.

I found I shook up my writing when I considered other birth orders for my characters, both heroes and heroines. I’ve recently completed two trilogies – Those Merritt Girls is a Harlequin Superromance trilogy about three sisters which ended in January with Her Surprise Hero, and for Harlequin NASCAR I wrote three books about the Matheson brothers. The last in the series, The Comeback, is out this month. It was a lot of fun creating a realistic family dynamic for those series, based on the mindsets of different birth orders. The characters’ goals and conflicts rose naturally out of their birth orders, and that made it easier to develop each story.

Got any comments about birth order – yours, your siblings’ or your significant other’s?

A Fantasy Life by Janet Quinn Cornelow

I have finally finished Sam’s story. At several points I didn’t think I would ever finish, but, his story has come to an end, been sold, and will be out June 6^th under the name of Freedom’s Treasure.

Now it is time to start a new book – an alternative universe book. I have been working on how to make the reader know that the characters are moving into an alternate universe. There has to be something that is the same in both universes. In this universe, both sides are in Manhattan. Central Park is the same in both. The difference is that one universe is magical and the other is not. In the non-magical universe, there is city hall and the mayor’s abode. In the magical universe, there is a prince and a palace.

Both universes have police and detectives. That is because the hero is from our universe and is a police detective. The heroine is from the alternate universe and is a police detective. They have something in common, except he carries a gun and she uses magic. Since they are in her universe, he only has a limited supply of ammunition while her magic is never ending.

I have spent so much time figuring out how to make the alternate universe, I suddenly realized I really don’t have a story to go with the universe. There is an evil wizard slipping between universes and killing people in the hero’s world. He has to be stopped. Of course, he also has to have a reason for killing. He has to want something.

That is what plot group is for.

When creating a new world, sometimes the little things matter. In my world of Augeas, the guards play a dice game. The picture is of the dice for the game.

Art work by Loki Cornelow

February Online Class: “Fast Draft and Revision Hell” with Candace Havens

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Hi everyone! Check out the exciting online classes offered by the
Orange County Chapter of RWA!

“Fast Draft and Revision Hell”
with Candace Havens
February 15 – March 13, 2010
Enrollment Information at http://www.occrwa.org/onlineclassFeb10.html
COST: $20 for OCC members, $30 for non-members
If you have specific questions, email occrwaonlineclass@yahoo.com

ABOUT THE CLASS:
Fast Draft: It’s easy to come up with excuses why you can’t finish your manuscript. You’re busy, life is crazy, there is always something. The truth is there are no real excuses. If you want to sell a book, you have to finish. There’s no time like the present. Author Candace Havens has developed a step-by-step process to help you finish your work in progress in just two weeks. At the end of the two weeks, you’ll have your first draft.
Revision Hell: It can be daunting going back in and editing, tightening and cleaning up your manuscript. That’s why author Candace Havens developed a system to help get through that process step-by-step. In two weeks you’ll have a polished manuscript that is ready to sell.

ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR:

Candace “Candy” Havens is a bestselling and award-winning author. Her novels include “Charmed & Dangerous”, “Charmed & Ready”, “Charmed & Deadly”, “Like A Charm” and “The Demon King and I”. She is known for writing strong female characters, who save the world, but aren’t exactly perfect. She is a two-time RITA, Write Touch Reader and Holt Medallion finalist. She is also the winner of the Barbara Wilson award, and the 2009 Pro Mentor of the Year. Candy is a nationally syndicated entertainment columnist for FYI Television. A veteran journalist she has interviewed just about everyone in Hollywood from George Clooney and Orlando Bloom to Nicole Kidman and Kate Beckinsale. You can hear Candy weekly on 96.3 KSCS in the Dallas Fort Worth Area. Her popular online Writer’s Workshop has more than 1300 students and provides free classes to professional and aspiring writers.
Enrollment Information at http://www.occrwa.org/onlineclassFeb10.html
COST: $20 for OCC members, $30 for non-members

Coming in March 2010–
“The Regency Women” with Nancy Mayer
This workshop will focus on Regency woman and their roles, expectations, rights, and power. Including common myths and mistakes writers make in their stories. (Like can or how do woman obtain financial independence, and can they maintain it in marriage.)

http://www.occrwa.org/onlineclasses.html. Check out our full list of workshops.

Want to be notified personally two weeks before each class? Be sure
you’re signed up for our Online Class Notices Yahoo Group! Sign up at
the bottom of http://www.occrwa.org/onlineclasses.html or send a blank
email to OCCRWAOnlineClassNotices-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

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