How To Develop the Right Character? Shop ’till you drop.
October 18, 2018 by Jenny Jensen in category On writing . . . by Jenny Jensen
Just finished a manuscript with a grand premise, a smashing hero, the story arc of a roller coaster and a cast of fabulous secondary players. The client feels something is off, and she’s right. It’s the main character; she’s cardboard. She’s flat. She’s duller than dishwater.
We discuss the issue and agree the MC needs more love, more exploration. This character needs a spirit and the personality to flawlessly meet the needs of the plot points. The reader needs to effortlessly believe this woman, who lives free of the restraints that bind most of us, is real. She wears Louboutin, Gucci jeans, Vera Wang blouses, all bought retail. She is spa’ed and buffed to perfection. This girl power shops. She has always been stinking rich, until she’s not.
The author knows her challenge is to paint this character with colors the reader can relate to. Despite her golden life she must be so likeable we can be disappointed in her, fear and root for her and cheer her ultimate success. So it’s back to the keyboard. I know the author will nail it. She just needs time and a fresh perspective.
It leaves me thinking about the process of character development. A character can spring to life full blown, like Venus, or grow from a chance meeting with someone unique. It’s not uncommon for a writer to spend years with a hazy character floating in their mind until one day it solidifies, complete with story. Or, as in this case, you can build the character to fit the action. I know there isn’t a formula for inspiration, but I get an idea of how to help find an uber rich girl’s character.
My friend Judy and I each have $50,000 and 4 hours to spend it. The only rules are no car or real estate – too easy – and you really have to want what you purchase. It’s pretend money, of course, so we make it a competition to spice things up. First item in my column – a $2,000 Rebecca Taylor cocktail dress. I’m gonna be good at this! Next is a sleek deer cast in bronze – $5800. Ca ching. I’m hot now.
When time is up, I’ve failed. Judy wins by $1800, but that’s only because she saw the blue Luchese cowboy boots first. Neither of us could spend our entire $50,000 but I learned a lot. The experience gave me a feel for the thoughts, mannerisms and motivation of a fully funded shopaholic. More importantly, I can see how this character would change in the face of the adversity coming her way. It’s that character development that will give the story heart.
I share my day of conspicuous consumption with the author and show how it’s helped me view this problem of character. She’s jazzed to have another way of looking at it. I’m jazzed because I’ve done my job and had so much fun doing it. I’m going to stay patient – writers need the time they need – but I can hardly wait for the second draft to see how this character emerges.
Jenny
Author Spotlight on Kat Martin
October 18, 2018 by A Slice of Orange in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Spotlight tagged as bestseller, fiction, Kat Martin, new release, romance, romantic suspense, suspence
New York Times bestselling author Kat Martin is a graduate of the University of California at Santa Barbara where she majored in Anthropology and also studied History. Currently residing in Missoula, Montana with her Western-author husband, L. J. Martin, Kat has written sixty-five Historical and Contemporary Romantic Suspense novels. More than sixteen million copies of her books are in print and she has been published in twenty foreign countries. Her last novel, BEYOND CONTROL, hit both big lists … NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER LIST as well as the USA TODAY BEST-SELLING BOOKS LIST. Kat is currently at work on her next Romantic Suspense.
Her November 1st release is WAIT UNTIL DARK.
P.I. Jonah Wolfe knows trouble when he sees it. So when April Vale storms into his office at Maximum Security, all his warning signs flash red. April’s been accused of murder, except she has no memory of how she woke up in her coworker’s bed–drenched in his blood–shot with her gun. As the campaign manager for the mayor, April’s job is on the line. Even worse, her life may be on the line if she doesn’t figure out who’s trying to frame her.
The clock is ticking and the pair must find the killer… before April winds up dead.
WAIT UNTIL DARK
Excerpt
Kat Martin
The sound of voices cut through the pounding in her head, dragging her from a dark void into the light of day. As uniformed policemen streamed into the bedroom, April Vale looked down at her naked body and saw a sea of blood soaking the mattress. A naked man lay beside her, a bullet hole in the center of his chest.
A scream tore free as she recognized David Dean, Mayor Rydell’s campaign manager. Then strong arms hauled her upright and a wave of dizziness hit her, making her stomach roll. One of the officers draped a blanket around her bare shoulders and they hustled her over to a chair by the window.
Fighting a fresh wave of nausea, April gripped the blanket, her body shaking head to foot. “What…what’s happening?” She didn’t realize her hands were being cuffed together in front of her until she heard metal clanking and cold bands of steel wrapped around her wrists.
“What’s your name?” The room swarmed with policemen. The one in front of her was stocky and balding, in his early forties. A pair of EMTs rushed into the room and began working over the bloody man on the bed, but his eyes were open and staring at nothing and she knew he was already dead.
April swallowed the bile in her throat and fought to clear her head, but when she tried to remember where she was or how she got there, all she came up with was a blank.
“I don’t understand what’s happening,” she said, trying to keep the blanket around her.
“This will all go smoother if you cooperate,” the stocky policeman said. “Tell us your name.”
“I’m…I’m April. April Vale.” She glanced over at David. The hole in his chest seemed even bigger and bloodier than before.
“Can you tell us the name of the victim?”
Victim. A thick lump rose in her throat, threatening to choke her. “That…that’s David Dean. We work for Mayor Rydell.”
A young officer with black hair slicked straight back from his forehead walked up. “Looks like we’ve got the murder weapon, Sarge. It was right there on the floor next to the lady’s purse.”
April frowned, her mind foggy again. “Wait…wait a minute. What’s going on? I don’t understand.” Her fingers tightened on the blanket, trying to keep it in place over her naked body. “I don’t know how I got here. I don’t remember what happened.”
A gray haired man in a navy blue suit brought the gun over in a plastic bag. She recognized the little .380 she carried for protection.
I’m Detective Sullivan. Does this belong to you, Ms. Vale?”
She took a deep breath. “I think it’s mine. I have one like that. I have a legal permit to carry.”
The EMTs began checking her over, her blood pressure, her vision, whether or not she had a concussion.
“We need to get her to the hospital,” one of them said, “have her checked out, get a blood sample.”
“Hospital? I don’t want to go to the hospital.”
A female police officer walked up just then. “We’ve cuffed your hands in front of you so you can hold onto the blanket. If you cooperate, we’ll leave them that way. If not, we’ll have to cuff them behind your back.”
She closed her eyes. This couldn’t be happening. “You think I shot him? I don’t even know how I got here.”
The woman’s expression never changed. “You need to go to the hospital. We need to make sure you’re okay. If you were drugged, it’ll show up in your tox screen.”
Tox screen. Drugs. Her pistol and a dead man.
That’s when it began to sink in how much trouble she was in. That’s when April’s brain finally started working and she began to figure out what she needed to do–before things got a whole lot worse.
At the sound of the glass front door swinging open, Jonah Wolfe looked up to see a tall, leggy redhead walk into the office.
“I hope she’s looking for me.” Jason Maddox, one of the country’s top bail enforcement agents and one of Jonah’s best friends, had an eye for beautiful women. This one definitely met Jase’s exacting standards.
But being a former undercover police officer, Jonah noticed more than her stunning face and figure. Her hands were shaking as she approached the receptionist desk and her face was pale. He wondered what kind of trouble the lady was in.
“May I help you?” The receptionist, Mindy Stewart, shoved up the tortoiseshell glasses perched on the end of her nose. She was petite and cute, and smart enough not to date any of the confirmed bachelors who worked at Maximum Security.
“My name is April Vale. I’m looking for Jonah Wolfe.”
When Maddox groaned his disappointment, Jonah’s focus sharpened on the redhead. He rose from behind his desk and started toward the front of the office. A waiting area with a dark red tufted leather sofa and matching chairs, oak coffee and end tables, gave the place a western feel that perfectly suited the misfit Texans who worked there.
“I’m Wolfe,” Jonah said when he reached her. “What can I do for you?” His gaze ran over her, taking in her spectacular curves. He couldn’t help hoping she needed him for something a lot more intriguing than his skills as a private detective.
He might have smiled, would have if a TROUBLE sign wasn’t stamped in the middle of the pretty lady’s forehead.
“My name is April Vale. Thank you for seeing me.
“No need to thank me, Ms. Vale. I haven’t done anything yet.”
“I’m hoping you will.” She had the face of an angel and legs that went on forever. But she was a redhead and all that fiery hair just ramped up the warning signs flashing in her big blue eyes.
“Is there somewhere we can speak in private?” April asked.
“Conference room. Follow me.” As he led her down the hall, she caught an appreciative glance from Jax Ryker and Dante Romero, the only other guys currently in the office, but she didn’t seem to notice.
“This way.” Jonah held open the door to a glass-walled chamber with a long oak table seating twenty. April walked in and he waited for her to take a seat.
She smoothed the navy blue pencil skirt she was wearing with a pair of sky high heels. She looked good. Classy but not completely untouchable. “As I said, I appreciate your seeing me on such short notice.”
“Not a problem.” Jonah leaned back in his chair. “All right, April, why don’t you tell me why you’re here?”
She took a deep breath, drawing his attention to the full breasts he’d been doing his best to ignore. Since he never mixed business with pleasure, he shoved the buzz of attraction he was feeling to the back of his brain.
“I work for Mayor Rydell,” April said. “Currently I’m…. I was just released from police custody a short time ago, Mr. Wolfe. That’s…that’s why I’m here.”
Jonah straightened in his chair. “You were under arrest?”
“Officially, I haven’t been charged yet. But the charge could be murder.”
Jesus. He hadn’t seen that one coming. Now she really had his attention. Jonah leaned toward her. “So who did you kill, Ms. Vale?”
WAIT UNTIL DARK is available for pre-order and will be released on November 1st.
Other books by Kat Martin
Spotlight on Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC
October 17, 2018 by marianne h donley in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Spotlight tagged as Bethlehem Writers Group, new releases, paranormal tales, Short Stories, Spotlight
Spotlight on Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC
The Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC (BWG), founded in 2006, is a community of mutually supportive, fiction and nonfiction authors based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The members are as different from each other as their stories, spanning a range of genres including: children’s, fantasy, humor, inspiration, literary, memoir, mystery, paranormal, romance, science fiction, women’s fiction, and young adult.
BWG has published five anthologies. Each anthology has an overall theme—broadly interpreted—but includes a variety of genres, and all but the first anthology include stories from the winner(s) of The Bethlehem Writers Short Story Award. Their first anthology, A Christmas Sampler: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Holiday Tales (2009), won two Next Generation Indie Book Awards: Best Anthology and Best Short Fiction.
Once Around the Sun: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Tales for All Seasons, came out on November 5, 2013, and was a Finalist for Best Anthology in the 2014 Next Generation Indie Book Awards.
The third anthology, A Readable Feast: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Tales for Every Taste (2015), was a Finalist in Food Stories in the 2016 Next Generation Indie Book Awards.
Anthology number four, Once Upon a Time: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Tales for All Ages is a collection of twenty-one stories for children—ages preschool through middle school.
UNTETHERED: Sweet, Funny, & Strange Tails of the Paranormal is a collection of 27 paranormal tales. UNTETHERED was released October 14th and is the fifth volume in their Sweet, Funny, and Strange Tales series.
Next up for BWG
BWG is currently working on their sixth anthology, Fur, Feathers, & Scales: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Animal Tales.
In connection with this anthology, they are hosting The Bethlehem Writers 2019 Short Story Award. The 2019 Short Story Award will open on January 1, 2019 the theme will be Animal Stories,broadly interpreted. Stories of 2,000 words or fewer about WILD ANIMALS, PETS, or IMAGINARY BEASTS will be welcome (so long as an animal is an important character or element of the story). The winner will receive $200 and may be offered publication in the above mentioned upcoming anthology. The 2019 guest judge will be John Grogan, best-selling author of Marley & Me.
In addition to anthologies and yearly writing contests, the group publishes a quarterly literary journal, The Bethlehem Writers Roundtable, and hosts twice monthly writing workshops and a critique groups for local members. You can see the schedule of BWG meetings and events, including author signings here.
Just released, UNTETHERED: SWEET, FUNNY, & STRANGE TALES OF THE PARANORMAL
About Untethered
Stoke the campfire and get ready for some chills and goosebumps when you open this paranormal addition to the award-winning Bethlehem Writers Group’s “Sweet, Funny, and Strange” anthologies. Among our twenty-seven stories, we bring you Jeff Baird’s “Bailey’s Mountain” which shows a romp with man’s best friend through Mother Nature morph into a visit to the supernatural. Dianna Sinovic’s “Point of View” describes a mysterious shifting painting and its sinister effects on its new owner. Jodi Bogert brings us “Old Man Omar,” and shows us that sometimes those we consider crazy might just know some things we don’t. In DT Krippene’s “Hell of a Deal,” a man buys a house for a price that’s too good to be true—until he discovers the bizarre strings attached. Kidd Wadsworth’s “The Beast” brings a ghost story to life—but can her characters escape with theirs?
In addition, we have new stories of the unexplained from favorite authors Courtney Annicchiarico, Walter Bego, A. E. Decker, Marianne H. Donley, Headley Hauser, Ralph Hieb, Jerome W. McFadden, Stanley W. McFarland, Emily P. W. Murphy, Christopher D. Ochs, Paul Weidknecht, and Carol L. Wright. Also included are the winning stories from the 2017 and 2018 Bethlehem Writers Roundtable Short Story Award by Suzanne Purvis and Christine Eskilson respectively.
So sit back to enjoy a drift through the paranormal—but don’t let the fire go out!
1 Email, 6 Authors, 2 Thrilling Bundles
October 15, 2018 by Rebecca Forster in category The Write Life by Rebecca Forster tagged as Advice to Myself as a Newbie Author, Authors, book bundle, boxed set, business of writing, thrillers, writingWhen I received an email from best selling author Melissa F. Miller asking me to join a book bundle with thriller authors Pamela Callow, Diane Capri, Colleen Cross, and Pamela Samuels Young, I jumped at the chance.
We released Legal Action ($2.99) and Legal Briefs ($.99) earlier this month. Legal Action is a set of six full-length novels; Legal Briefs is a bundle of novella’s and short stories. I like to think this two pronged approach is unique. I certainly thought the addition of Legal Briefs was genius. I attended the NINC (Novelists Inc.) conference in Florida mainly to meet some of these ladies. The experience was fabulous, but even without face-to-face meetings this bundle would have been a great collaboration.
WHY IT WORKED:
- Melissa had a vision that was easily communicated and she offered an administrative option (important for me).
- Participants spanned a spectrum of one genre which meant sharing readers might overlap but would probably not completely duplicate audiences.
- Each of us had similar marketing tools in place and were comfortable using them.
- A basic plan was agreed to as a foundation that could be built upon.
- A price structure was agreed to that met the objective of widening our audiences.
- Trust, respect, and communication made the process simple, enjoyable and effective. David Miller (administrator) created covers, social media images etc. leaving the authors free to write new material for the Briefs bundle.
BOTTOM LINE:
If you want to participate in a boxed set with other authors take it upon yourself to start the process. Offer a proposal that is both creatively exciting and purposeful in marketing. That will begin the conversation.
One last thing. Google the title of your bundle before it’s set in stone. Imagine our surprise when we found out that Legal Briefs was also the title of a number of erotica novels. At least our cover stands out. Though if we had an image of a man in his underwear on the cover maybe our reach might be greater.
So Bundle up. It can be a wonderful experience.
P.S. Offer the administrator a percentage of any profit. Their work is invaluable.
USA Today & Amazon best selling author Rebecca Forster
Follow Rebecca or contact her at www.rebeccaforster.com
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Featuring Marianne H. Donley
October 14, 2018 by marianne h donley in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Featured Author of the Month tagged as October Featured Author of the Month
Marianne H. Donley makes her home in Tennessee with her husband, son and a very active puppy. She is a member of Bethlehem Writers Group, The Charmed Connection, Romance Writers of America, and Music City Romance Writers. When Marianne isn’t working on A Slice of Orange, she might be writing short stories, funny romances, or quirky murder mysteries, but this could be a rumor.
About A READABLE FEAST
Whatever your taste, this collection of food-related stories from the multiple award-winning Bethlehem Writers Group has all the ingredients to satisfy your reading palate. Our menu includes twenty-seven appetizing stories, from light-fare and sides of fantasy to sweet romance and savory bites of mystery. Jeff Baird’s “The Pickle Promenade” provides an amuse bouche. Try a spicy entree prepared by Diane Sismour in “Bump and Run.” Prefer a yarn with zing? Enjoy “Rightful Prey” by A. E. Decker. Jerry McFadden’s tart “Hard Times,” should tickle your taste buds. On the sweeter side, there’s Sally Paradysz’s “Our Town is Different” or the bittersweet “Breakfast for One” by Geoffrey Mehl.
Enjoy these and other delectable tales from our talented authors including: Courtney Annicchiarico, Terrie Daugherty, Bernadette De Courcey, Marianne H. Donley, Headley Hauser, Ralph Hieb, Judith Mehl, Emily P. W. Murphy, E. L. Ryan, Paul Weidknecht, and Carol L. Wright. To complete today’s specials, we offer tasty tales from Tracy Falenwolfe and C. A. Rowland, winners of Bethlehem Writers Roundtable’s Short Story Awards in 2014 and 2015 respectively. All honed their recipes to write sweet, funny, and strange stories to remember.
Bon Appetit
Marianne’s story “The Widow Next Door” features a tired chef in search of sleep, the noisy kids of the food critic who could kill his new cookbook , and an evil twin brother.
Featured Books
FATED HEARTS: A Love After All Retelling of the Scottish Play
Everything he’d believed to be true was a lie.
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SEA DREAMS
Can help from a lavender-eyed sea witch, a few enchanted cupcakes and a touch of New Moon magic really rescue a once famous now washed up artist from himself?
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THE DAY BAILEY DEVLIN’S HOROSCOPE CAME TRUE
Oh, boy! Oh, Bailey! What are you going to do when Fate decides to have a little fun?
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