Not only can I say that, but over the holidays, one of my characters found out SHE can say it too! Up until now, everybody (including myself) thought it was over for her. Not so! The House on Evermore Lane is building up to a grand finale and this news really put a kink in things for some of our nastier characters. I’m excited to be writing about it!
This does not, of course, explain why I have not been writing in my blog. I’d like to say it was because I was terribly busy with the holidays and working on my storyline. However, about the best I can do is say I was in a complete funk and not writing much of anything. And of course, with the New Year comes the resolution to do better.
Speaking of that, the thought occurred to me that our characters can also have resolutions, especially the main voices in our story, because we carry their complete lives in our heads. For example, here are some of mine.
Mina Drake: 1) Do not kill Toby. No matter what or how tempting. 2) Do not send Father’s Day card to insane serial-killer-fairy-king type father. 3) Convince the refrigerator that ice cream is a healthy and accepted part of a normal daily diet.
Toby McGillis: 1) Do not kill Mina. No matter what or how tempting. 2) Stay off of Vi, or Violent’s (as Mina calls her) radar, now that I’ve allowed a witch to best her. 3) Spend more time getting to know a certain bewitching waitress
Max: 1) Do not kill Mina or Toby. No matter what or how tempting. 2) Refrain from eating the small fae. They taste nasty and give you gas. 3) More sunbathing and less human-assisted bathing. Much less.
Bing: 1) Do not kill Max. No matter what or how tempting. 2) Remember what my real name is and how I ended up as a stone dragon. 3) Cut down on the brooding sullen bad boy act. It only works for James Dean and Charlie Sheen.
Can you name the top resolutions that the characters in your story would make? Knowing your characters inside and out (and what writer doesn’t, when they live in our heads 24/7?) is a huge part of making them easy for readers to love, hate or understand. Or some combination of the three.
Good writing!
Lola