Writing 101: Realistic Reactions

So what's the secret of creating a great character? It helps if they're a little flawed, it makes me like them if they have problems to overcome. But the real secret isn't in how the character acts. It's how they react to the world around them. And frankly, some writers can't seem to write realistic reactions.

What Would J.K. Rowling Do?

Suppose that you were confronted by a vampire, just suppose. Pretend that you've just been given terrible news. Imagine exactly what you'd do if you were arrested.

Don't just write things down. This is not a viable way to craft a story. See yourself in this world. Envision how you would behave if all the plot twists were happening to you. Always take the time to do that. Just stop, think and imagine.

Because if you don't,  your book isn't going to be very good. I can't cite any specific examples, because that would be mean, but I've read lots of books with unrealistic reactions. So I can point out some general examples of what that looks like:

Writing 101: What's Wrong With Indie Authors

Notice there is no question mark in the title of this post. I'm not going to attempt to investigate a problem, and point out several generalities that could affect independently published books. I'm going to tell you, plainly, what's wrong with indie authors...and why there are some readers they won't ever get.

Being Indie

For the record, I'm an indie author. Technically I became an indie author when my first self-published book hit the market on Christmas Day, 2012. But I made the decision to become an indie the summer before. So in my way of thinking, I've been an indie author for a while now. I have immersed myself in the community by joining and reading forums, taking part in social media, blogging, and connecting with other bloggers and self-published authors. I have done a lot of research and a lot of blog-reading, and I have reviewed around 15 indie books. These are my qualifications, such as they are.

There's this real piece of work over at Good eReader, who absolutely doesn't pull his punches when he's beating up on indie authors. The way this guy shuns self-publishing, you'd think we were all heroin addicts. But as acerbic as I may find his blog posts, by some measure he's kind in his opinion of indies. Stick around the self-publishing game long enough, and you're bound to hear far worse.

So what's wrong with indie authors? Why does this guy, and so many like him, absolutely hate us? The answer is an ironic one: what's good about indie authors is also what's wrong with them.

Writing 101: Use Your Experience

I have never been to ancient Greece, because I am not capable of time travel...but I've written about ancient Greece. With enough research, authors have the ability to write about pretty much anything -- any environment, any setting, any action. But if you want your book to feel real and resonate with readers, use your experience. Personal experience can be translated to any character in any setting...if you know how.

In My Shoes

A strong literary character is only strong because of what happens to them in the book. Suffering loss, getting married, being heartbroken, going hungry -- these things make a book interesting and can shape a character throughout its pages. If you haven't experienced these things, you can still write about them. But if you choose to write about things that have happened to you instead, your book is going to be much richer.

The Life of a Book

"How would you like to live in a world where you would be judged just by your hair color?"

"I was always curious about the characters, history, events and everything else going on in the novel at all times."

Hope's Rebellion has been reviewed at It's a Book Life. Read the whole thing to find out what the reviewer didn't like about my newest book, and see if you agree! 

Get your copy of Hope's Rebellion at Amazon, Smashwords or B&N.

Writing 101: So What is Passive Voice?

Do you write in the passive voice? Do you know what that means? If you don't, that's okay. I still have trouble with distinguishing passive language myself. It's one of those ephermal writing characteristics that can, very subtly, alter the tone of your book. I'm not one of those writers who are against writing in the passive voice, because every author should strike their own tone when writing their own work. But I do feel that writers ought to know the difference between active and passive voice...because how can you decide if you don't understand both choices? 

We Were Writers

Now, I could get really technical with the forthcoming description of passive voice. In my research for this post, I've discovered that this is the most common approach. But when writing about something that's complicated, taking a highly technical approach isn't likely to help most people. So I'm going to do my best to put it in plain English. 

Writing 101: You're Your (Own Enemy)

It happens every single day without fail. I get on Facebook to link a post or put up a photo, and I see it: your. And every time I see it, the word is being used the wrong way. As an author, you should always be ever-aware of word possessiveness -- whether you're Tweeting or Facebooking or writing a novel (or writing an email to your own spouse). If I see you using your the wrong way, I'll never read any of your books. And I'm going to start a movement to get others to join me on this blanket ban. And I'm going to succeed...because I'm right. 

Yore

Don't get me wrong; I understand why it's confusing. Your isn't an easy word to know. It's possessive, but it doesn't have an apostrophe. That could blow anybody's mind. Then there's you're, spelled almost the same way and pronounced exactly the same. Neither of these words have anything to do with yore, but that word exists as well. I'm pointing it out because it sounds the same, and it's a fun word. 

But that's moot. The point is, you'd better use your the right way. Once you can, you won't use you're the wrong way, either. 

Movie Review: Petals on the Wind

In case you haven't noticed, I've been making a big deal about the Petals on the Wind adaptation for a few days now. Last night it finally aired. So how does this long-awaited movie match up to its book?

Not very well. In case you weren't enjoying my live Twitter session last night while the movie was on, I ought to warn you: I'm pretty angry about the adaptation. 

Faded Buttercups 

The movie begins 10 years after the events of Flowers in the Attic, which is already wrong. The book actually begins right where Flowers left off. Seriously, the reader misses a few hours (at best) of Cathy's life. Cathy is 15 when she leaves the attic.

This means that in the advanced timeline, Cathy is already 25. And in the movie, Paul Sheffield is dead. This is an insult to the fans, because Paul figures prominently in Cathy's adult life. She marries him, after all. As a girl just meeting Paul, Cathy sets out to seduce him almost immediately. She's already all messed up, and desperate to explore her femininity with someone who isn't related to her. So her relationship with Paul is very complex, and affects many other relationships. To cut him out is an injustice.

Writing 101: Your Origin Story

Is there a specific book or author who made you want to be a writer? For many who pursue this path, the answer is yes. Lots of authors today can tell you stories about their yesterdays, days filled with reading other people's words...until soon, those days became filled with writing their own. 

And my origin story, like this holiday weekend, begins with V. C. Andrews.

In the Beginning...

I was a bit of a precocious child. I was never much interested in children's books. And besides, I didn't have a whole lot of access to children's books anyway. When I was growing up, I was always the only kid around unless I was in school. Around any of my family members, I was the lone kid.

So it was perfectly natural for me to go off and do things by myself. What, was I going to hang around the adults? No way. And since being by yourself isn't always fun but reading is, I was a reader. 

That's how I discovered V.C. Andrews. It was Thanksgiving, and I was 9. Too early, I know, to read V.C. Andrews. Seriously, don't let your young kids read V.C. Andrews because they may turn out like me (and I'm terrible, quite). But I did read it, and it was Flowers in the Attic. And at the end of the first chapter, my mind was made up. 

I was going to be an author, too.