Beth Greenslade's Blog, page 117

Excellent Strategies To Help Revise Your Book

So you’ve finished your novel - congratulations! There is nothing quite like the feeling of having actually made it to the end of your book, especially because if you are anything like me there were probably several instances where you thought you might never manage it!

But, as we all know finishing your story is just the beginning! The revision process is where you really need perseverance and determination to stick it out and make it as good as it can be.

The editing stage can feel pretty tough, for as soon as you get stuck back into revising and re-writing that initial elation quickly disappears as you realise just how much there is to do.

Writers need to be pretty resilient to get through it. So, with that in mind, here are some helpful strategies to boost those novel polishing skills and feel confident you are producing the very best work possible.

Pay attention to structure

Your novel must be structured well in order to work. Just because you have finished your story doesn’t mean you can’t go back and restructure it to make it even better. Write down your outline now that the book is complete and look at it objectively. How can you reshape it to make it flow, what can you add, what can you take away? Does your novel build to an exhilarating climax, does each chapter end on a cliffhanger making the reader want to keep on going? These are things you can ask yourself and change without too much effort as you revise your story.

Look out for inconsistencies

Always be on the lookout for any inconsistencies in your book. Write out timelines and make sure they work, check characters ages and relationships, remember what time of year it is, what characters are wearing, where they put things down and pick things up and so on. Readers can be very unforgiving and baulk even the slightest inconsistency so make sure you keep your eyes peeled for them at all times.

Pay attention to characterisation

Now that you have written your book, it’s a good idea to go back through it and revisit your characterisation - do you really know your characters? Do they always act and react as one would expect? Will the reader engage with them and care for them or be repulsed and angered by them or even afraid of them as you have intended? Making sure your characters evoke a reaction in your reader is so important - they need to care about them in order to care about your story.

Work backwards

Starting at page one and working your way through your whole novel can be a dangerous strategy. Instead, give yourself specific tasks to do such as looking out for sensory detail or checking spelling and grammar. This way you can go through a chapter at a time but do so out of order. This will stop you from starting a sentence by sentence re-reading which can actually prevent you from spotting the things you set out to in the first place.

Don’t stop learning

There is always room to revise and improve one's craft. Keep learning new techniques and practising new ways of writing - you might just get inspired to change something that makes a massive difference to your whole story.

Be OK with uncertainty

The huge task of editing one's entire novel can seem rather overwhelming at times and it's easy to become full of self-doubt along the way. Try to embrace this, or if you can’t do that, at least accept it. How much effort you put into revising your novel will have a massive impact on what happens afterwards, so stay focused and keep trying and it will all be worth it in the end.

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

The post Excellent Strategies To Help Revise Your Book appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

How To Gain Perspective On Your Work

Often it can do authors the world of good to step back from their books and take a break from them before they decide the time is right to publish. Why? Because gaining perspective can help you to see where there are flaws in your book, and can also stop you from over editing and chopping it up so much that it becomes difficult to repair.

If you are too close to you work you will find it too difficult to cut passages, story lines, even characters when it is actually glaringly obvious that you should do. Often if you can set your book aside for a while after you have finished it you can come back to it with a fresh perspective. You will have also gained useful distance from it meaning that you hopefully won’t be so attached, and can therefore be more practical and objective when it comes to editing.

If you read your book too many times you might find that you skim read or skip over chunks of your writing which can be dangerous when proof-reading. It’s so easy to become so familiar with something that you begin to read ahead before your brain has a chance to catch up! This means errors in spelling and grammar could be easily missed, and even inconsistencies or weak areas in the plot structure could end up being overlooked.

Editing takes time and can often feel overwhelming at first. If you have just completed the mammoth task of finishing your book going straight into the editing phase can be a mistake. You should take a while to celebrate the achievement of having written the end of your novel. Enjoy the euphoria and sense of pride that comes with that. If you immediately begin to rip it apart you could find yourself becoming disheartened and giving up altogether - which would be a great shame seeing as you are so close to meeting your goal! Revision, after all, is about revisiting something so it’s natural that there should be a gap between finishing a book and going into the revision stage.

Of course, sometimes trying to gain perspective from your book can be easier said than done. You’re impatient to get it out and published as soon as possible which can mean the idea of taking a break from your writing seems impossible. So how can you get some distance?

Revamp your writing space - if you’ve just finished writing a novel your writing space may well be where you feel you have been living for the past few months and be chaotic and disorganised. Now is a good time to revamp and reorganise it so when you do come to edit you’ll feel refreshed and ready to tackle this task head on.

Get out and see the world - spend time with family and friends - you know those people you’ve neglected while immersed in your novel, remember them?! Take long walks to clear your head, go on an adventure, travel somewhere new. Getting away from it all and having new experiences can be just the thing to get out of your writing bubble for a few days.

Read other books - reading is one of the most productive and useful things you can do as a writer. Use this time to devour as many books as you can - it’s the greatest form of research and inspiration you can get.

Get a second opinion and then a third. Let other people take your manuscript away and read through it. Getting feedback from people you trust to be constructive and fair will help give you fresh insight into your book that is totally invaluable.

Begin a new project. Just because you have finished writing your book doesn’t mean you have to stop writing altogether. Put your work aside, park it and begin on something entirely new. This way you’ll keep your creative juices flowing while still gaining perspective from your book.

Giving yourself some space post finishing your novel can work wonders and can help you to return to your work feeling confident, refreshed and ready to start the editing stage in order to make your book the very best it can be.

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

The post How To Gain Perspective On Your Work appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

Just Because You Find Writing Hard It Doesn’t Mean You’re Not A Writer

Ever meet one of those writer’s who truly believes that writing is their destiny? That they have always just known that they ‘have to write.’ The ones who claim to wake up in the middle of the night and simply must get out of bed and write until the crack of dawn because the words just simply pour out of them?

Perhaps I sound a little bitter. However, I do think that while it is wonderful for those writers who feel as though they have found their true calling through writing, for most of us it’s a struggle. Yes I admit it, I think writing is frustrating and it's tiring and it's difficult.

Writers are notoriously hard on themselves, and this is something that we should learn to change. We need to be our biggest supporters, our biggest fans. However, sometimes it is simply not as easy as that.

Many writers struggle to write, and just because you do doesn’t mean you are not a true writer, nor does it mean you’re not as talented and hard-working as other writers, or that you deserve a publishing deal any less.

It’s OK if writing isn’t your entire universe. If you love writing your book but you only do it on weekends and sometimes not even then because frankly you just want to have a lie in or have drinks with friends or watch tv all day and not care about anything else.

Writer’s seem to think that unless you write full time, that you have a ‘proper’ book publishing deal and that you spend every living breathing minute of your life tap, tap tapping away on your computer that you shouldn’t call yourself a writer - and that people will mock you and laugh in your face, or patronise and belittle you, or think that you are supremely arrogant and pompous if you do.

Many writers feel as though they are imposters, even when they are successful they find it tough to believe that they have any authority on the subject and bestowing upon themselves the title of ‘writer’ seems big-headed and foolish.

Writing doesn’t have to be effortless, and being a writer certainly isn’t. Even the most famous and successful of writers have talked about their struggles, and their frustration and pain when writing hasn’t gone their way, or when they’ve tried to write but been unable to, or have thought their writing was dreadful, torn it all up and started again.

If we believe that to be a writer you have to consistently produce work without having to think about it, that the words simply fall, perfectly formed and beautiful from your head to the page, then really how many people could actually call themselves one?

We should never let our writing fears hold us back, and accepting that writing is hard is just one of the things we should do to help us believe in ourselves more.

If we can concentrate on writing a little bit every day, not worrying about the final product, accepting that writing is a learning process and there will always be more to learn and new ways to grow. If we can support one another, and, above all, keeping pushing through even when writing feels painful and boring and tedious we might just be writers after all!

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

The post Just Because You Find Writing Hard It Doesn’t Mean You’re Not A Writer appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

How To Write A Blog That People Will Read

Some writers love writing their author blog, some writers hate it. Either way, it can’t be denied that a great author blog can increase your readership and boost your book sales.

Of course, writing an author blog is only helpful if people are actually going to read it. Obviously, if it’s something you enjoy doing then that’s great. But many authors get frustrated as no matter how much time and energy they put into writing their blog no one ever seems to subscribe.

However, there are some blog writers are astonishingly well read and have avid followers who will never miss a post. Getting to that stage takes time and effort, but it’s not rocket science, and it’s actually not that hard to do.

So how do you write a blog that people will read?

Firstly why not think about the kind of content that you like to read? What makes you subscribe to someone’s blog, or read someone's newsletter? Do your research. Make a list of blogs that inspire you and you enjoy. What are they about? Why do you like them? Get specific. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel here. Chances are if you particularly love a blog, that’s the kind of blog you would like to write yourself. So take inspiration from others and start there.

You have to write about things you are interested in. That’s why so many lifestyle blogs become very popular - essentially it’s just one person writing about the things they like, and the things that they think other people will like too. It’s as simple as that.

However, your blog has to offer the reader something. This is very important. If your writing comes across as self-obsessed and vain, no one will want to read it. Be genuine and passionate but carefully consider what each piece of content is offering the reader. It must have value. If a blog teaches them something, inspires them in some way, motivates them or advises them then they will appreciate that information, and keep coming back for more.

Be natural. As long as you don’t sound too ‘know it all’ or professional no-one is going to mind too much if you miss a comma here and there. Your writing doesn’t have to be perfect so don’t put too much pressure on yourself to make it so. Think about how you have a conversation, sometimes you stutter, sometimes you forget the word you are trying to say - your friends forgive you, and if you can draw readers in and make your writing feel personal, they will start to feel like friends too.

Be patient. It takes time to grow a following - you’ve got to be patient and not expect things to happen overnight. Keep producing high quality, valuable, interesting content in a consistent way and readers will begin to follow you.

Engage with your readers - if someone has taken the time to follow you remember to thank them. Do this personally - don’t just send an automated message. If you show that you care about your readers and know how valuable they are, they are more likely to remain loyal to you.

Try to keep posts upbeat, positive and humorous -but above all human. People identify with people so just be you and you’ll get there in the end!

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

The post How To Write A Blog That People Will Read appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

How To Kill A Character

Killing off characters in your story can feel a little unnerving. Regardless of whether you have always known you were going to do it, or, as you started writing your book you realised you had no choice, you want to make sure you kill off your character in the right way.

Of course, the way your kill off a character will be decided by what purpose doing so has in your story. Is it a heartbreaking tragedy, or perhaps a huge relief to your reader, and your other characters alike when they finally go? Do you want your readers to react with horror, sadness, or even humour when they discover this character is dead?

Whatever the purpose, the important point to remember is that there must be a purpose. If your readers don’t react, or, in fact, care that your character has been killed off then there is little reason to do so in the first place and perhaps suggests that this character is not as significant as they should be, or perhaps written in a way that the reader hasn’t formed any kind of emotional attachment to them (good or bad) at all.

So when you come to kill a character here are some important things to remember:

Does it advance the plot?

Killing a character needs to affect your story in some way. If there are no consequences or reactions then what is the point? A death in your story needs to motivate the other characters in your book to take action or to change.

Is it fitting that this character should die?

Killing a character needs to be done with care. You can use it as a way of shocking your readers, of throwing in an unexpected twist that they never imagined possible. However, doing so without really thinking about their reaction can be dangerous. If your reader feels as though you have killed this character just for the sake of shocking or upsetting them, they’ll feel betrayed by you. Don’t feel the need to make your book sad or shocking just for the sake of it. You want your readers to care, sure, but randomly killing off a character they love for no reason is not the way to do it.

What do you want your readers to feel?

Ensuring you evoke the correct reaction from your readers is crucial. If they are supposed to feel gut-wrenchingly sad make sure that you have dedicated enough time to making them care about that character before you do. If they are supposed to feel horrified and tense, make sure the build up to the death and the details about it are sufficiently disturbing. If they are meant to feel relieved and pleased that the world will be a better, safer, happier place now that this character has gone, make sure they felt dislike towards that character and that all their villainous ways have been revealed before they make their final exit!

Killing off characters in your book can actually be lots of fun, and if you get it right it can make your book a very powerful one.

How do you decide to kill off your characters? Let us know!

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

The post How To Kill A Character appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

Let’s Get Back To Our Writing Best

We can all get into a bit of a writing slump from time to time and find it difficult to stay motivated. Sometimes even writing at all can feel like a massive chore, and when you do the words just don’t seem to flow like they used to. You read back over what you have written and wonder what on earth you were thinking!

Getting back to making your writing awesome again means making a conscious effort to pull you out of that writing slump, to break the writer's block, and perhaps, most importantly, to believe in yourself once more.

So how can we get back to that phase where everything we wrote seemed powerful and easy and effortless, where we looked forward to starting the writing day, itching to begin?

Here are some helpful tips to try:

Stop criticising yourself

You need to be your biggest support, your biggest fan, your biggest believer. It is so easy for writers to wallow in wells of self-pity. But isn’t it time we started supporting ourselves? Treat yourself like you would a close friend, be your biggest cheerleader. It’s not about being arrogant, it’s about helping ourselves achieve our dreams, and feeling happier about it along the way.

Don’t be afraid of shocking people

The best writing is the most honest writing, it’s the rawest and most brutal. Often when we write it is easy to play down the experiences, to sugar coat everything because we are too scared of offending our readers, of putting people off. However, if you are honest with yourself about the way you want a scene to play out, or how that character would really feel in that moment, then you should write it that way. You readers will appreciate your story all the more for it.

Be experimental

When it comes to writing some things just aren’t going to work. Why are we so afraid of that being the case? It’s brave and cool to try new things, you aren’t going to hurt anyone by doing so, and if they end up being pieces of writing you never use, or aren’t received well by your readers, that’s OK. Keep experimenting and one day you might just hit upon something that totally revolutionises the way you write.

Get inspired

Writing should always be catalysed out of inspiration. If you can remember this you’ll start to actively seek out experiences that are likely to inspire you and therefore motivate you to write even more. Tell yourself that you are an artist, you don’t need to write like a robot. Read, listen to music at top volume, go for long walks, sit quietly in a room for an hour, drink wine, read excellent books, make something with your hands, travel, marvel, laugh and cry - there are so many ways to get inspired - but don’t just sit there waiting for it to come to you.

Deciding to dedicate yourself to your writing and get back to writing your best is a wonderful feeling - even taking those first steps will feel positive and exciting. We all need a little motivation from time to time - just remember you have the tools to get there, you just need to help yourself.

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

The post Let’s Get Back To Our Writing Best appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

How To Make Your Readers Cry

One of the most important things to consider when writing a novel is how to ensure that your readers engage with it. Think back to reading your favourite book, why do you love it so much? It’s because you identify with it, it’s because it makes you feel something. Connecting with your readers on an emotional level is so important, they need to care – about your characters and about what happens to them. If they don’,t they won’t care about your story at all.

Our favourite books are so special to us because we become emotionally invested in them and, as an author, being constantly aware of where you can draw the reader further in, can hook them that little bit more and make them care that little bit deeper, is important throughout the novel writing process.

Making readers cry is one of the most powerful devices you can use in your novel. Most of my favourite books have had me in tears at some point. They’ve moved me – and by doing so they have become unforgettable.

So how do you make your readers cry? Here are several steps that will help you get there.

Create characters they care about

As mentioned previously, without caring about your characters, readers won’t care about what happens to them. Therefore, no matter how tragic the event, they won’t feel moved to tears. We know that sad things happen all over the world every day, but we don’t spend every waking minute wandering around bawling our eyes out, clutching our hearts, and wailing hysterically, do we? However, when we stop, take interest and engage in certain things then we start to connect, to resonate, to empathise, sympathise, and feel. You must spend time capturing your reader’s attention, and creating these fantastic characters your readers can’t help but fall in love with – do that and when the tragedy occurs they won’t be able to stop themselves from shedding a tear.

Make them fight for something

Characters need to want something, something that they are willing to take risks and make huge life-changing decisions for. Readers have to understand how important it is for your characters to achieve their goals and desires, they have to believe that the character would do anything to get there. Make the stakes high and the prize big otherwise your readers can’t feel the desperation, the disappointment, the loss, the cost, or understand the sacrifices they have made and are willing to make over and over again. The ideas can be simple but they must appeal to those basic primal urges, love, sex, death, fear and so on -that’s what will grab a readers attention and make them care at the end of the day.

Be unpredictable

If your readers are able to second guess your story, they’ll have already prepared themselves unconsciously for the action that they believe will take place. Surprise them and in doing so don’t be afraid to shock and unsettle them either. This will make them invest more in your story, keep them gripped and coming back for more, so when that final success or failure occurs they’ll be sobbing with the bittersweet joy or the horrible unfairness of it all.

Be authentic

Don’t gloss over your sad moments, take your time with them, make them beautiful and agonising but most of all avoid the temptation to go overboard. Think about what people do and say and look like and act like when they are sad. Readers want to be able to identify with the emotion, so don’t be too soppy or unrealistic, but at the same time try to make the moment poignant and one where perhaps your protagonist truly becomes the hero of the story, despite everything that has happened.

You don’t have to write a tragic novel to include moments of sadness in it. Moving your readers to tears can be a wonderful way of getting them to truly engage with your novel and make it stick in their minds for a long time to come.

Bethany Cadman -author of ‘Doctor Vanilla’s Sunflowers’

The post How To Make Your Readers Cry appeared first on Writer's Life.org.

How To Write Around Your Day Job

For many of us writing is a wonderful hobby, and while we spend many an hour dreamily fantasising about quitting our day jobs and writing full time, the practicalities of doing so may mean that dream cannot become a reality (for the moment at least).

But we all want to have more time to write, and fitting it in around other commitments, particularly your day job, can feel like a challenge.

So how can you write around your day job? Let’s be honest, there is no quick fix. It’s all about finding gaps in time here and there to fit more writing in.

Learn how to manage your time

Only you know how important writing is to you, and only you will know what your writing goals are. If your aim is to have a novel planned, researched, written, edited and sent to publishers within 12 months you need to find significant chunks of time to dedicate to achieving this. If that means getting up at 5 am to start writing, or sitting down after dinner and writing until bedtime, you’ll get it done if it means that much to you.

Use your commute

If you commute via public transport this is a fantastic period of time you can use to write. Even if it’s only a 20-minute journey, you’re doing it 5 days a week and that adds up!

If you find writing on your commute difficult because of distractions then you could still use this time productively by doing research, writing plot outlines, jotting down ideas or contacting agents and publishers.

Can you write during the working day?

While we’re not condoning writing your novel when you’re being paid to do something else, if you have breaks, you could use these to write. Bring your lunch with you and use your entire lunch break to work on your writing. If you get distracted at home why not stay at work for an extra half hour or come in earlier and enjoy the peaceful environment to get some writing work done?

Be honest about the time you have

Most people work around 8 hours a day. That leaves 16 hours to play with. OK so you will obviously have other commitments to contend with but even so, there is always time in a day to get a little writing done.

It’s very easy to feel as though we have no free time, but when we actually think and admit to ourselves the amount of time we spend socialising, watching tv, surfing the internet and so on, we are often surprised by the amount of time we choose to spend doing other things when we could be writing.

It’s important to remember that there is nothing wrong with feeling tired at the end of the working day and wanting to put your feet up and watch some Netflix instead of sitting down at your computer again. However, you could try and compromise with yourself and have one ‘writing’ evening a week – where you must prioritise your writing above anything else. You’ll soon get into a nice writing routine and see your word count soar!

Be clear about what you want to achieve and just do it!

The things we want most in life are often the hardest – but that’s why the payoff is so great if we do get there. It may be annoying to hear but if you want to find time to write, you will. Just as those who want to exercise will find time to do it and those who want to spend their time doing any hobby simply prioritise it above other things.

Persistence is key

Novel writing takes time and dedication. The good news is you don’t need massive chunks of free time in order to get there. Just keep finding pockets or time here and there and allocate them to your writing . You’ll soon find that you are making progress, and the more you do the closer you’ll get to the finish line, and maybe you’ll get to give up your day job after all!

Bethany Cadman -author of ‘Doctor Vanilla’s Sunflowers’

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How To Turn Your Story From Good To Great

Writing your book might be one of the hardest things you’ll ever have to do. But what is the point in putting all that time and effort into it if you aren’t willing to do everything you can to make it the very best it can be?

You may think that getting your entire story down on paper is the hardest part of writing your book, but really that’s you just getting started!

Once you go back and begin to redraft your story that’s when the hard work really begins, and where you have an opportunity to really make your story stand out.

So how do you turn a story from good to great?

Use all five senses

It’s so important to use all five senses in our stories to really draw the reader in. Knowing what things smell, taste, sound or feel like as well as what they look like is how a reader can become immersed in the fictional world you have created.

Remember that senses can be used to say things that are unsaid, and doing so can increase dramatic effect. If something sweet tastes bitter to a character, for example, this gives us insight into their state of mind. If they can’t feel the heat on their face despite the sunshine, similarly, this lets the reader know how they are feeling.

Use the senses to create drama, to help readers engage with your characters and to transport them seamlessly into the heart of your story so they feel as though they are right there too.

Create memorable characters

It is easy to turn a character from typical to memorable. Simply make them flawed, freakish or eccentric in some way. A limp, a scar, a funny way of breathing, the way someone dresses or talks, an unsettling tic, extra long fingernails, a weird ritual that they have to do every morning. There are so many ways to add little idiosyncrasies here and there to your characters to make them stand out, but also more relatable too – remember humans are pretty weird after all!

Push the boundaries

This could be your boundaries or the boundaries of writing or even society. Basically, take some risks and go to places you might not feel that comfortable going.

Write sex scenes but don’t make them loving and neat, make them awkward or violent or graphic. If one of your characters is a bit racist, make them so, don’t skirt delicately around the subject. If one of your characters is depressed it’s OK to write about the weird dark thoughts that they have. Your book doesn’t have to be pretty, your book doesn’t have to be safe. If you are willing to push the boundaries and stop censoring yourself you might well come up with some pretty compelling stuff.

Make your readers laugh

If you can make your readers laugh, or even just smile or smirk a little, your novel will improve. You don’t have to write a funny story in order for it to have elements of humour. Even in the most tragic situations, there is comedy to be found after all. Smart, witty characters are lively and engaging so if you can find a way to be funny every now and again your readers will appreciate it.

Make your readers cry

The books that stick out most for me are the ones that have made me cry. Some of them haven’t even been that sad, but still, have moved me in a way to the point where I’m all teary-eyed and filled with wonder. If you can make your readers cry they are emotionally connected with your book, they care – and that’s what writing a great story is all about!

Bethany Cadman -author of ‘Doctor Vanilla’s Sunflowers’

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The Not So Obvious Characters That Will Make Your Story Stand Out

When it comes to writing stories there are some characters that appear in almost every book, regardless of the genre. We all have a protagonist or protagonists in our stories, those whose journey we follow throughout the book. They are our heroes and heroines. We also have villains – those who get in the way and cause trouble for our protagonists, as well as more minor characters, the wisecracking best friends, the fusspot mothers, the annoying brothers and sisters and so on.

But if we really want our books to stand out sometimes it’s a good idea to look beyond these characters, or at least to break they stereotypes, and think how we can give them added depth, and make them really stand out and come alive in our work.

So what are the not so obvious characters that you can introduce into your novel to really make your story stand out?

Let’s take a look at some of them.

Freaks and Monsters

Bringing unusual people into your book is a way to really capture a readers attention. One way of doing this is by introducing freaks and monsters into your story. Think Jekyll and Hyde, the Hunchback of Notre Dame, or The Joker.

Now your book may not be the kind of book that can bring in a character quite so obviously freakish. However, this doesn’t mean you can’t make your characters freaky in some way. A funny voice or lisp, an eccentric way of dressing, an erratic way of walking, a creepy scar. You can be subtle but still add drama. Of course, being freakish isn’t necessarily about looks either. You make a characters demeanour or outlook on life freakish too.

Rule breakers

Introducing characters who break all the rules, who don’t conform to social norms, who manage to cheat the system and get away with it, will bring your novel to life. These characters bring chaos and disruption, they are unpredictable and exciting, the don’t live their lives the way we expect them to. We don’t have to like the rule breakers, but we should be fascinated by them, are they characters we look up to and respect, or are they ones who we believe to be dangerous and untrustworthy? Either way, they bring an energy to the story that will excite the reader and quicken the pace of your plot.

The Uncanny

Uncanny characters are the ones that are strangely familiar, ones that we can’t quite place yet stir something in us, a distant memory, an unsettling thought. Uncanny characters grip your readers, the fill them with intrigue. They bring a sense of mystery and disquiet that puts the reader on edge in an oddly pleasurable way.

The truth tellers

Truth tellers are those characters who tell us (the reader) things about ourselves that we always knew but had never really examined before. These truths can make us feel uncomfortable or completely understood. Either way, they are familiar yet enlightening, they are sensitive and easy to identify with – yet they experience things in such a way that we feel more powerful and strong once we’ve heard their stories.

Thinking about how to take your characters from those archetypal figures to those that are spellbinding and memorable is something every author should do. This way you’ll end up with a story that resonates more deeply with your reader, connects with them, and engages them with the action even more than before!

Bethany Cadman -author of ‘Doctor Vanilla’s Sunflowers’

The post The Not So Obvious Characters That Will Make Your Story Stand Out appeared first on Writer's Life.org.