Angela Ackerman's Blog: Writers Helping Writers, page 112

Occupation Thesaurus Entry: Rancher

Jobs are as important for our characters as they are for real people. A character’s career might be their dream job or one they’ve chosen due to necessity. In your story, they might be trying to get that job or are already working in the field. Whatever the situation, as with any defining aspect for your character, you’ll need to do the proper research to be able to write that career knowledgeably.

Enter the Occupation Thesaurus. Here, you’ll find important background information on a variety of career options for your character. In addition to the basics, we’ll also be covering related info that relates to character arc and story planning, such as sources of conflict (internal and external) and how the job might impact basic human needs, thereby affecting the character’s goals. It’s our hope that this thesaurus will share some of your research burden while also giving you ideas about your character’s occupation that you might not have considered before.

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Occupation: Owning and overseeing a large tract of land primarily used for growing livestock (sheep, cows, horses, alpacas, emus, etc.)

Overview: Ranchers are responsible for the day-to-day operations of running a ranch. Their duties may include choosing which livestock to raise, breeding the animals, feeding and watering them, seeing to their physical health, hiring and overseeing the necessary personnel, selling livestock, and maintaining the ranch’s physical structures. They may also choose to raise crops that can be used on the ranch, so as feed products for the animals.

Necessary Training: Many ranches are family-owned, and the necessary skills are taught from one generation to the next. An outsider entering this career field might sign on with an existing ranch to gain experience, or they could take over an existing ranch and hire skilled workers to do the manual labor.

Useful Skills, Talents, or Abilities: A knack for making money, a way with animals, basic first aid, carpentry, exceptional memory, farming, haggling, mechanically inclined, multitasking, predicting the weather, repurposing, sharpshooting, super strength, survival skills, whittling, wilderness navigation

Helpful Character Traits: Adaptable, adventurous, alert, ambitious, calm, cooperative, courageous, disciplined, focused, gentle, independent, mature, nature-focused, nurturing, observant, organized, patient, persistent, resourceful, sensible

Sources of Friction: An illness spreading through the herd, a disease spreading through the area that specifically attacks one’s livestock (such as an avian or porcine disease), a predator preying on the animals, poachers, one’s land being taken away (by the government, because of a highway going through, etc.), an accident befalling a careless worker, the animals being mistreated by workers, financial difficulties, a drought or famine, social or cultural changes that make one’s livestock or their byproducts undesirable (the Vegan lifestyle becoming more popular and making beef an unwanted commodity, studies being published that show that cheese is actually bad for you, etc.), strife between family members about how the ranch should be run, bad PR (word getting out that the ranch was acquired through unethical means, people protesting the treatment of one’s animals, etc.)

People They Might Interact With: ranch workers, family members who live on the ranch, veterinarians, farriers, inspectors, delivery people, breeders, customers seeking to buy the livestock or their byproducts

How This Occupation Might Impact One’s Basic Needs:

Self-Actualization: A character’s self-actualization might be affected if they’re working the farm out of a sense of duty, rather than because they really want to—if it was a family business, for instance.
Esteem and Recognition: A rancher’s esteem could take a hit if they’re really awful at certain aspects of job and are being shown up by their workers. Someone with a growth mindset would likely learn and grow from their employees, but a rancher who is more fixed could internalize his failures and begin to doubt his abilities.
Safety and Security: A situation impacting the rancher’s safety or security might be a disease that spreads easily between livestock and humans or a scenario in which once-docile animals become violent toward the people caring for them.
Physiological Needs: If one’s survival depends on the ranch’s success, a threat to that success could threaten their physiological needs, making it all-important for them to do well.

Common Work-Related Settings: Barn, campsite, country road, county fair, farm, farmer’s market, ghost town (old west), hunting cabin, meadow, mountains, old pick-up truck, orchard, pasture, pond, ranch, river, slaughterhouse, small town street

Twisting the Stereotype: Again, ranchers are typically portrayed as men. A woman rancher might be just the ticket for providing a twist on this stereotype. Also, because ranches are usually family-owned businesses, the people running them are typically familiar with the setting. What about someone from the outside taking over, or a group of ranches being run by a co-op?

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Raise the Stakes By Making It Personal

Compelling novels have many different ingredients that make them fascinating to read, but one standard components is a healthy, continual dose of ACTION. The protagonist is always doing something: weighing alternatives, choosing options, making decisions and then acting on them, good or bad.

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Sounds pretty straightforward, doesn’t it? We throw something at a character and they deal with it. Seize the day, steer their fate. The plot rolls ahead, filled with glorious momentum, with the character tackling challenge after challenge as the reader is carried breathlessly toward the story’s finish line.

Only…that’s not what happens.

Why? Because characters are stubborn. They fight action, fight decisions, fight change. Most would rather sit on the couch with a bag of potato chips as loud music blasts from the stereo speakers so they can pretend they don’t hear the author banging at the door.

What’s missing is Motivation. To act, a character must be motivated to do so, especially when danger is present, the odds are unfavorable, or the consequences are grave. No one willingly throws themselves into a fire. They need to have a reason to do so, especially when fear is involved.

Fear The Reaper (And A Lot More)

As people, we make associations with fear (most negative). We tend to avoid things that scare us—a psychological response common to us all. To create believable fiction, what happens in the real world should be mirrored in the fictional one, so we need to apply this same mindset to our characters.

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Fear comes in many flavors. In addition to specific fears the character has based on past negative experiences (backstory) such as a fear of the dark, fear of poverty, fear of abandonment, etc., there are universal fears that come onto play, like:

A fear of pain or injury
The fear of losing something (or someone) one cherishes
The fear of failure
A fear of losing oneself (identity)
The fear of change
The fear of death

Story catalysts (the “motivation” aspect of the Motivation-Reaction Units (MRU) can be positive or negative, and both can trigger fear. So when dread paralyzes action as effectively as a pair of cement boots, how do we get our characters to push past their fears and act?

We Raise The Stakes

Stakes are the consequences which will come about if your character does nothing. If the consequences seem far removed or more of an “inconvenience” than hardship, chances are, a protagonist will not be willing to step outside their comfort zone and get involved. But if the stakes are higher, and the consequences more dire or personal, then it pokes at a character’s moral soft spots, hitting them in the place where their strongest beliefs of right and wrong live.

The most effective way to raise the stakes is to personalize them to the protagonist in some way. One option is to use fear—more specifically, to activate a higher level of fear where doing nothing is worse than trying to do something despite the risk.

Fight Fear With Fear

If your protagonist fears failure…then have another character pay the price of failing. Nothing motivates someone faster than a loved one having to pay a steep price instead of the protagonist themselves.

If your protagonist fears losing something they cherish…have another suffer a loss undeservingly as a result if the hero or heroine does not succeed in their mission.

If your protagonist fears a loss of identity…have another be forced to sacrifice theirs as a consequence should the hero or heroine not step up and do what is right.

If your protagonist fears pain…create an end game scenario where another will suffer agony should the hero or heroine be unable to put themselves in the path of pain instead.

[image error]These are just a few examples, but there are many other ways to personalize stakes. Sometimes it can be helpful to have a list to brainstorm from, so we’ve created one at our other site, One Stop for Writers. Follow this link to download it, print, or share!

When you need your character to act, go through this list to see if there is a way to nudge their moral compass in the right direction.

And, if you want to see specific examples of stakes, visit One Stop for Writers’ Character Motivation Thesaurus, as we list possible stakes for every goal there’s an entry for!

What is your favorite way up raising the stakes? How have you used personal stakes to motivate your character? Let me know in the comments!

The post Raise the Stakes By Making It Personal appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

Garlic Breath For Writers (aka, Bad First Pages)

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“If you cannot write a compelling opening scene, from the opening sentence, I’m not going to finish your proposal.” – Agent, speaking at a recent writers conference

The opening page of your novel is your big introduction. It’s what an agent will read with most interest, to see if you can write (which is why page 1 is often the first thing read in your proposal. You may have spent 100 hours on a killer synopsis, 50 on an irresistible query, but if the writing itself is not up to snuff, the busy agent can save time by tossing the whole thing aside without reading the rest of the proposal).

Think of it this way. You are at a party and the man or woman of your dreams is across the room. The host offers to introduce you. You walk over. There is great anticipation, even from Dreamboat, who is there to meet people, too. So Dreamboat extends a hand, you take it, and say, “Nice to meet you.”

Only you have a horrendous case of garlic breath. Dreamboat winces, whips out a phone and walks quickly away, muttering, “I have to take this.”

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Well, that’s what it’s like for an agent reading your first page. He or she wants to like you, but if you’ve got garlic breath, it’s all over. Bad first impression. See you later.

I taught at a writers conference recently, where attendees were invited to submit the opening page of their manuscripts – anonymously. We then put these on two transparencies. The first one as is, the second I had marked up as a tough editor might.

It was quite educational. I got 12 first pages in all, and none were ready for prime time. There were several items that should be avoided at all costs on the first page. Here they are, in no particular order:

Characters Alone, Thinking

This was in the majority of the first pages I reviewed. We did not get a scene, which is a character in conflict with others in order to advance an agenda. We got, instead, the ruminations of the character as he/she reflects on something that just happened, or the state of his/her life at the moment, or some strong emotion. The author, in a mistaken attempt to establish reader sympathy with the character, gave us static information.

Such a page is DOA, even if the character is “doing” something innocuous, like preparing breakfast:

Marge Inersha tried to mix the pancake batter, but thoughts of Carl kept swirling in her head, taking her mind off breakfast and back to Tuesday, horrible Tuesday when the sheriff had served her with the divorce papers. Tears fell into the batter, but Marge was powerless to stop them. She put the mixing bowl on the counter and wiped her eyes. How much more could she take? With two kids sleeping upstairs?

Marge is certainly hurting, but you know what? I don’t care. I hate to be piggy about this, but I really don’t care that Marge is crying into her pancake batter. The mistake writers make is in thinking that readers will have immediate sympathy for a person who is upset.

They won’t. It’s like sitting at a bar and guy next to you grabs your sleeve and immediately starts pouring out his troubles to you.

Sorry, buddy, I don’t care. We all got troubles. What else is new?

Don’t give us a character like that on page 1.

Dreams

Agents and editors hate it when you open with a dream. And so do most readers. Because if they get invested in a cool opening, and then discover it’s all been a dream, they feel cheated. So you may have a gripping first page, but you’ll ruin the effect when the character awakens.

Yes, I know some bestselling authors have done this. When you start selling a gazillion copies, you can do it, too. Until then, you can’t.

Exposition Dump

In most of the first pages I reviewed there was entirely too much exposition. The author thinks that this is information the reader has to know in order to understand the character and the scene.

In truth, readers need to know very little to get into the story. They will wait a long time for explanations and backstory if the action is gripping, essential, tense or disturbing. My rule, ever since I began writing and teaching, is act first, explain later.

This rule will serve you amazingly well your entire writing career.

Weather Without Character

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Another complaint you’ll hear from editors and agents is about “weather openings.” This is a catch all phrase for generic description. Chip MacGregor, agent, described his opening pet peeve this way: “The [adjective] [adjective] sun rose in the [adjective] [adjective] sky, shedding its [adjective] light across the [adjective] [adjective] [adjective] land.”

If you’re gong to describe weather on the opening page, make sure you’ve established a character on whom the weather is acting. And make sure that character is not alone, thinking.

Point of View Confusion

Another big error was a confusion about Point of View. This comes in several guises.

We don’t have a strong POV character. Who does this scene belong to?
We “head hop” between different characters on the same page, losing focus.
We have the terrible sin of “collective POV.” That is, we get a description of two or more characters who think or perceive the same thing at the same time: John and Mary ran from the gang, wondering where they were going to go next. The 300 Spartans turned and saw the Persians approaching.
We have First Person narration without a compelling voice. First Person needs attitude.
We don’t have a POV at all until the second or third paragraph. We have description, but no idea who is perceiving it. We need that information right away.

There you have it! A load of breath mints for your opening pages. Let the meet-and-greet begin!

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Jim is the author of the #1 bestseller for writers, Plot & Structure, and numerous thrillers, including, Romeo’s Rules, Try Dying and Don’t Leave Me. His popular books on fiction craft can be found here. His thrillers have been called “heart-whamming” (Publishers Weekly) and can be browsed here. Find out more about Jim on our Resident Writing Coach page, and connect with him online.

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Occupation Thesaurus Entry: Corrections Officer

Jobs are as important for our characters as they are for real people. A character’s career might be their dream job or one they’ve chosen due to necessity. In your story, they might be trying to get that job or are already working in the field. Whatever the situation, as with any defining aspect for your character, you’ll need to do the proper research to be able to write that career knowledgeably.

Enter the Occupation Thesaurus. Here, you’ll find important background information on a variety of career options for your character. In addition to the basics, we’ll also be covering related info that relates to character arc and story planning, such as sources of conflict (internal and external) and how the job might impact basic human needs, thereby affecting the character’s goals. It’s our hope that this thesaurus will share some of your research burden while also giving you ideas about your character’s occupation that you might not have considered before.

[image error]Occupation: Corrections Officer (Prison Guard)

Overview: a corrections officer works in a prison, guarding inmates serving out their sentences, ensuring they are afforded their legal rights while obeying facility rules and local laws. They rotate through different assignments, staffing different areas including the gatehouse, observation towers, unit deployments (accommodation wings, infirmary, recreation area, etc.). Some positions are very hands-on (such as new prisoner intakes, which require pat downs and inmate paperwork, escorting prisoners, and monitoring pod areas as prisoners engage in daily activities such as card-playing and TV watching). Other assignments include monitoring controls, running headcounts, room checks for contraband, and overseeing paperwork. They also may assist with vocational training for prisoners, helping them to make the best time of their incarceration both for personal wellness and to help them integrate with society upon release, and help inmates address behavioral issues that are tied to their offenses.

Correctional officers are responsible for the safety and rights of the inmates under their care as well as the safety of their fellow officers. Working in a prison is much different than portrayed on the screen, although no less dangerous. They may have to respond to fights, medical emergencies, and other incidents and know what to do in each situation, displaying complete authority. Despite needing to adhere to the same restricted spaces and routines as prisoners and the boredom that can result, correctional officers must remain alert and aware, which can be both physically and mentally draining. Inmates constantly test officers to determine any weak points, especially if the guard is someone new to them. They try to find out what gets under their skin, what bothers them, how to distract them, and where the lines are. Maintaining discipline by remaining professional, adhering to protocol, following through on one’s word, and treating everyone equally will allow your character to command respect and establish a functional level of rapport.

Working in an environment where people lie consistently and they have done a variety of unconscionable crimes can lead your character to adopt a jaded or darker viewpoint, especially and it can be a challenge to stay above it by treating each prisoner equally regardless of their crimes. Depending on the jail environment (level of security, type of prisoners, the support of management, etc.) this career can lead to burn out. Officers able to hold to a calling of modeling good behavior to inmates in the hopes of making an impact and rehabilitation stand the best chance of keeping a healthy and balanced mental state.

Necessary Training: Non-federal prison require a high school diploma or a completed general equivalency diploma, while federal prisons require a bachelor’s degree or three years of counseling and supervising others. Officers must also pass background checks and both a mental and physical health assessment.

New hires are usually placed in an academy and then also continue with on the job training. In addition to comprehensive education in facility procedures, institutional policies, and legal restrictions, officers receive training in firearms, learn self-defense, and are taught how to restrain, disarm, and neutralize prisoner threats.  If an officer is part of a tactical response unit they will be trained in how to respond to riots, hostage-taking, and any other dangerous situation that may occur. Training is usually ongoing, both to continually hone their skills and to keep them updated as new procedures and policies take effect.

Useful Skills, Talents, or Abilities: A knack for languages, basic first aid, blending in, enhanced hearing, enhanced sense of smell, esp (clairvoyance), exceptional memory, gaining the trust of others, good listening skills, haggling, high pain tolerance, lip-reading, making people laugh, photographic memory, reading people, self-defense, sharpshooting, strategic thinking, super strength, survival skills, swift-footedness, wrestling

Helpful Character Traits: alert, analytical, bold, centered, confident, cooperative, courageous, courteous, diplomatic, disciplined, focused, honorable, just, observant, organized, persistent, persuasive, proactive, professional, responsible, tolerant

Sources of Friction: trying to manage friction between gangs, overcrowding issues, poor quality of living leading to volatile prisoners, prison rapes and attacks, a drug problem, discovering inappropriate conduct between a guard an a prisoner, a corrections officer who is unreliable, family problems due to shift work and frustration at work being brought home, disagreeing with a fellow officer’s way of managing prisoners (too permissive, abusive, playing favorites, etc.), witnessing a bribe, breaking up altercations between prisoners, a riot, a murder, an attempted hostage-taking, being accused of misconduct, seeing injustice (such as prisoners with untreated mental illness going untreated in general population)

People They Might Interact With: prisoners, prison staff, administration, the warden, psychologists, doctors and nurses, police officers, investigators, FBI, visitors, lawyers, delivery people

How This Occupation Might Impact One’s Basic Needs:

Self-Actualization: Because this work is mentally taxing and can drain one’s spirit, it is easy to adopt a jaded, negative worldview. This could prevent the character from fulfilling a life pursuit that has personal meaning or even seeing society at large as being worthy of working toward something better or higher.


Love and Belonging: shift work and overtime can impact one’s ability to keep family relationships strong, or make time for loving relationships


Safety and Security: prisoners can be deceptive, violent, and have nothing to lose, so working as a jail guard means a constant risk to one’s safety, especially in pod situations where one guard may be responsible for watching nearly fifty prisoners.


Physiological Needs: becoming overwhelmed during a riot or attempted hostage situation would mean an immediate risk to one’s life

Common Work-Related Settings: ambulance, break room, courtroom, hospital room, juvenile detention center, morgue, police car, police station, prison cell

The post Occupation Thesaurus Entry: Corrections Officer appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

Three Ways The Setting Can Steer Your Story’s Plot

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The setting is a powerful force. Not only does it evoke mood, create tension and conflict, allow you to share critical backstory in a non-dumpy way, and draw readers deeper into the story through powerful sensory detail…it can also steer your plot.

If you’re a pantser who likes to go where the wind takes you, or you struggle a bit with plotting, this is great news! After all, we know every scene needs to further the story, but sometimes we draw a blank on how to best do that.

Using the setting to help power your plot is a great way to add depth. Not only can it influence the outer story’s direction, it also will help push the character’s inner journey (character arc) forward. Here are a few ways to achieve this.

Obstacles & Roadblocks

As writers, we should always know our character’s goal within a scene—to obtain information, gain the upper hand, secure something of importance, etc.—and then make sure achievement never comes easy. Yes, we provide friction. Encourage the protagonist to struggle. We force them to work hard to get what they want, and we do this, over and over, scene after scene. Sure, it’s a bit evil of us. But that tension and conflict it creates? That’s what keeps our readers turning pages!

[image error]One of the best ways to place a barrier between what the character wants and them getting it is to incorporate an obstacle or roadblock. This forces the protagonist to think on his feet, adapt, or try a new direction.

Every location we choose for our story will come with inherent dangers and possible complications. An obstacle in our character’s path could be as simple as a carpet strewn with Lego as your heroine tries to sneak out of her lover’s home before his kids wake up. It could be a security guard patrolling a warehouse the hero need to break into, a car that won’t turn over when he’s late for an appointment, or a contaminated stream he drinks from while hiking that makes him violently ill. The setting obstacle we choose will make life more difficult and pose a risk, forcing them to be more cautious.

A road block means the protagonist literally can’t proceed as expected. It might come in the form of a washed-out bridge between himself and his destination, pirates patrolling a seafaring trade route he’s always traveled, or a locked door keeping him from what he needs most. Roadblocks and obstacles both force the protagonist to make a choice about how to move forward, steering the events to come.

Emotional Triggers

[image error]One beautiful thing we can do with any setting is to “seed” it with emotional triggers. These triggers are symbols which are important to the protagonist in some way, influencing what he thinks, feels, and does.

For example, imagine our protagonist is faced with a difficult decision: to accept a high paying dream job that requires almost constant travel, or pass up the job offer in hopes that the relationship he is currently in will eventually lead to marriage and a family. As he wrestles with this choice, perhaps he takes a lunchtime walk through a park located across from his office building.

If we seed the park with certain triggers such as a busy playground, a young couple pushing a newborn in a stroller, or even a wedding photography session unfolding against a swirling backdrop of fall colors, his heart will focus on his longings to put down roots and start a family. But, choose different triggers, such as a pair of businessmen in power suits discussing multi-million dollar deals as they stroll along the pathway, a line of expensive sports cars parked at the sidewalk, or a colorful poster at a bus stop shelter advertising luxury travel, and the character’s thoughts and actions will go in a different direction.

These setting triggers lead to emotional decision-making and the actions that result will change the story’s trajectory.

Challenges that Characterize

A third way to steer the plot is to use the setting to provide challenges that will lead to success or failure. Whichever is the result, the protagonist will be forced to look within and take stock of his or her strengths and weaknesses. Challenges are useful when it comes to a character’s inner journey, as by default, succeeding or failing influences the story’s direction and the necessary pathway to inner growth (character arc).

For example, let’s say you have a character who has a drinking problem. Lately, it’s become dire, and after his wife leaves him, he decides to get clean. Newly sober, you could test whether he is truly committed to turning his life around simply by placing him in a setting that includes a challenge: easy access to alcohol.

[image error]Perhaps the setting is a restaurant where his boss is hosting a retirement dinner, or he’s invited to travel to Vegas for a bachelor party. Or maybe the setting you choose is the pub he passes on his walk home every day. Then, it’s up to you. Does he walk past, or go in? Does he decline the Vegas invite to avoid temptation, or convince himself he deserves one last crazy weekend? Does he drink soda at the retirement dinner, or take advantage of the open bar?

Succeed or fail, in this challenging situation, something will be revealed about the character’s strengths or weaknesses to readers, and the plot will shift accordingly. This might lead to a new opportunity or fallout…you decide!

Are You Using Setting Fully?

[image error]Settings are powerful, so much more than a “backdrop” for the scene to unfold. Yes, they provide a sensory opportunity to ground the reader, but they can also do so much more.  Make sure you are using each location to its full advantage so it can electrify each story moment with meaning and depth. If you need help, our Urban and Rural Thesaurus books have 220 different settings between them and can show you how to master setting description.

Or view this thesaurus’ expanded version (245 locations and growing!) at One Stop for Writers.

The post Three Ways The Setting Can Steer Your Story’s Plot appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

Critiques 4 U!

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Happy almost March, everyone! There are a lot of things about life that drive me a little bonkers—so much so that I often need to remind myself of the good stuff that’s happening. Snow days wreak havoc on my work routine, but I love the excitement and joy they bring to my kids. The cold weather is getting a little old by the end of February, but it makes spring that much more satisfying when it rolls around. So take a minute today to look at the bright side and be reminded of the good things in life. Like free critiques, for example…

CRITIQUES 4 U!

If you’re working on a first page and would like some objective feedback, please leave a comment that includes: 

1) your email address. Some of you have expressed concern about making your email address public; if you’re sure that the email address associated with your WordPress account is correct, you don’t have to include it here. But if you do win and I’m unable to contact you through that email address, I’ll have to choose an alternate winner.

2) your story’s genre (no erotica, please)

Also, please be sure your first page is ready to go so I can critique it before next month’s contest rolls around. If it needs some work and you won’t be able to get it to me right away, I’d like to ask that you plan on entering the next contest, once any necessary tweaking has been taken care of.

Occupation Thesaurus Entry: Architect

Jobs are as important for our characters as they are for real people. A character’s career might be their dream job or one they’ve chosen due to necessity. In your story, they might be trying to get that job or are already working in the field. Whatever the situation, as with any defining aspect for your character, you’ll need to do the proper research to be able to write that career knowledgeably.

Enter the Occupation Thesaurus. Here, you’ll find important background information on a variety of career options for your character. In addition to the basics, we’ll also be covering related info that relates to character arc and story planning, such as sources of conflict (internal and external) and how the job might impact basic human needs, thereby affecting the character’s goals. It’s our hope that this thesaurus will share some of your research burden while also giving you ideas about your character’s occupation that you might not have considered before.

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Occupation: Architect

Overview: An architect is responsible for designing physical structures, such as homes, office buildings, shopping centers, religious buildings, factories, and bridges. They design not only for function and safety but with an eye for design, as well.

Necessary Training: An college degree in architecture is required to pursue this career. You must also acquire a license to practice from the local state or municipality, which is granted upon completion of an internship and an examination. This is the training necessary in the US, but requirements differ from place to place, so research this aspect of the job carefully.

Useful Skills, Talents, or Abilities: Multitasking, strategic thinking

Helpful Character Traits: Ambitious, analytical, confident, cooperative, creative, diplomatic, disciplined, focused, honorable, meticulous, organized, passionate, patient,  persuasive, professional, responsible, studious, talented

Sources of Friction: Indecisive clients who keep changing their minds, having to jump through bureaucratic hoops in regard to licensing and permissions, nitpicky inspectors, a worker being hurt or killed on the job, the structure one has built being faulty and injuring the inhabitants, being given an assignment that conflicts with one’s moral beliefs (building a strip club, drawing up plans for a known mafia boss’s home, etc.), one’s workers taking shortcuts that compromise the safety of the project, workplace politics, being passed over for a promotion, fighting for a specific project and losing to an inferior co-worker, having a client whose design aesthetic or preferences are very different from one’s own, being unable to collect money from the client to cover expenses

People They Might Interact With: other architects, construction workers and contractors, clients, inspectors, licensing and permitting officials, interior designers, landscape designers

How This Occupation Might Impact One’s Basic Needs:

Self-Actualization: Many architects enter the profession hoping to work in a certain field, but that desire doesn’t always pan out, and they end up doing more generic work. In this case, the job may be unfulfilling and boring, simply supplying a paycheck instead of providing the satisfaction they once dreamed of.
Esteem and Recognition: An architect who is unable to distinguish himself (due to being given uninspiring projects, being surrounded by architects who are more talented or creative, or through personal doubt and insecurity) may begin to miss the esteem of his colleagues or the community.
Safety and Security: Construction sites are high-risk places and are rife for accidents if workers aren’t paying close attention. An architect who experienced an injury on the job might find it difficult to return to the site and do his best work there.

Common Work-Related Settings: Break room, construction site, elevator, office cubicle, parking garage, parking lot, waiting room

Twisting the Stereotype: Historically, architects were male; this stereotype is changing, but it’s good to keep in mind, and get the women involved in this career. It’s common for architects to become associated with a certain kind of structure or building. Why not get your architect involved in a less common kind of project or aesthetic, like amusement parks, or someone who specializes in medieval design?

The post Occupation Thesaurus Entry: Architect appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

Want Memorable Characters? Focus on the Little Things

I love building characters. In fact, “building” is apt, because for me, they come a piece at a time. A brick or two might lock into place as I wrestle with that hateful night demon, Insomnia. Another may manifest with morning coffee or as I scarf down a non-food pyramid approved lunch. But slowly—oh, so slowly—the pieces come. That half-glimpsed figure sliding along the edge of my imagination packs on winter weight, and becomes someone interesting, special, and worth rooting for.

[image error]It’s common to pay close attention to the big ticket items when character building: personality (those positive and negative traits), physicality (physical features), worldview (morals, beliefs, biases, attitudes) and of course backstory, which leads to the most important piece of all: motivation. Knowing what unmet need the painful past has created tells us what drives the character, and toward what: the perfect goal that will fill this unmet need.

These big pieces lead to medium ones: the character’s emotional range and behavior, their skills and talents, their relationships, and how they communicate.

Once these blocks are set though, some writers get impatient–they want to write. So other aspects (a character’s occupation, their likes & dislikes, interests, secrets, quirks, hobbies, etc.) are rushed as the writer goes with whatever seems “good enough.” After all, these are small bits. They don’t matter much…right?

But here’s the thing…they do.

Little details play a big role: they make a character human.

Readers want to connect to a character who feels real. Someone they could sit and have a beer with. Someone who is, just maybe, a little bit like them.

Lately I’ve been working on One Stop for Writers’ idea generator (specifically creating more options for hobbies, a perfect example of “smaller details”).  The idea generator offers a brainstorming nudge if it is needed, and when it comes to hobbies, we want writers think past the stock choices and instead choose an interest that gives the character depth, making them memorable.

As I was adding new hobbies to that generator, I wanted to make sure I was supplying a good range of choices. So, I created categories for the different types:

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Focused Interest
Collecting
Animal-Related
Advocacy & Community
Skill & Knowledge
Intellectual
Creative
Food-Related
Sports & Active Lifestyle
Adventure & Thrill-Seeking
Strategy & Invention

These cover a variety of possible hobbies, and hopefully will allow writers to find a match that will show readers something specific and interesting about the character.

For example, a thrill-seeker might choose street racing, going on shark dives, or searching for paranormal activity as a hobby.  The type of person into these things would be someone very different than say, a character who performs random acts of kindness (advocacy & community), handles poisonous creatures (animal-related), or likes to enter eating challenges (food-related).

But then I started to think about hobbies that aren’t mainstream. This led to 3 more categories: Unusual, Disturbing, & Illegal

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Now we’re cooking with gas! After all, your anti-hero, antagonist, or villain can have a hobby. It provides the same valuable opportunity to characterize them. And if that hobby gets them into trouble at the worst possible time? Even better.

Bottom Line: Hobbies Are More Than Stage Dressing!

1)  They Characterize. How someone chooses to spend their time says a lot about them. If they put their energy into a particular interest, it can show their level of intelligence, other skills or talents they possess, and even indicate what beliefs, morals, and values the character holds dear.  Does your character hunt with a rifle, or a camera? Do they collect artifacts to preserve history, or do they think forward, looking to invent the next trend, style, or big thing?

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2)  They Add Dimension. It’s easy to get tunnel vision when it comes to the protagonist and the antagonist by making everything be about the goal at hand. But by paying attention to the smaller things (especially in the opening of a novel), you actually make the characters feel more human, and that makes them more accessible to readers, helping them better slip into the character’s reality. Think about it like a save the cat moment, but rather than going for likeability, you’re taking an opportunity to round the character out, showing that they have interests and passions just like anyone else.

3)  They Make Someone Seem More Real — A Work-In-Progress. It is very easy to make certain characters (like the story’s hero or heroine) super skilled so readers admire them and they will have what it takes to achieve their goal. But if we go too far, characters cease to be realistic. I mean, are you good at everything? Me neither. And readers are the same. Showing a character trying to master the learning curve (and even fail at something) shows they are just like anyone else. Becoming good at something, even a hobby, takes time.

4)  They Can Contribute To The Story.  A hobby or interest is something you can bring into the plot to further events. Maybe their hobby will factor into how they solve a big obstacle in their path: a blind neighbor they read to is the only person in a position to help the character escape an abusive marriage, or the investigative skills they’ve learned by digging up their ancestry becomes the key to finding the evidence that proves they are being framed for murder. When it comes to character building details, maximize everything.

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5)  They Can Hint That Something Is Off. Hobbies can also indicate a character’s dark side. If your friendly high school math teacher surfs the dark web…why is that? Or if their interest in people-watching leads them to set up webcams in public places (and then not-so-public places) do they realize they have crossed a line? Interests can become hobbies…and hobbies can become obsessions. What happens when your character realizes they are no longer in control?

Whether you are planning a big character piece or a small one, all details should be chosen with care. Make them meaningful, not random. This is how we master subtext, show & tell, and create characters that feel human.

Mapping Your Story’s Setting

[image error]As writers, we do our best to know our story’s setting as intimately as we know our characters. We can visualize the buildings, rooms, and geographic landscape. Maybe we even know the climate well enough to feel its heat or cold, driving rains, or windblown snow. But if you were actually dropped into the setting, would you be able to navigate from your protagonist’s home to another character’s – without accidentally changing direction more than once in the manuscript?

Don’t worry. Not every writer thinks of this when they begin a rough draft, much less decide on a story’s setting. However, knowing how to get around in that setting is incredibly important, for both you and your readers. So how can you keep place-related details straight and avoid making mistakes in the text? By creating a map of your setting.

This recently happened to me as I was working on my WIP, which takes place primarily on a fictional college campus. At one point, when the protagonist was walking from her dormitory to one of the academic buildings, I asked myself, “Which way does she need to walk to get there?” That prompted a host of other questions, like “What is the name of that academic building?”, “How close is the library?”, and “What does she see when she drives from her dorm to the campus’s front entrance?”.

The following night, instead of writing, I drew a campus map, with everything you’d likely find at a small college, down to the parking lots and street names. It’s no masterpiece, but I’m grateful I took the time to make it. In fact (*deep breath*), I think I’ll even share a photo of it here:

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Did I have fun making this map? You bet. But did indulging my curiosity serve a purpose? Absolutely. And if you’re writing about a fictional setting, including one inspired by a real-life location, you might want to consider mapping yours as well.

The Benefits of Mapping Your Story’s Setting

Even for writers who aren’t artistically inclined, the benefits of mapping a story’s setting outnumber (and outweigh) any drawbacks. A setting map can help you:

Remember the location and names of important places and objects of interest within the setting
Determine which way characters travel to get from Point A to Point B, as well as the distance between those points
Maintain consistency of names and directions in the story, and thus avoid confusing readers (and yourself)
Better understand the role of topographical features (or natural elements that often appear in maps, such as hills / mountains, coasts, bodies of water, and forests) in the setting
Make your vision of the setting more concrete, rather than keeping it all in your head

That last bullet underscores the most important reason for creating this kind of map: It makes the setting more real. By committing these details to paper, you’ve also committed to knowing the setting deeply. Then you can apply that knowledge to the story so that readers can feel like they’re driving the same roads or following the same sidewalks as your characters.

Seven Pointers for Creating a Map of Your Setting

As interesting as it might sound to draw a map of your setting, it’s important to approach the process carefully. In fact, before putting pencil to paper, you should already have an idea of what readers will find in the place you’re about to sketch. So here are the steps I took before and during my mapmaking process. Maybe this method will work for you, too.

Research real-life maps before you get started. First, I studied campus maps of real colleges in my local area (including my alma mater) that are about the same size in acreage and student population as my fictional college. This helped me decide how to structure my map and what features (buildings, streets, parking lots, etc.) it should include.
Determine the number of features. Knowing how many of each feature you’ll need can prevent unintentional overcrowding on your map. I already had a rough estimate of the college’s student population, so I used that number (as well as the statistics I’d found during my research of local colleges) to figure out a reasonable number of academic buildings, dormitories, and other structures.
Start small. If you’ve never created a map before, it might be overwhelming to start with a large are like a country or continent. Instead, focus on a smaller area such as a town, state, or other immediate region where the events of your story will take place. You can even draw a floor plan of a house or other building, if that’s more appropriate.
Gather your tools. Use pencils instead of pens, and have a pencil sharpener and a good eraser handy. That way, if you make any mistakes, they’re easy to remove.

Occupation Thesaurus Entry: Personal Assistant

Jobs are as important for our characters as they are for real people. A character’s career might be their dream job or one they’ve chosen due to necessity. In your story, they might be trying to get that job or are already working in the field. Whatever the situation, as with any defining aspect for your character, you’ll need to do the proper research to be able to write that career knowledgeably.

Enter the Occupation Thesaurus. Here, you’ll find important background information on a variety of career options for your character. In addition to the basics, we’ll also be covering related info that relates to character arc and story planning, such as sources of conflict (internal and external) and how the job might impact basic human needs, thereby affecting the character’s goals. It’s our hope that this thesaurus will share some of your research burden while also giving you ideas about your character’s occupation that you might not have considered before.

[image error]Occupation: Personal Assistant (to a celebrity)

Overview: A personal assistant is required to perform a variety of duties at the whim of their employer, many of which will be industry-specific to the type of work their employer is involved in. For this entry, we will look at an assistant to a celebrity, but personal assistants may also work for politicians, diplomats, CEOs, best-selling authors, entertainment industry executives, fashion designers, royalty, professional sport personalities, leaders and important members of any industry, or any person (and often their family members) who has a great deal of wealth, power, or influence (or all three).

An assistant for a celebrity will be required to be “on call” and to perform many types of tasks (scheduling appearances, organizing events, attending to social media, collecting work-related materials, planning travel, couriering more sensitive personal documents or important items, melding the celebrity’s personal and professional calendar, and coordinating with other key personnel such as the nanny, personal trainers, hair stylists, make up artists, fashion consultants, the celebrity’s agent, etc.). Some tasks are mere errands, running from the mundane (walking the dog, shuttling the celebrity’s children, picking up their dry cleaning) to the unusual or outrageous (securing a phone number of someone the celebrity is interested in, obtaining a candy or coffee from another country, convincing a restaurant owner to open after they’ve closed for a private dinner, being a personal shopper, buying and delivering gifts (to grease the wheels and keep the celebrity’s brand strong), and even purchasing high-end items at the bequest of the celebrity (jewelry, art, vehicles, etc.).

Assistants must be fierce advocates of their employer, ensuring their every need is met whether they are at home, traveling, or getting ready to perform or be interviewed. Celebrities don’t make requests–they make demands, and each, regardless of how easy or hard it is, must be done immediately. Having a personal life is difficult as the assistant’s time is rarely their own; they run on the same professional schedule as their celebrity, attending the same events and traveling when they travel. They will carry several different phones (a primary and a back up) and be expected to respond immediately regardless of the time of day or night, and attend to every request.

Assistants can often become confidants and secret keepers, so they witness not only the high moments, but the low ones. Some may have to cover up or minimize the fallout of their celebrity’s actions, be asked to procure things that are illegal, cross personal moral lines or do things that make them uncomfortable, and perhaps even pay people off to fix problems that crop up. For this reason, assistants usually are forced to sign non-disclosure agreements that forbid them from discussing their relationship with the celebrity. The strain of being constantly available and the high expectations of this job often lead to anxiety and burnout. There’s a lot of turnover despite the perks of travel, clothing allowances, access to influential people and exclusive events, along with financial compensation.

Necessary Training: While no official degree is required to become a personal assistant, connections in the industry can help one procure a job. A character seeking this type of job should have a strong command of social media, know their celebrity’s industry inside and out, have their finger on the pulse of trends and gossip within the celebrity’s realm, and be very comfortable with organizing and multi-tasking. They must also be a creative problem-solver, as some of the things they will be asked to do will require ingenuity to complete, and not coming through on a demand will lead to a very short career. Having a strong network of people who are facilitators (“I know a guy”) is key, and so the assistant must have strong connections in this area, or be willing to build a network of people quickly.

Useful Skills, Talents, or Abilities: A knack for languages, blending in, charm, empathy, enhanced hearing, esp (clairvoyance), exceptional memory, gaining the trust of others, good listening skills, haggling, hospitality, lip-reading, lying, making people laugh, mentalism, multitasking, photographic memory, predicting the weather, promotion, reading people, sewing, strategic thinking, swift-footedness, writing

Helpful Character Traits: Adaptable, adventurous,alert, ambitious,  bold, calm, charming, confident, cooperative, courteous, creative, decisive, diplomatic, disciplined, discreet, efficient, extroverted, friendly, hospitable, imaginative, intelligent, loyal, mature, meticulous, obedient, observant, organized, patient, persuasive, proactive, professional, protective, resourceful, responsible, sophisticated, tolerant

Sources of Friction: Dealing with an impossible request, being asked to do something illegal or immoral to fulfill a request, being unfairly treated because the celebrity is upset and the assistant is “safe” to lash out at, a celebrity that crossing the line to make inappropriate advances, being blamed for something the celebrity did to save them face, being approached by another celebrity to work for them, an injury or illness that interferes with one’s ability to perform duties, discovering something disturbing about the celebrity’s friends and being asked to participate in a cover up, being forced to trade one’s personal life for the celebrity’s narcissistic needs (having to cancel an attendance of a son’s piano recital because one’s celebrity demands one remain in one’s hotel suite in case the celebrity wants food delivered when she gets back from a spa treatment).

People They Might Interact With: the celebrity’s family, agent, and friends, various other handlers or advisors (a personal trainer, nutritionist, therapist, doctors, nannies, coaches, tutors, drivers, managers, etc.), travel specialists, hotel management and staff, venue staff, green room managers, industry executives, other celebrities and their assistants, business owners and managers, a network of “professional gophers” in different countries who can procure anything one needs there, fans, club owners, fashion designers, photographers, paparazzi, artists, people of importance who run in the same circles

How This Occupation Might Impact One’s Basic Needs:

Self-Actualization: A character who is so caught up in this profession may never be able to take the time to pursue their own passions and dreams.


Love and Belonging: In this career, one’s personal life will always be sacrificed for the needs of one’s employer. Family who don’t understand the commitment needed for this career (or resent it), or a lack of personal relationships due to having no time of energy for them can cause the character to long for caring, loving relationships that include acceptance where one can be imperfect, yet still cherished and valued.


Safety and Security: Being closely tied to a celebrity could be dangerous as many have fans who are rabidly devoted. These fans, and those who are certified stalkers, may go to any length to obtain access or information on the celebrity, including inflict harm.

Common Work-Related Settings: airplane, airport, art gallery, ballroom, bank, bar, big city street, black-tie event, boardroom, casino, casual dining restaurant, coffeehouse, cruise ship, elevator, fitness center, flower shop, green room, hair salon, hotel room, jewelry store, kitchen, laundromat, limousine, liquor store, living room, man cave, mansion, marina, movie theater, museum, nightclub, nursery, outdoor pool, parking garage, parking lot, patio deck, penthouse suite, performing arts theater, race track (horses), ranch, recording studio, rock concert, shopping mall, ski resort, spa, sporting event stands, subway train, taxi, therapist’s office, trendy mall clothing store, tropical island, upscale hotel lobby, Vegas stage show, waiting room, wedding reception, winery,  yacht

Twisting the Stereotype:

personal assistants are often relatives or friends of the celebrity. Why not bring someone from the celebrity’s past who was a rival, but happens to be the best assistant in the business?


personal assistants are expected to get what their celebrity wants, no matter what it is and what they need to do to get it. Rather than showing your assistant as someone who will bully to get what they need, why not have someone who has another type of leverage (they are famous themselves, perhaps connected to royalty, or they know so many secrets about people in the industry no one will cross them in fear of backlash, or they simply have a way with people and are able to persuade people no matter how resistant they may be when first asked for a favor.
what about a personal assistant that was a celebrity who fell from grace, who is now seeking a way to get back into the business, or access to the business in order to discover who was the cause of her downfall (and to get revenge)?

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