Briana Vedsted's Blog, page 37

The Shine On Award

First of all, thank you so much to the amazing author, Mr. Charles Yallowitz, at http://legendsofwindemere.com/ for nominating me for this inspirational award! This is one that I’ve had my eye on for awhile and I am so excited to finally get it!

The Shine On Award Rules:

Link back to and thank the blogger who nominated you.
Post the badge on your blog.
Answer the questions posed to you.
Nominate five bloggers who shine a little light in your day and notify them.
Ask five questions for your nominees.

Questions to be Answered:

 Who or what inspires you to write and/or blog? My wild and crazy imagination is what inspires my writing and my blog is inspired by me wishing to help and inspire others (wonder if I’m having any luck with that…)
At this present moment, what would be your life’s theme song? That is a really hard question! I think I’ll go with “Every Storm (Runs out of Rain)” by Gary Allan because I always have to remind myself, no matter how bad things get, they’ll always get better.
What was your most precious toy as a child? Do you still have it? A small white poodle named Fuffy. And yes, I still have her.
What is the worst movie you ever saw? Did you walk out? Ulzana’s Raid. No, I didn’t walk out: I watched the whole thing but I will never watch it again. I think it’s the most horrible western ever made!
What is the first thing you see if you turn around? An electric piano keyboard on an antique desk.

Questions from Me:

1. What color most represents your personality?

2. What is the last thing you cooked?

3.  What is the last book you read, and did you enjoy it?

4. Do rainy days make you happy or sad?

5. Where is one place you’ve always wanted to go, but have never managed to find the time to get away?

 

Nominations:

http://chichikir.wordpress.com

http://jaimeguerard.wordpress.com

http://youngwomanstory.wordpress.com

http://ofglassandbooks.wordpress.com

http://shannonathompson.com/

Can your characters speak to you?

When I read this, I though, Finally! Here is someone else who thinks that characters can sometimes take over a story without the author’s permission! (It has happened to me too many times to count.)

Re-blogged from: http://andrewtoynbee.wordpress.com/

Characters that can write their own stories

This is a debate that will probably rage forever.

I have encountered the discussion / argument a few times and sadly, I am forced to agree with both sides of the arguement – never a happy position.

source; Crirez – Stock.Xchng

One writer commented;  ’Think about how ridiculous that sounds – someone you’ve invented in your own head decides that he is now going to refuse to run into a burning building.  You, the writer, decides what he will and will not do.’

My argument (whilst agreeing with the technical explanation above) is that at some point it may feel completely wrong for a character (with a given personality) to be forced to perform an action – unnatural, even, no matter how much the First Draft required it.  And if it feels wrong to the writer, it will almost certainly feel wrong to a reader.  So the character is showing his…well character…and ‘protesting’ that what the writer is asking him to do is…out of character.

This is an extract from ProcrastinatingWriters on the very same subject;

Jennifer said;

How would you suggest a writer learn more about what their characters want? I often hear writers say their characters “wrote” the story for them. My writing doesn’t unfold like that. I come up with everything–not my characters. I’d be interested to hear how you suggest someone allow their characters to take the lead.

My reply;

My characters often take over scenes and need frequent reining in. I know many writers don’t believe this can happen (I admit that it does sound a bit daft! But it happens.) but I believe it might stem from having created strong characters (or at least well-established ones) with clear motives.

When I’m in Muse mode, writing dialogue, a character can leave the well-chosen track and head down a different road altogether. By the time my fingers have stopped moving, the new conversation is already underway. I am then faced with a choice; Hit Delete or go with the new coversation and see where the chat leads. If it’s relevant, or new and exciting, I stay with it. If it leads me down a dead-end, I won’t scrap it entirely, but Cut and Paste it into my Recycling area – from where I may retrieve it later. That bit of dialogue might even inspire a new chapter, idea or complete novel.

So allow your characters some freedom within the story and they might just surprise you by doing something unexpected – something you’d never normally have plotted. Whatever they do, it’ll be within character (it has to be for this theory to be valid).

I also found this entry on Fiction Factor;

Have you ever been writing a story only to have a minor character try to take over? Okay, so they aren’t real and they can’t really do that, but sometimes it seems like they have a mind of their own.

Larry Brooks says;

Your characters will begin to talk to you.

Ah, the mantra of the pantser.  Waiting for the completely fictional construct of your imagination to take over the story.

This is like asking your nine year old to drive so you can enjoy the scenery.

If you have to wait until the character figures out what’s required in the story before you do, then your story is already broken.

Because the story isn’t completely and solely about the character.  It’s also about the narrative landscape upon which a drama unfolds – conflict and tension – which may not yet be fully realized within the character’s perception.

Like a nine year old who can’t see over the dashboard.

All valid points, Larry.

However, I heard this from Carole Barrowman (Professor of English and Director of Creative Studies in Writing) on Monday 17th Sept 2012.  She was on BBC radio with her brother John Barrowman (yes, him!) discussing the latest Dr Who novel they had written.

She said; “It’s surprising the routes that the characters can take your story down.”

Evidence of characters guiding the story?  I think so, Larry.

When I write, I have definite plot points that must be fulfilled and a nailed-down ending.  Anything that happens in between those points can be guided by the characters I have created.  If I originally visualise a character as being introverted and shy, with events being determined by that and then other events mould that character into a determined, angry and vengeful person, I will happily follow this new line, allowing the new, developed persona to shape their own destiny.  The result is often a stronger character and higher drama.

The debate will doubtless continue…

Whilst idly browsing my WordPress stats, I noticed that someone had highlighted this very page from Reddit.com.

The post was one of several that referred to something called (and this is a completely new word for me) Tulpae.

The page describes a Tulpa as; …best described as an imaginary friend that has its own thoughts and emotions, and that you can interact with. You could think of them as hallucinations that can think and act on their own.

The contributor opens the discussion with;

Are characters in a novel the Tulpae of the Author?

Very interesting question…

The post then goes on to ask;

By talking and fleshing out something to your own subconscious for so long, you start to get answers from it. The answers align themselves with all these preconceived traits you’ve given them (for the most part). When you talk to your own mind for long enough, it will answer back: this is an accepted fact.

This sounds a lot like an author with a good enough character not deciding what the character will do, but the author knowing what the character would do because the character tells him or her.

I was told by a writing professor of mine that authors should strive for this level of character development, to the point where the character makes its own decisions.

anyone interested in discussing this?

Read more of the discussion here.

I’ve noted some other thoughts on my post ‘Are authors guilty of creating imaginary friends?’  (Link to follow on Dec 19th 2012)

Back onto the subject of characters taking hold of a story, I stumbled across a Ray Bradbury quote on Chichikir’s wordpress page (if I may borrow the great man’s words);

“The bottom line here is that I am not the one in control. I do not try to steer my characters; I let them live their lives and speak their truths as quickly as possible. I listen, and write them down.”

Even the great Ray Bradbury let his characters find their own way?

And so the debate continues…

CG Blake also discusses the phenomenon here.

*   *   *

Amira K. at Z-Axis says this;

(Outline your stories before you write.)

Okay, I get that it works for some people, maybe, but it sure doesn’t work for me. When I try to outline I end up boxing myself into corners without giving my characters room to live, breathe, and make their own choices. My characters come to life on the page, sometimes almost without my consent, and do things that take me completely by surprise. They do things that I would never do. If I outlined my stories, I would never be able to give my characters the freedom they deserve.

 

Dragon’s Loyalty Award

A great big “Thank you!” to the very talented poet, http://helenvalentina.com/ who has nominated me to receive the Dragon’s Loyalty Award! This was an award I’d only recently found out about and have put on my blog ‘wish list’ so I was very touched when Helen chose my blog as one of her selected nominees.

The rules for this award are:

1. Display the Award Certificate on your website

2. Announce your win with a written post and link to whoever presented your award.

3. Present 15 awards to deserving bloggers.

4. Drop them a comment to tip them off after you have liked them in the post.

5. Post 7 interesting things about yourself.

So here goes!

Seven Interesting Things about Me:

1. Reading used to be my #1 hobby, but I don’t think I’ve read a single book this year. I’ve been to busy writing my own books and keeping up with my blog and the blogs of my fantastic followers that I follow. (If I’m following you it’s because I like that your writing is clean and enjoyable.)

2. Christmas is my favorite holiday because it is the day our Lord was born (plus I love the very magical feeling to the whole holiday…and the gifts and candy!)

3. I don’t like to travel very much, and I’m afraid to fly, but one day I really want to visit Ireland. From the pictures I’ve seen, it is a beautiful, tranquil place and I’d love to visit the old castles. (I do like going to zoos and museums, however)

4. I don’t like camping, or being outside at night, especially after the mountain lion got in our backyard last summer and scared me half to death.

5. I’ve always wished that I was a princess, so I was overjoyed when I discovered I was d-i-s-t-a-n-t-l-y related to Irish, Scottish, and English royalty.

6. I make candles, crochet, bake, and make soaps with all-natural ingredients like corn meal, cocoa powder, and tapioca.

7. Seven just happens to be my favorite number and is part of the brand I use on my cattle (bar V reverse 7)

And now for my nominees (I’m doing 5 instead of 15):

http://legendsofwindemere.com/

A great writer and author of the (should-be) award-winning fantasy novel, “Beginning of a Hero”

http://dianastaresinicdeane.wordpress.com/

Wrote a very intriguing novel about a historical crime in Kansas that is either already released, or is getting close.

http://shannonathompson.com/

She became a published author at 16 (that’s awesome!) and her new book is set to be released this May.

http://onthegofreelancer.wordpress.com/

A teacher and author who will one day write that novel that I know everyone is going to be talking about!

http://andrewtoynbee.wordpress.com/

Has written several books, I believe the one he’s currently working on (or has published) is “A Construct of Angels” and was ever so kind to nominate me for The Next Big Thing Awards.

The Next Big Thing Award

I was very thoughtfully nominated for The Next Big Thing blog award by http://andrewtoynbee.wordpress.com/ Thank you so much Andrew!

And since I couldn’t find a picture of the award, I’m using the picture I found on Andrew’s blog, which he borrowed from Michelle Proulx. Thanks to both of you!

The Next Big Thing is part interview and part award, consisting of a series of questions about a writer’s latest work and how it came to be.

 What is the working title of your book? The Night I walked off of Boot Hill. Though, I might change the name to something shorter in the future.

What genre does your book fall under? It is definitely a Western book, either in the teen or young adult fiction area

What is the one sentence synopsis of your book? Hmm, that’s hard. Let me see. I guess it would be something like this: A man wakes up in a cemetery with no memory, and believing that he is a ghost and is condemned to eternal purgatory for his outlaw deeds, takes in an orphaned youth in hopes of redeeming himself.

Where did you get the idea for your book? and Who or what inspired you to write this book? ( I’m replying to both these questions with one answer )

It came to me after seeing the cover of a book with the picture of a man who looked like a ghost, wearing a cowboy hat and buckskin jacket, with dark circles under his eyes and a pale complexion. I thought to myself, I’ll bet he’d make a great outlaw/ghost!

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

About six months, but I didn’t time myself.  

What other books would you compare this story with in your genre?

I’m not sure really, I’ve never read a book similar to mine (no plagiarism here!)

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

Karl Urban (played in Star Trek and Priest) would be Barbados Tom, the main character

 Ed Speleers (played in Eragon) would be Jim, the young orphan

 Maggie Grace (played in Taken and Breaking Dawn part 2) would be Sissy

 Kate Hudson (played in Fool’s Gold and Bride Wars) would be Lady

(got these pictures from Wikipedia)

 Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency? It is self-published, as both agents I queried turned it down. But I hope to someday incorporate it into a collection of short stories, published through an agent. *fingers are crossed*

What else about your book might pique your reader’s interest? The question: is the main character dead or alive? You kind of have to figure that out for yourself.

 And here are my five nominees:

http://staceykatheryn.wordpress.com/

http://shannonathompson.wordpress.com/

http://helenvalentina.wordpress.com/

http://l2ee2l.wordpress.com/

http://legendsofwindemere.com/

Great job to all of you! Thank you for having such inspirational blogs and thanks again to Andrew for nominating me, I really appreciate it!

Blog Awards

The awards I (my blog) has received mean the world to me, I cannot even begin to express my gratitude to Charles E Yallowitz at http://legendsofwindemere.com/ for being ever so thoughtful to nominate me for the Best Moment Award and the Sunshine Award. Thank you, thank you, Charles!

These awards got me thinking, and since I got the message notifying me of my nomination at 9:30 last night, I’ve had plenty of time to think. I’ve had my blog since the middle of January, and to date, I’ve had 35 wonderful people follow my blog, and nearly countless other people have “liked” and commented on my blog. Thank you all. So now, I’ve decided to set myself a goal, after all, I’ve set goals for number of views in a week, likes in a month, and all-time followers, so why not some Award goals? Here goes: By the middle of April I’d like to have 5 awards on my blog. And of course, I’m not picky which ones I get, but after looking at some other blogs, I’ve selected a few I hope I’ll receive:

Dragon’s Loyalty Award

Very Inspiring Blogger Award

Super Sweet Blogging Award

Shine On Award

There you have it! These four awards are the ones I have my heart set on (especially the Dragon’s Loyalty one)

Sunshine Award!

Thank you so much http://legendsofwindemere.com/ for being kind enough to nominate me for this award!

 Here are the rules to accept this award:

Include the award’s logo in a post or on your blog.
Answer 10 questions about yourself.
10-12 other fabulous bloggers must be nominated.
Link your nominees to the post and comment on their blogs, letting them know they have been nominated.
Share the love and link the person who nominated you.

Okay, here come the answers to the questions:

1 – Favorite color: Red, Blue, or Purple

2 – Favorite animal: Domestic cats

3 – Favorite number: 7

4 – Favorite non-alcoholic drink: Apple juice

5 – Prefer Facebook or Twitter? Facebook

6 – My passion: I would have to say writing and gardening

7 – Prefer getting or giving presents: Definitely giving: I like to make people happy.

8 – Favorite pattern: Plaid

9 – Favorite day of the week: Wednesday

10 – Favorite flower: Chicory

Nominees:

http://corncorps.wordpress.com/

http://charmingsensations.wordpress.com/

http://l2ee2l.wordpress.com/

http://helenvalentina.com/

http://dianastaresinicdeane.wordpress.com/

http://mreuther.wordpress.com/

http://kenknieling.wordpress.com/

http://shannonathompson.wordpress.com/

http://staceykatheryn.wordpress.com/

http://itsacircusinhere.wordpress.com/

The Ag Expo

Agriculture is…”the backbone, the building block. The homesteaders scattered across the West and developed it for agriculture uses,” she said. “Some of them came here [Colorado]. The spirit of agriculture has been with us ever since. If agriculture stays strong, the overall economy of the city and county is strong.” Taken from the Cortez Journal, http://cortezjournal.com/article/20130318/NEWS01/130319840/That’s-a-wrap-for-2013–Ag-Expo

Every March for the past thirty-one years the Four States’ Agricultural Emporium (Ag Expo) has been held in Cortez, Colorado, not too far from where I live. Since I was old enough to be carried or walk on my own, I have not missed an Ag Expo. for farmers and ranchers who don’t get out very often, as is the case with my family, the Ag Expo is marked down on the calenders and waited for with much anticipation. There are vendors and booths from Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah, as well as some other neighboring states. Kids who are in 4-H or FFA show their steers, heifers, pigs, and lambs. There is food, fun, and educational experiences. Once, when I was five or six, a kindly old cowboy gave me a few roping pointers. And this year, my siblings and I learned a lot about goats. For years my brother has wanted goats and once we sampled some of the milk and were pleasantly surprised with how close to cow’s milk the taste was, I made up my mind: sooner or later I will be investing in a milk goat. We made a few rounds through the bull pens, admiring the velvet-furred black beasts. Then we looked at the sheep (I’ve wanted sheep for as long as I can remember) and the little black lamb stole my heart.

Unfortunately though, people are losing interest in agriculture. I remember not that many years ago when the main exhibit building was literally packed to the bursting point. This year there were too many unused booths and empty rooms. Even the animal exhibits were fewer than in years past. The only children in sight were the ones who’d come with their teachers on a Field Trip, and there couldn’t have been more than two dozen of them.

There were only three chickens, two pigs, a couple of turkeys, and a few alpacas. No rabbits, heifer calves, chicks, or colts. It is a sad thought about how so many people have given up the farm. As far as people in large cities are concerned, their meat, milk, eggs, and flour comes from who-knows-where (no offence to all you city folks). Too many teens these days don’t know/care about what it takes to raise a bottle calf, grow an apple tree, or even ride a horse. I have to face it: I live in a world of technology. Even I use technology: I’m on Facebook, I own a laptop, run this website, and send emails. The one thing I don’t have that over 3/4 of people my age have is a cell phone.

In the summer, I quit my ‘office job’ and live outside for most of the day. Most people don’t know what a sideroll or a pivot is (don’t worry, someday I’ll write a post explaining what they do, how they work, and what an enormous pain in the neck they are) but that is how my family and many of our neighbors make their living . And some people still dryland farm. Other than farming, people own cows. Cows make money for us nearly year-round: we sell old/open cows in spring and most of the calves in the fall.

I’ll admit that I have no experienced with tractors: the most I’ve done on heavy equipment is cut a few swaths of hay. But I’ve helped with the branding of the calves for years; even before I was big enough to push the calves, it was my job to chase them out of the pen after they were released from the squeeze chute. I currently own three cows, four first-calf heifers, four yearlings, four calves, a bull, and a horse. I’m not bragging, I’m just saying that it IS possible for youngsters to succeed in the agriculture business. My little sister is an expert (in my opinion) rider and has a few cows and a horse and wants to make her living as a cowgirl. My brother wants to be a veterinarian and own cows and goats. That’s why I commend banks who offer the Young Farmer loans, although you nearly have to jump through hoops to qualify for them. This year, I had every intention of buying 71 acres of farmland, but since we’ve been hit so heavily with the drought and will only have half the normal water supply, I’m going to have to wait until next year or the year after, if it is still for sale by then.

Farming is hard: you have to work very hard, and sometimes your work doens’t pay off and you barely make it by. My parents are the hardest working people I’ve ever met. And they’ve gone through more hardships than any person has a right to go through. And they’re still young, with many more hardships yet to endure. And within a few years, I know I’ll be in the same boat. You may ask, “Then why? If farming is so hard, why would anyone want to be in that occupation?” Because: if no one farmed we would all go hungry. And, in my personal opinion, earning your living by farming is the most honest way to live.  

To all you farmers, ranchers, dairy cow owners, backyard gardeners, and young aspiring agriculturists out there: Keep up the good work and God bless you all.