Zoe M. McCarthy's Blog, page 13
April 5, 2018
Allow Characters to Feel Their Feelings
We authors have a few tricks at our disposal to tell characters’ feelings. These techniques are fast and easy. They get the job done … or do they? The question is what job gets done and for whom? Job done for author. The author can approach his deadline quicker, keep down word count, and get […]
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March 29, 2018
Create Believable Criminal Characters
All characters should have flaws. Only some will be inherently mean. How mean should a criminal character be? I met young men in an eight-year prison ministry. Inmates, called cadets and incarcerated at a juvenile correctional center, attended our church’s monthly Bible study. So, what were they like? All had been convicted of committing crimes […]
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March 22, 2018
When Do Writers Believe They’ve Arrived as Authors?
Many writers think they’re bona fide authors when they’ve published a book. Today, anyone can publish books through CreateSpace, or the like. Others think accumulating thousands of fans shows they’ve arrived. But what about authors who have smaller followings of loyal fans? For me, I think what makes an author is what makes an accountant, […]
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March 15, 2018
How Much Time in a Week Does an Author Write?
When I started writing, I couldn’t have imagined what my weeks would look like after my books published. For the last seven years, I’ve been a full-time writer. Let me rephrase that, a full-time author. I’ve learned there’s a difference, as I’ll show. Background I work five days a week. Often, I work a half-day […]
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March 8, 2018
Interview Questions for Characters’ Professions & Possible By-Products
The hero in my next romance is a cattle farmer in Southwestern Virginia. I pass cattle farms often. I see muddy areas where the cows have been brought in from the pasture, the tabs stapled to their ears, the machinery, and the farmhouses. These offer little about what my hero’s workday is like, his worries, […]
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March 1, 2018
Reel in Readers With a Devastating Choice
A Writer’s Digest article* suggested a devastating choice will hook readers and show much about your character. This intrigued me. Although the writer discussed how to develop the story before and after the choice, I approached the idea from a different angle. How would people’s past and current situations affect their choices? For examples, I […]
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February 22, 2018
How to Use Personal Experiences to Write Stories That Matter
I recently read insights I’ve heard before but were worth hearing again as I prepare to write my next romance: Ask myself what matters to me, stirs me, and bothers me; look into my personal life for experiences that accompany these three things; then write something that says something.* Here’s an experience I might […]
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February 15, 2018
Show Your Characters’ Wounds
The last two weeks, I’ve given examples showing characters’ love for each other and examples showing characters’ flaws. This week, I give an example of a character exhibiting a wound. I chose being stalked. I consulted The Emotional Wound Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Psychological Trauma (Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi. For brevity, I offer […]
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February 8, 2018
Show Your Characters’ Flaws
Last week, I wrote examples of showing love using behaviors from The Positive Trait Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Attributes (Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi). So, this week I give examples of characters exhibiting character flaws. I’ve used The Negative Trait Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Flaws (Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi). See […]
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February 1, 2018
Show Love Without Saying “I Love You.”
Valentine’s Day approaches, and I have a novella in a Valentine’s Day collection. See more about Cooking Up Kisses at the end of my post. Today, I use associated behaviors from The Positive Trait Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Attributes (Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi) to show Liam and Erin love each other. See […]
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