Writers in the Storm

by Orly Konig-Lopez

Who are these people who live in your head? Where do you come up with these ideas?

You’ve heard those questions a few times, right?

A few days ago I was giving someone a quick and dirty of my new book. Quick and dirty because that’s all I have at the moment—there’s only so much I can plot and plan ahead of time.

But there are a few things that I always know before starting a new project: character names, personality traits, physical attributes, career, hobbies.

1. What’s your name?

Some characters come with names. The moment they start “talking” I know what their name will be. Others require a bit of inspiration. For them I usually turn to social media. Seriously, it’s a great excuse to hang on Twitter and Facebook. Procrastinating? Nah, researching.

I scroll until a first name jumps out that will fit one of the characters. Another pass for a last name then I say the names out loud a few times for feel—some combinations click immediately, some need tweaking. When it sounds comfortable, I think about anyone I know in “real life” whose name might be too similar. And yes, sometimes I’ll use a first or last name of someone I know as a thank you nod, but the character will never actually resemble that person.

In the manuscript I just finished, the main character’s name is Maia. Why? Because I always loved that name and wanted to name my daughter Maia. Hubs nixed that name which was moot anyway because we had a boy. But I was able to have my Maia anyway—and minimal sassing back from this one.

2. Is that your natural hair color?

Every character sketch worksheet starts with a few descriptors:

• Eye color, shape, etc.
• Hair color, length, etc.
• Height
• Weight
• Complexion
• Body build
• Unique features

It not only helps me get to know the characters, but works as a handy reference when I’m 50,000 words in and can’t remember if someone has brown eyes or green, almond shaped eyes or droopy lids, freckles or a killer dimple.

3. What’s your sign?

Okay, I don’t go down that path. But one of the first questions on my character sketch is “What makes this character interesting?”

• Did she/he have a degree in a unique field? Why did they pursue this field? Are they working in it? If not, why?
• Does she/he have a quirk or unique gift?
• What does the character like to do that would surprise those who “know” her/him?

The main character in one of my manuscripts, for example, confides in a suit of armor—an actual, metal suit of armor in a museum. When she needs perspective, she goes to the museum and talks to Sir Jean, as she calls him. He doesn’t actually talk back but her ability to work through her problems with his “help” is one of the things that makes her unique.

4. What do you do for a living?

Characters in books don’t have to pay rent—well, not literally at least; they do need to earn their keep with a good story that will hopefully sell.

My characters have held jobs that I always thought would be interesting but obviously didn’t pursue: an architect, an art restorer, an archeologist. Doing the research on those careers is half the fun.

And sometimes career ideas come out of the fridge. Literally in this case. I was totally stumped with what to do for the husband of the main character in my new book. Nothing was working. Then dinnertime came. I went to retrieve a jar of marinade and ended up with sticky fingers thanks to a leaky bottle. Voila, a marinade entrepreneur was born.

5. What do you like to do in your spare time?

There has to be more to life—even a fictional one—than working, eating, sleeping. Hobbies, we all have them. Our characters need them. And why not live vicariously through the people we’re creating.

One of my characters runs on the beach. I don’t live by the beach, but I can get on the treadmill, and with my eyes closed and brain cells working, I’m there. Then sit down and write that scene.

Love the idea of knitting but can’t get your fingers and brain to work together? Have a character who knits beautiful hats and sells them at craft shows.

Maybe all writers have a little Dr. Frankenstein in us. Mary Shelley’s novel was the first that made me dream about writing. But since I write Women’s Fiction, I hope none of my characters will send the villagers screaming into the night.

A few resources that might come in handy:

• http://www.parents.com/baby-names/popular/
• http://baby-names.familyeducation.com/popular-names/girls/
• http://baby-names.familyeducation.com/popular-names/boys/
• http://www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/
• http://www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/top5names.html
• http://nameoftheyear.blogspot.com/
• http://jobs.lovetoknow.com/The_100_Best_Jobs_and_Careers
• 45 Master Characters: Mythic Models for creating Original Characters by Victoria Lynn Schmidt

So tell me, how you do decide on names or careers or hobbies for your characters? What other questions do you ask your characters?

About Orly

After years of pushing the creativity boundary in corporate communications, Orly decided it was time for a new challenge. Three women’s fiction manuscripts later (plus a handful of picture books), it’s safe to say she’s found her creative outlet.

Orly’s manuscripts have finalled in seven contests including the Wisconsin Romance Writers “Fab Five” and the Greater Seattle Romance Writers of America’s “Emerald City Opener.” She’s currently querying her most recent manuscript, THE DAY THE MERRY-GO-ROUND STOPPED.

When she’s not talking to her imaginary friends, she’s reading or at least trying to ignore everyone around her long enough to finish “just one more paragraph.” Orly has also joined forces with some amazing women’s fiction authors to launch the Women’s Fiction Writers Association.

You can find Orly on Twitter at @OrlyKonigLopez or on her website, www.orlykoniglopez.com.

by Fae Rowen

As writers, we can use our lives to fuel our stories in many ways--from plots, to characters, to emotional journeys. This means that our daily lives become a field of rich experience to mine for writing gold. Let me share an excursion that resulted in unexpected treasure for my WIP.

Because I didn't want to go by myself, I talked Laura Drake into going on a "field trip" with me to a small local museum. Lucky for me, she was willing to look at movie costumes and jewelry. I was excited by the visions of jewels and period clothing and never even considered that I'd receive a writing lesson amidst all the finery and shimmer.

In Madeleine Albright's Read My Pins display, we ooh'd and ahh'd over the diplomat's broaches, just a small part of her whole collection. Gold, jewels, and spectacular designs combined with commentary about when--and with whom--the pieces were worn. Many displays included newspaper pictures with attendant articles reporting the politics behind the meetings.

The display was small, but well put-together. The word "tight" came to mind and I thought how I always end up cutting words from my critique partners WIPs  to tighten the action.

Lesson 1: Check that every scene carries its weight. That it has essential elements of plot, characterization and emotion. Scenes will have these elements weighted differently, but every scene must be crucial to your story. Be ruthless. Even if you really like your clever writing or the snippet of story you told, if it doesn't move your characters or plot to the next "offramp," you have to edit it but either cutting or revising it. Try this: If you can cut a scene and not lose a plot point, a piece of the character arc, or an emotional connection to the reader, ask yourself what's missing. (This is a great tool for that saggy middle!)

We moved on to Cut!, a display of period costumes from movies. At first we focused on the tiny waists. Each outfit was labeled with the movie and the actor or actress who wore the piece. We soon moved to the detail of the costume, as well as discovering an appreciation for the hat, gloves, cape, or jewelry that showed "the look" from the movie.  I hadn't seen most of the movies represented with costumes, but I wished I had.

And I had my second  Aha! moment. Good editing made me want more. I had just watched the Oscar red carpet shows. The Fashion pundits commented on what made a winning outfit, and it seemed that less is often more. This goes not only for an outfit (always remove one piece of jewelry before you walk out the door) but also for writing.

Lesson 2: More description isn't always better. Pare down the details by careful word choice. This helps with pacing by not bogging down your reader. This is one reason why we are all reminded to "Show, don't tell."

We recently had a blog about making scenes do double duty. Well, words can do double duty. If you are trying to describe a child's behavior consider the differences between disobedient, mischievous, and playful. If you show a child's behavior as seen through your adult character's thoughts, the word you choose shows us your character's mindset and could even give a window into backstory. With just one word.

Back to the museum. We moved on to the Faberge exhibit, which we saved for last. I'd seen a Faberge Egg exhibit fifteen years ago at the Reagan Library, and I toured his workshop in St. Petersburg. This was the real reason I wanted to visit the museum. I would have bought a ticket just for this exhibit.

There were lots of priceless jewels and gold. Though at first I was disappointed by the room's size, it was the largest of the three exhibits with cases sandwiched close together to fill the room. And lots of people crowding around those cases. Some patrons were shepherded around the room by docents who shared interesting tidbits of information. (Did you know that Faberge's enameling process died with him and no one has been able to duplicate it?) We viewed not only crowns, necklaces, eggs, and pins, but gift boxes, cigarette cases, and statues. A stunning wealth of sparkle and beauty.

And it was not my favorite exhibit.

I felt disappointed and wondered why. I could not have soaked up one more case of Faberge genius, so I couldn't have wanted more. Why not? Though I would be hard pressed to pick pieces to omit from the displays, the show was not as well-edited as the other two. It overwhelmed my senses with its brilliance and diversity. But it wasn't cohesive. It had no "theme."

Lesson 3: No matter how brilliant your individual words or scenes may be, they must make your reader want to keep reading. A dazzling phrase here, an amazing analogy there is not enough to maintain interest to keep someone turning the pages. You want your readers to feel the emotions your characters feel, because that's what will lead to a satisfying conclusion for them. That's what will make them buy your next book. Yes, plot points, character arcs, black moments are necessary building blocks of our craft. Every time you sit down to write, you hone your craft--if you are conscious about wielding and sharpening your tools. It's okay to be a pantster like me, but you have to be sure all the elements are there to make you story compelling.

We passed through a long hall where eight Tibetan thangkas hung on the walls. If you've ever seen Tibetan artwork, you understand when I say we stood before the eight-foot high wall coverings and marveled at the small details repeated thousands of times to produce the picture. Tiny brush strokes delicately affixed gold leaf in the narrowest of bands around a lotus. And the last piece of my editing lesson fell into place.

Lesson 4: Our writing is filled with everything we have to offer. All our craft, skillful plotting, and word-smithing combine with who we are to produce our books. And unless we take the time and care to edit our display, the brilliance of our efforts may not shine as brightly as it could. We can muddy our prose with strokes that are too big or "gold leaf" that distracts from the subtleties that readers love to find in our work.

I remember the words of one of the directors of a musical I was in. He was talking to me about one of my solo songs and "singing my heart out." He said that was a good thing, but he cautioned me to remember to make my audience want more. In writing, that translates to a page turner.

I have to admit, I've never been a fan of editing. Editing means I didn't write it right the first time, and I don't like to admit that. (Yes, I know better, but old perfectionist traits die hard!) But good editing can be the difference between a page-turner and just another book. In fact, thoughtful editing just might help make a sale. And don't we all want that?

It seems like I've been buried forever in the editing (at times it feels like a total re-write) process for my WIP. But thank goodness Laura and I went to the museum and I wanted just one more costume. I'm actually beginning to enjoy the editing process--and I can see how it is improving my book.

What are your thoughts on editing? Love it or hate it? Do you have editing tips that work well for you?

Writers In The Storm welcomes back Kara Lennox, a.k.a. Karen Leabo for the final installment of her plot-fixing series. Kara is an award-winning, bestselling author of more than sixty novels of romance and romantic suspense for Harlequin and Random House. AND she’s a 2012 DOUBLE RITA Finalist! In case you missed any of the first lessons, you'll find links below.

by Kara Lennox

Plot Problem #14:  Weak black moment

There must be a point in your book when all seems lost.

The hero is about to fail in his quest; the heroine is about to be thrown off a building; the villain has gotten hold of the secret weapon. Your hero and heroine are breaking up and there appears to be no way to work out their differences.

Go back to Lesson 5 and review Plot Problem #7, Stakes are too low.

By now, hopefully you've raised the stakes in your story. The black moment is the time to play that up. You have to keep asking yourself, per Donald Maass, "How can I make this worse? What is the worst that can possibly happen?"

Don't hold back. Your black moment isn't black enough until the reader, and possibly even you as the writer, can't see a way out. In some cases, your hero might actually fail in his/her quest. That's okay, so long as he/she ends up gaining something even better in the end.

The black moment is when your characters must make that ultimate sacrifice.

Throughout the book they've been growing and learning; now, when nothing is working, their only choices is to somehow apply the lessons they've learned to get out of the fix they're in.

Maybe they put together the final clue of the mystery and figure out where the kidnapped child is hidden. Maybe the heroine realizes the only way she can be with her vampire hero is to become a vampire. Maybe the heroine learns that she had the tools she needed to vanquish the villain all along.

Escaping from the black moment might require all of your skills as a writer and a good bit of brainstorming. Sometimes, once you know how you want the characters to escape, you'll have to go back and plant the tools, or the knowledge, or the clue that is needed.

One thing you do NOT want is some heretofore never mentioned element to swoop in and save the day. No angels suddenly appearing out of nowhere to vanquish a demon; no rich uncle suddenly dying and leaving the heroine enough money to save her failing company; no suddenly remembering a secret password.

Also, no sudden changes of heart. I have read many books where the hero is a complete jerk throughout the whole story, until the very end when he suddenly turns all mushy and says something like, "Didn't you know all along that I loved you?" This might have flown in years past, but not today.

Likewise, this is also not the time to reveal that the "other woman" is actually the hero's sister. (And if you read the lesson about conflict, you already know that a simple misunderstanding can't be the conflict for an entire book.)

If you're struggling for a black moment, look at your characters for a clue.

Ask yourself what is the one thing your heroine would never, ever do? If the heroine is a daddy's girl, she loves her father and trusts him and would never, ever betray him, the black moment might involve her discovering he is a criminal. And her ultimate sacrifice is that she has to turn him in, possibly to save the hero from being convicted of the crime. Now that's a black moment.

Plot Problem #15:  The Ending Does Not Satisfy

A strong ending is crucial to a successful plot.

I'm sure you've heard it said, a great beginning sells your book; a great ending sells your next book.

You want your reader to sigh with satisfaction as they close your book or turn the last page of your manuscript. If your characters have overcome impossible odds, chances are your reader will feel satisfied.

In a romance novel, this means the hero and heroine get their happily-ever-after. Although they don't have to commit to marriage, they do have to commit. The reader has to believe that these two are going to spend the rest of their lives together.

This means you must have solved the conflict. No fair just having them agree that they love each other, so they'll figure it out later. They have to have it figured out by the end of the book. (This applies to a standard romance. If you're writing a series a la Stephanie Plum, or the J.D. Robb “Death” books, there may still be larger issues to settle, but the hero and heroine are at least in a truce where they can be happy for a while).

If the book is a romantic suspense or fantasy or mystery or romantic-fill-in-the-blank, this means you'll have other conflicts to resolve. The villain must be vanquished, the child rescued, the demons sent back to hell, the magical potion recovered, etc. etc.

The rule of thumb for this is, resolve those OTHER conflicts first, then resolve the romance. That way, the moment your hero and heroine have committed to each other, your story is done.

If your book is primarily another genre, with a romantic subplot, you'll probably want to resolve the romance first, then the other conflicts. Whatever the central conflict is, that is the one you resolve last.

Sometimes, because we love our story people, we have a tendency to linger too long.

Sometimes it's hard to know exactly how much to dwell on happy-happy. I have often been guilty of ending too abruptly. I once had an editor who felt so uneasy about the terrible conflicts these two people had overcome, that she wanted to be reassured that they really had solved their problems and she requested an epilogue set in the future (complete with babies, of course).

The story will feel "finished" to the reader if you somehow restate the theme.

If you are in the hero or heroine's head, you can have her state it outright. This is what she learned, and this is how she is going to live her life from now on. Or, you can be more subtle. Conventional wisdom says show don't tell, so if you can devise a scene that shows how the characters have changed, that's even better.

You do, however, want that last line to be memorable. You want a picture to linger in the reader's mind.

In my book Reluctant Partners, the hero and heroine were in dispute over the ownership of a fishing charter boat. The first scene involved the heroine kicking the hero off her boat. At the end of the book, they've had the sign over the dock repainted to list both of their names, side by side, as co-captains.

A nice technique to bring a book full circle is to use bookend scenes.

Think about the movie BACK TO THE FUTURE. The first scene with Marty's family shows how completely dysfunctional all of them are. Dad is a wimp, Mom is a lush, brother works at McDonald's, sister is a loser. The last scene, Dad is a successful author, Mom is slender and athletic and happy, brother is an executive, sis is popular with lots of boyfriends. (My take on the theme of this movie, BTW, is "One single act of heroism can change you, your future, and the future of everyone around you.") If you can do this with your book, chances are you've nailed the concept of theme.

Homework: How will you end your book?

• What kind of visual can you give the reader, a symbol of the new reality that has been forged by your characters' hard work, sacrifice, and everything they have learned?
• What do you want lingering in your reader's mind?
• Can you do bookend scenes?

(Hint: Sometimes thinking about this might suggest a new opening scene for your book that you never considered. Be open to this! It might be really, really good.)

* * *

So now we have come to the end of this series.

I'm always happy to try to answer any questions, even ones that don't directly apply to plotting. I hope you've enjoyed the whole Plot Fixer series, and I wish happy sales to all of you. And me, too!

Need to read  a missed lesson?

• Lesson 1: Your Premise Isn't Compelling
• Lesson 2: How to Fix a Weak Opening
• Lesson 3: A Lack of Goals
• Lesson 4: Is Your Conflict Strong Enough?
• Lesson 5: Raise the Stakes
• Lesson 6: Your Plot Moves Too Slowly
• Lesson 7:  How to Pick Up the Pace in Your Story
• Lesson 8: Is Your Plot Too Predictable?
• Lesson 9: Plots That Rely on Coincidence and Contrivance
• Lesson 10: A Loss of Focus

Do you have questions about plotting based on these two lessons? What about from other lessons in the series? We've got Kara, so let's keep her busy in the comments! :-)

About Kara

Kara Lennox, author of Project Justice series for Harlequin SuperRomance has six titles now available in e-book or print! Her novel, Sweet Romance Hard to Resist now available from Harlequin Heartwarming. One-Night Alibi is coming in July 2013. She also writes as Karen Leabo. Her latest title is Millicent's Medicine Man, Loveswept Classic Romance.

You can find Kara at:

Her blog: http://karalennox.com
Her  Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/kara.lennox