by SCBWI Western Washington
This might be just the post-conference solution to solidifying that character you're trying to nail down: Our co-Washington State SCBWI group, Inland NW, is sponsoring a webinar with the longtime editorial consultant Elizabeth Law. This will take place NEXT SATURDAY, May 9, from 9:30–11am. Titled "A Craft Workshop on Character," Elizabeth will discuss how to... Continue Reading →
Member Lois Harris will teach a two-part children's writing workshop called "Focusing on Character" in late April. Characters play an important role in both fiction and nonfiction, and she says participants will learn to create real, compelling main characters and secondary characters who support their performance. Resources, marketing, and submission information will also be covered.... Continue Reading →
For those of you who missed it earlier in February, or for those who actually came but wanted a replay, here's the inspiring content from Lee White's talk on character-building. Thanks to Lee and to Jaime Zollars, for permission to reprint this useful questionnaire to share with our chapter at large!
Martha Alderson (a.k.a. The Plot Whisperer) has a post on how a character's emotional transformation drives the plot. Here's the beginning: Some writers excel at pithy banter. Others create dramatic action. The writers I most admire are the ones who in their own natural style convey a character's emotional personality in scene through active, non-verbal... Continue Reading →
Darcy Pattison has a series up about sympathetic characters (and good villains). Here's the first part of the one on what makes characters sympathetic--something you need to do to keep readers engaged:Help Your Readers Identify with Your Characters. We tend to identify with characters who are like us in some way. They play certain roles... Continue Reading →
Kate Testerman at KT Literary has the scoop:I had several questions on my live blog yesterday about Mary Sues. Karen asked, “What lets you know a character is a Mary Sue from the query or the sample pages?” And Allreb added, “I’d also be really curious to know what you consider a Mary Sue character,... Continue Reading →
I just love her blog. Check out the latest:Two posts ago Kim asked: One question: Do you find it difficult to make everything matter in a story, if you know what I mean? It seems like there's a lot of pressure on a writer to make everything in a story contribute to the story's progression... Continue Reading →
Plot to Punctuation has a nifty post up about character flaws and how you can use them to drive your narrative:To really make your story come alive, you’ll also do well to give your characters flaws which enhance the story’s underlying drama. It’s all well and good to have a character who is afraid of... Continue Reading →
Here's a really helpful craft post on introducing your new characters effectively:It's a cliche, I know, but you really do get only one chance at making a first impression -- in life and in fiction. From the moment a new character enters a book, the reader consciously and subconsciously picks up on clues about his... Continue Reading →
The Type M for Muder blog has some advice from Donald Maas:Maass began by telling us that great novels need a compelling hero or heroine, a person who takes risks for the benefit of others, and to do so, flies in the face of social convention. He asked members of the audience to think of... Continue Reading →
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