Hi all! Today I want to welcome my crit partner supreme, M Pax, here on a stop on her blogtour for her new release: The Backworlds. Take it away, M!
Enriching Characters
I confess character is something I was light on, something I struggled with more than other things in writing. They were great in my head, but they didn’t come off as great on paper. They were so two dimensional.
It’s something I had to practice. Going deeper, deeper, deeper, enriching my character’s lives. Writing their stories before my books begin was a huge help. I make sure the connections matter and have an impact. Real life isn’t quite that neat, but fiction isn’t real life, and everything we construct should matter and impact our stories.
My critique partners, who are better at character, constantly pushing me was another help. Eventually, it began to sink in and I made steps in the right direction. Steps became strides. Strides now become habit, and I still push myself to go farther.
Then I found this quick and dirty tool to help me add more depth and more details at an RWA (Romance Writers of America) meeting in January. It’s basically a Glasser analysis for characters. You can get more information and the worksheets at http://www.judithashleyromance.com/ Maybe I don’t use all the details, but they’re there and they help add.
The last piece of the puzzle was taking a dvd course called Building Great Sentences: Exploring the Writers Craft. From GreatCourses.com. I borrowed the dvds from a crit partner. Writing lengthy sentences isn’t always the answer, but how it taught to let the reader in on our thought process and how to add emphasis and more and bigger and richer, was very useful.
The benefit of all this practice, listening, and learning is my writing. The Backworlds was a definite beneficiary. The characters in this first book in my new space opera series are among my favorites I’ve invented so far.
What tools and resources have helped you to create better characters?
The Backworlds
After the war with Earth, bioengineered humans scatter across the Backworlds. Competition is fierce and pickings are scant. Scant enough that Craze’s father decides to hoard his fortune by destroying his son. Cut off from family and friends, with little money, and even less knowledge of the worlds beyond his own, Craze heads into an uncertain future. Boarding the transport to Elstwhere, he vows to make his father regret this day.
Available as an ebook from: Amazon / AmazonUK / Smashwords / Feedbooks
Free on Smashwords & Feedbooks. Will be free on Amazon in a few weeks.
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About the author:
M. Pax’s inspiration comes from the wilds of Oregon, especially the high desert where she shares her home with two cats and a husband unit. Creative sparks also come from Pine Mountain Observatory where she spend her summers working as a star guide. She writes mostly science fiction and fantasy, but confesses to an obsession with Jane Austen. She blogs at her website, http://www.mpaxauthor.com/ and at Wistful Nebulae. You’ll find links there to connect on Twitter, Goodread, FB and other sites.
Thank you very much for stopping by, M! All the best for The Backworlds.
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The Five Year Project 