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Friday, July 31, 2015

Writing Ideas - New Novel, part 477, Those Characteristics and Confusion Character Presentation Q and A

31 July 2015, Writing Ideas - New Novel, part 477, Those Characteristics and Confusion Character Presentation Q and A

Announcement: Delay, my new novels can be seen on the internet, but the publisher has delayed all their fiction output due to the economy.  I'll keep you informed.  More information can be found at www.ancientlight.com.  Check out my novels--I think you'll really enjoy them.

Introduction: I wrote the novel Aksinya: Enchantment and the Daemon. This was my 21st novel and through this blog, I gave you the entire novel in installments that included commentary on the writing. In the commentary, in addition to other general information on writing, I explained, how the novel was constructed, the metaphors and symbols in it, the writing techniques and tricks I used, and the way I built the scenes. You can look back through this blog and read the entire novel beginning with http://www.pilotlion.blogspot.com/2010/10/new-novel-part-3-girl-and-demon.html.

I'm using this novel as an example of how I produce, market, and eventually (we hope) get a novel published. I'll keep you informed along the way.

Today's Blog: To see the steps in the publication process, visit my writing website http://www.ldalford.com/ and select "production schedule," you will be sent to http://www.sisteroflight.com/.

The four plus one basic rules I employ when writing:

1. Don't confuse your readers.
2. Entertain your readers.
3. Ground your readers in the writing.
4. Don't show (or tell) everything.
5. Immerse yourself in the world of your writing.

All novels have five discrete parts:
1.  The initial scene (the beginning)
2.  The rising action
3.  The climax
4.  The falling action
5.  The dénouement

The theme statement of my 26th novel, working title, Shape, is this: Mrs. Lyons captures a shape-shifting girl in her pantry and rehabilitates her.

Here is the cover proposal for Lilly: Enchantment and the ComputerLilly is my 24th novel.
Cover Proposal
The most important scene in any novel is the initial scene, but eventually, you have to move to the rising action.  I've started writing Shape.

I'm an advocate of using the/a scene input/output method to drive the rising action--in fact, to write any novel. 

Scene development:
1.  Scene input (easy)
2.  Scene output (a little harder)
3.  Scene setting (basic stuff)
4.  Creativity (creative elements of the scene)
5.  Tension (development of creative elements to build excitement)
6.  Release (climax of creative elements)

I can immediately discern three ways to invoke creativity:

1.  History extrapolation
2.  Technological extrapolation
3.  Intellectual extrapolation

Creativity is like an extrapolation of what has been.  It is a reflection of something new created with ties to the history, science, and logic (the intellect).  Creativity requires consuming, thinking, and producing. 

One of my blog readers posed these questions.  I'll use the next few weeks to answer them.

1.  Conflict/tension between characters
2.  Character presentation (appearance, speech, behavior, gestures, actions)
3.  Change, complexity of relationship, and relation to issues/theme
4.  Evolving vs static character
5.  Language and style
6.  Verbal, gesture, action
7.  Words employed
8.  Sentence length
9.  Complexity
10.  Type of grammar
11.  Diction
12.  Field of reference or allusion
13.  Tone
14.  Mannerism suggest by speech
15.  Style
16.  Distinct manner of writing or speaking you employ, and why (like Pinter's style includes gaps, silences, non-sequitors, and fragments while Chekhov's includes 'apparent' inconclusiveness).

Moving on to 2.  2.  Character presentation (appearance, speech, behavior, gestures, actions)

An author develops a character first and then reveals the character through the plot.  Plot revelation is what it is all about.  We do not reveal characters by telling.  First develop, then reveal.

Appearance, speech, behavior, gestures, and actions are means of character revelation.  I really like this list--let's look at each piece.

We've nailed appearance.  That provides excellent tags--what about speech.  Except for normal colloquialisms or specific English speech patterns--don't touch speech.  I used a German speech pattern for a character in one of my Dragon and Fox novels and I wasn't happy with it.  It was okay, but I didn't like the way it sounded in the context of the novel--I will likely never use that speech pattern again.  On the other hand, in my Ancient Light novels, I have a character fake (use) a French accent on purpose--I do spell out this speech pattern.  I think it is effective in context because it is a French girl who speaks beautiful English who is faking a French accept as a ruse.  In addition, I used some Scottish speech patterns with a character in one of my Enchantment novels.  I haven't used Scottish speech patterns or Irish speech patterns before because I was worried about the sound.  I have had many Irish and Scottish characters.  The speech patterns when contrasted with English seem to work best.  In other words, when you want to subtly show a character's change or different speech pattern with a contrast on the English, using speech patterns might be a good way to go.  It has been effective for me, but only in that context. 

Thus, when a character speaks with a Scottish accent, I usually write: He replied with his thick Scottish brogue--or something like that.  I use a different strategy when using a different language from English. 
      
More tomorrow.

For more information, you can visit my author site http://www.ldalford.com/, and my individual novel websites:



fiction, theme, plot, story, storyline, character development, scene, setting, conversation, novel, book, writing, information, study, marketing, tension, release, creative, idea, logic 

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