How to discover your characters. T L Scott

Hello again, I hope you have been well since the last post.  Today is Saturday and it is the day before Easter Sunday.  It is a time that many of us get together with family and friends.  Before I go into the body of the post I want to wish everyone, whether you celebrate Easter or not, a very happy weekend.  I hope you enjoy your time with family and or friends, or alone if you prefer, this weekend.

What makes up a character?  The answer comes down to their experiences.  Of course how much of their experiences we, as writers, reveal is up to us, and the story.  Going into too much detail about a character can grind the pace down.  You can also run the risk of going off in a direction that really has no relevance to the story.  Remember the story must stay tight.  If there is no point in telling that Jimmy once wore his Grandmothers pumps then don't.  If however Jimmy goes on to become one of the premier shoe designers in the world then it may have been critical to the story.

Characters are like us.  They have a past.  They did not get to the point of the story without living some.  Just as you do not want to hear a persons life story when you are ordering a cheeseburger, the reader does not want to have to read about a characters history if it is not relevant.  That is the key.  What is relevant to the story.  It may be that it is important to reveal that the cheerleader used to be heavy before she started running.

I have found that sometimes the characters just stand up and speak for themselves.  They have a clear voice and nothing more needs to be added.  This however is rare for me.  More often I find myself getting to know the characters before the story goes on.  I have found a tool that works really well for me and I would like to share it with you.

I use flashcards to record the important character traits.  At first I tried using 3x5 cards.  I quickly found out that my characters were bigger than 3x5.  I tried cramming all of their details into that small space and it did not work well.  I now use larger index cards.  I get to know them.  Their height, hair color, eye color, distinctive mannerisms, their build, are they slim, muscular, heavy-set?  Are they strong of character or are they needy?  I really try to imagine what they are like.  Once I get it all out then I decide how much of them to reveal during the story.  As the story comes to life more details about the character will develop.  I simply add them to the card.  I have found that using the cards I am able to stay true to the voice of the character.  They are more distinctive.  I am also able to keep things in order and not confuse one character with the other.

While I am talking about keeping the characters straight I will share another tool that I use.  I use a timeline to keep the events in order.  The timeline often has branches to keep track of the different things going on.  Like the index cards this is a tool I use to keep things straight.

These tools have helped me to realize my characters more clearly and to keep track of what they are up to.  If you do not already use them then I hope that you will find them useful as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog.  If you have any suggestions please take a minute to comment.

It is Saturday so I will be spending this weekend with the characters that are my family and friends and as much as I would like to edit some of their traits life does not work that way.

I will talk with you again soon.

T L Scott

What is value in a story?

Hello readers,

The published word has changed over the past 30 years.  What used to be only books that you could hold in your hand has now grown to include print, audio, and e-books.  The ease and cost of publishing has also enabled more people than ever before to share their stories with the world.

My question is what is value?  There are many different sizes for stories.  At what point is a story a good value and when is it a rip-off?  In what medium is it a good price?

With e-books going in price from 99 cents up to several hundred dollars I suppose the answer is what the consumer is willing to pay.  That somehow does not cover it for me.

What are your thoughts?  How much should a book cost?  Lets not discuss school text books or professional texts.  I know that those can be very expensive for different reasons.  Lets limit it to popular fiction.  How much should an e-book, a paperback, or hardback cost on average?

I know that the average paperback runs from $6.99 to $9.99 and the hardback version goes from $19.99 to 39.99.  E-books are all over the place in price.

I know that if I buy a book and it is too short I feel like I did not get my moneys worth.  Then again if a book is too long and just rambles then I just feel like I spent my money on a bad book.

Ok what is a good price point for a good book in the different formats?

Please comment

Why should I write this story?

Hello and thanks for dropping by.

I was asked a question the other day from a friend of mine and I want to share my thoughts on it with you.  This friend revealed to me that she had been thinking about writing a story for a long time but had decided not to because she would not be good at it.  She went on to say that she still thinks about it but she just is not good at those kind of things. 

In the short time that I have been a writer I have heard this story quite a bit.  Here are my thoughts on the subject.

Why should I write this story?  There are so many answers to that question.  There are the text book answers: to inform, to entertain, to persuade.  Hopefully every story I share with you will achieve all of these items to some extent.  There is always the answer of to make money.  I don't think there is anything wrong with the desire to make money from telling stories.  In fact it is one of my primary goals.  That goal is circular.  I want to make enough money with my writing so that I can dedicate more time to my writing.  The money is not really the goal for me.  The way that it would enable me to dedicate more time to writing and not have to work another job for 40 hours a week.  That is 40 hours that I could be telling stories.

The real reason for me to write a story is so that I can share it.  I have found that the process of writing the story for me is great fun.  I really enjoy discovering the characters as they develop throughout the story.  More often than not they end up being different than what I first imagined them.  They also change the story from what I thought it would end up as. 

I have a lot of ideas for stories rolling around in my head.  I guess I could tell you that I am mulling them over.  That is true and still not complete.  Some of the stories are content with staying in the background while others are incessantly popping up with new scenes and scenarios.  This brings me back to the conversation with my friend.

I pointed out to her that since the story kept coming back to her it was obviously something that she wanted to talk about.  I advised her to do just that.  Sit down and tell the story.  Simply write it out.  No pressure to show it to anyone else.  Simply tell the story.  After that go back and read it over and see if the story has been told.  Are there points that need further explanation?  Are there things that are missing?  Once the story has been told then sit back and let it simmer for a while.  Ask yourself whether you want to share the story.  If so with whom?

It is my opinion that we all have stories to tell.  Some of these stories are to be shared.  Some are definitely not meant to see the light of day.  Burn baby Burn!!!  And then there are some stories that demand to be told!

If you are still reading this then you have the passion within you.  I urge you to pick up the thread and find out where it leads.  Will you weave an epic odyssey?  Will you unravel the mysteries of the universe?  Will you bring laughter and wonder to children?  Will you cause the heart-rates of lovers the world over to race?  Pick up the thread my friend and let the tale be told.

Talk with you again soon,

T L Scott

The following is an excerpt of copyrighted material from

A Life Worth Living, a novel by T L Scott

Prologue

            The State Police Cruiser slowed to a stop, crunching the gravel on the side of the road under its tires.  Stepping out of the cruiser, the officer took in the scene.  The lights from his emergency bar bounced off of the unforgiving rock on his left.  Red and blue flashing lights reflected off the drops of water left on the leaves of the trees on his right.  He took all this in as background detail.  Focusing on the skid marks in front of him, he knew immediately that the vehicle that left these marks was somewhere below where he now stood.  He was very familiar with this curve in the road.  Three years ago a car full of kids had died after going over the edge.  The State had put up a guardrail since then which had been a good thing, but due to budget cuts or some other excuse it was not enough.   
            As a result the officer had complained to his boss that the guardrail should have been longer; it should have led into the curve.  The state’s engineers disagreed.  They cited statistics that accidents happened in the middle to the end of the curve, rarely at the beginning. 
             Well, I guess that this is one of those rare occurrences the Officer mused as he came to the edge of the road.  He put his hands on his utility belt and let out a tired sigh as he took in the scene below him. 
             The path of destruction was easy to follow.  He could see the car partially submerged in the icy water over one hundred and seventy feet below him.
            Pulling out his radio, the officer called in the accident.  He requested extra units to assist with the traffic as well as a tow truck, which was equipped with a heavy duty winch with an extra length of cable on the winch.  The truck operator also kept an extra five hundred feet of cable for good measure.  Rescue units trained for these kinds of accidents and, unfortunately, also had a lot of real world experience.  He also requested a couple of ambulances, just in case. 
            With that done he made his way to the rear of the cruiser to get his rappelling gear.  Once he was in his rig he secured himself to the guardrail.  It just might help to save someone’s life after all, he thought.  Almost as an afterthought he went back to the trunk and grabbed some thermal blankets and stuffed them into his pack. 
            He prepared to step over the edge and make his way down the steep side of the mountain.  He paused a moment and reflected on the discovery he had made the last time he had to make this trip.  He sent up a silent prayer that this time it would have a better ending.  He had a cold feeling in the pit of his stomach that it would not.  Maybe this time he would be able to do more than clean up the mess he hoped as he stepped over the ledge. 
            Suddenly, a squirrel caught his attention.  It was sitting on a branch happily munching away on something.  He thought it strange that his presence did not cause the usually timid creature to scamper away.
            Focus!  He disciplined himself.  That was all that the people below him needed!  If he lost his focus and fell down, what good would he be to them?  He steeled himself and prepared for what he might find. 

Where do the ideas for a story come from?

Hello readers.  Now that A Life Worth Living is off to the publishers I am focusing on the next story.  This one is a completely different one than A Life Worth Living.

I have heard a lot of people ask where do the ideas for a story come from.  I would like to hear your thoughts on this subject so please join in.

For me the thoughts come literally from everywhere and everything.  By that I mean that I never know what is going to inspire a random thought to become a plausible story line.  Sometimes it is revealed in a series of events that spin off of the initial "what if".   Other times it comes from looking at something and wondering how it happened to be what it is.  At other times it is more I wonder what would have happened "if". 

More than anything I think it comes down to asking questions.  It is the why, the what if, the I wonder. . . that leads to a story line.  Then of course the characters themselves start to reveal themselves and the story takes off on its own.  Where it ends up is as much a revelation for me as it is for the reader.  I just get to see it first.

Well those are my quick thoughts on where the ideas for a story come from.  Please share yours.

New Novel A Life Worth Living

Hello,

I am a new author and I have a great story that will be published soon. 
I know, all authors think that their stories are great.  We have to.  Why else would we go through the painful, agonizing, and oh so entertaining process of bringing these stories to life?

This story is about a man that has made sacrifices for the family that he loves.  He works hard so that he can provide them good things.  He sacrifices his time with them so that they have a good life. 
Life is made up of sacrifice.
When he finds himself literally up to his neck in trouble he has to decide just how much he is willing to sacrifice to make his life "A Life Worth Living".

You can also follow this story to publication at TLScott.official/Facebook.com

I have many other stories that are revealing themselves to me.

I look forward to sharing this journey with you.

Welcome along for the ride.

T L Scott