All my stories deal with justice. It's a quirk I realize is inherent in me. I want justice to be served or to make it known to others when there has been an injustice. Knowing this, I have certain characteristics my hero and heroine must have that will also give them the same drive to bring about justice or reveal the injustice.
They need to have these traits: Aggressive(not always in an overt way), alert, brave, concerned, determined, honest(if not to themselves to everyone else),intelligent, and stubborn.
When brewing up a character I use the above traits to conjure up their background. The events that happened in their lives to give them some of these traits. And the other traits that make some of the decisions they need to make in the story hard.
Sometimes I'll get a vision of the character, what they look like, how they dress and then I add the characteristics from the visual I see. These are the fun characters because I see them before I know their whole story and usually their name pops in my head when I see them or am categorizing what I see.
There are other times when I know the story I want to tell and then have to brew up the characters. Then I start with the background they need to be part of the story. I find a photo of who I think they are, or type out their visual characteristics. If I'm still at a loss for a name, I'll use their ethnicity to look up names and find the one that fits my character.
Then there are characters like Isabella Mumphrey who came about like this:
My friend Julie and I were driving to a writing retreat and I was lamenting about a book that didn't live up to the hype of an action adventure.
Julie:
Why don’t you write an action adventure?
Me:
I can’t write action adventure, and I’ve
worked hard at branding myself. I write western or Native American.
Julie:
So make the heroine have something to do
with Native American studies.
Me: I guess that would work. (here my brain
started kicking into overdrive)
Julie:
Where would you set this story?
Me:
South or Central America.
Julie:
Why?
Me:
I could use the heroine’s studies of
Native American Indians as her reason for traveling to countries with drug
problems.
Julie:
Why?
Me:
Because the hero would be with the DEA.
Julie: What kind of heroine will she be?
Me: Scholarly…genius level having graduated
with her doctorate at 20 or22.(a light bulb clicked in my head as a slender
girl with glasses wearing a long broomstick skirt, tank top, and sandals formed
in my mind) Her name is Isabella
Mumphrey.
I wish all heroes and heroines came as easy and fast as Isabella did.
Secrets of a Mayan Moon Blurb:
Child prodigy and now Doctor of Anthropology,
Isabella Mumphrey, is about to lose her job at the university. In the world of
publish or perish, her mentor’s request for her assistance on a dig is just the
opportunity she’s been seeking. If she can decipher an ancient stone table—and
she can—she’ll keep her department. She heads to Guatemala, but drug
trafficking bad guys, artifact thieves, and her infatuation for her handsome
guide wreak havoc on her scholarly intentions.
DEA agent Tino Kosta, is out to avenge the
deaths of his family. He’s deep undercover as a jaguar tracker and sometimes
jungle guide, but the appearance of a beautiful, brainy anthropologist heats
his Latin blood taking him on a dangerous detour that could leave them both
casualties of the jungle.
Secrets
of a Mayan Moon
is available at Windtree
Press, Kindle,
Nook Kobo
.
Award winning author Paty Jager is
a member of national and local writing organizations. She not only writes the
western lifestyle she lives it. With fifteen novels and several short stories
published, she continues to have characters cavorting in her head and enjoys
teaching other writers.
You can learn more about Paty at
her blog; www.patyjager.blogspot.com her website; http://www.patyjager.net or on Facebook; https://www.facebook.com/#!/paty.jager
, Goodreads http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1005334.Paty_Jager and twitter;
@patyjag.
13 comments:
Intriguing post, Paty. Thank you for giving us a peek into the workings of your creative mind!
Isabella and Tino sound like great characters for action-adventure romance.
Hi, Paty!
Isn't it fun to brew up a character? You and I agree on justice! I must read this book. Oh, so many books...!
Loved the post. It's so much fun when the characters come to you all put together and talkative!
All the best!
Fun post, Paty. I think it's interesting how all authors seem to have a central theme running through their books. For me it's always been about family, the struggles of family relationships and how they affect my characters.
Your book sounds great! I have it on my kindle, just haven't read it yet. But I will! :)
Hi Sarah, My mind doesn't have a whole lot in it, so I'm glad that I could give you some insight. ;)
D'Ann, I know what you mean! I try to read at least one book from every author I meet, but I'm falling behind! Thank you for stopping in!
Hi Melissa, Yes, it is great when the characters just pop in and don't require a whole lot of digging.
HI Karen! Thanks for stopping in! I agree every author has a theme and they tend to stay true to that theme no matter what book/story they are writing. Thanks!
Checking the box so I can see if any more comments come in.
Hi Paty,
I love learning how authors come up with stories and characters. I'll have to think about the theme...not sure what mine is. One of those things I can recognize, usually, in someone else's writing rather than mine because the story and characters appear in my mind and it doesn't seem like I have to really do much for that to happen.
Judith, It is fun seeing how each writer brings their stories together.
I'm always intrigued by how every author has a different way of developing characters and plots. Yours sounds like a fun and effective way to do it.
Hi Shobhan,
Thanks! It works for me and that's the key. Everyone has to find what works for them.
I think it's wonderful that you sometimes "see" the character in terms of what they are wearing, their ethnicity etc. I have a hard time with that. I KNOW the character from the inside--how they think, feel, react, and why. However, I have a hard time seeing them.
It's the same way for me in real life too. I meet people and remember all kinds of details about who they are and why I like them, but I don't notice/remember what they wear, how tall they are, what color the hair. Consequently, when I encounter them again I don't put faces with names.
For my characters I overcome this by immediately finding a picture of someone online that I believe could be that character. I keep that picture in a folder so anytime I need to describe something I have it.
I like the interview with your friend. The question: Why? is so important when brainstorming. Great how Isabella just popped into your mind!
Maggie. I think what they where and the details around them help to concrete them in my mind.
Hi Diana! Thanks. Julie is a good brainstormer.
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