Saturday, May 22, 2010

Wannabe Writers #17

Wannabe Writers is a weekly meme hosted by Sarah at Confessions of the Un-Published. This meme is what prompted me to start Writer Quirk, so I am thankful to Sarah for creating it and allowing ANYONE (even a quirkster like me) to join up. So go visit her site and the others who participate. Do it.


Where I am in the writing process:  I haven't gotten to write much on my current WIP this week, but I have been brainstorming on ways to make my MC's life difficult interesting.

My current problem(s):  Time!  I have been working a lot on this blog and have been busy with the rest of my life (job interviews, friends, family) and been sick this past week so finding the time has been more difficult.  Hopefully in a few weeks my work schedule will change and provide me with more time to do what I love.

Sarah's ???:  Do you recommend finishing (and polishing) a novel, even if you know the story would never be strong enough for publication?  To finish just for the sake of finishing or to focus your energies on a better project? 

My answer:  Yes!  I can't imagine just letting the characters I have created and care about just sit in limbo and never finish their story.  Even if I will never see it published, I want to know how it all turns out.  When it comes to a better project, I might put the lesser project aside to work on others for a while, but I would eventually finish it.  You never know, it may one day be the better project as your writing progresses and you become more skilled at the craft.

My ???:  [Last week, I asked about character introductions, and I received a lot of great feedback. In particular, Margo over at Writing at High Altitude suggested I do a character profile, including favorite childhood memory and most traumatic experience, to better understand how the character would interact with others.]  What kinds of information do you try and determine in a character profile - simple stuff such as favorite color, food, etc., or do you go for the more complex stuff (like what Margo mentioned)? Any and all suggestions and examples are welcome!


Thanks for visiting!

2 comments:

  1. Hi! Personally, I don't do character sketches because for me it makes my characters come off wooden and fake. That's just me, of course, but I have to learn about my character in a more organic fashion, just probing them and learning who they are by feel. I wish it was a documentable process...

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  2. I use a character questionnaire I found at QueryTracker: http://querytracker.blogspot.com/2010/03/dig-little-deeper-getting-to-know-your.html

    It's got a good mix of light and medium-heavy stuff. :-)

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