Looking back/reviews is my theme for tonight as I cover this in my This World and Others post where I talk about the usefulness of reviews and for my Chandler's Ford Today post this week where I look back at my writing year. (I also share some recently published stories of mine from Cafelit, all on a Christmas theme. Hope you like them).
Do your characters look back at their lives at all? (You should as their creator! Have they developed? If so, positively or negatively? How does this impact on the story?). If the characters do look back at their own lives, why are they doing it? Are they trying to learn from past mistakes and do they actually do so? How does that "look back" change their behaviour (for better or worse) and how does that change the direction in which they go?
Sometimes Character B can look back at Character A's life and this can be because:-
1. They don't like the changes in A's life now (and they may be right to take that view!). By drawing A's attention to this, B is hoping to get A back to where they used to be.
2. Character B is comparing themselves with A, especially if A has gone on to be really successful. (We all do this for real so why shouldn't our characters do so?! What is interesting here is how does B respond? Are they jealous? Do they seek to improve themselves or try to "do A down"?).
3. Character B is delighted Character A has changed (and again they may well be right. Equally they may be pleased because A has worsened and it makes B look better! B does not have to have noble motives here!).
All three of these points could generate some fascinating stories. Happy writing - and I hope you receive plenty of books, in whichever format, over Christmas. Stories are wonderful and Christmas is a great time to celebrate them. As a Christian, I celebrate what, for me, is the greatest story - that of Christ's birth in Bethlehem, but whether you share my beliefs or not, I hope you have a lovely Christmas season and New Year.
Just to finish: something from my From Light to Dark and Back Again book page on Facebook. A little Christmas scene and story...
In the middle of the Christmas rush
There was an old man carving a brush
He was clearly an expert in wood
He could make any timber look good
Right by the old High Street church he was
He so wanted to be there because
The God he loved was a carpenter
A worker should be at the centre
Of the scene, as the shepherds had been
There long before the wise men were seen.
The man liked a God who worked with His hands
In the tableau He was in swaddling bands.
Allison Symes - 22nd December 2017
Do your characters look back at their lives at all? (You should as their creator! Have they developed? If so, positively or negatively? How does this impact on the story?). If the characters do look back at their own lives, why are they doing it? Are they trying to learn from past mistakes and do they actually do so? How does that "look back" change their behaviour (for better or worse) and how does that change the direction in which they go?
Sometimes Character B can look back at Character A's life and this can be because:-
1. They don't like the changes in A's life now (and they may be right to take that view!). By drawing A's attention to this, B is hoping to get A back to where they used to be.
2. Character B is comparing themselves with A, especially if A has gone on to be really successful. (We all do this for real so why shouldn't our characters do so?! What is interesting here is how does B respond? Are they jealous? Do they seek to improve themselves or try to "do A down"?).
3. Character B is delighted Character A has changed (and again they may well be right. Equally they may be pleased because A has worsened and it makes B look better! B does not have to have noble motives here!).
All three of these points could generate some fascinating stories. Happy writing - and I hope you receive plenty of books, in whichever format, over Christmas. Stories are wonderful and Christmas is a great time to celebrate them. As a Christian, I celebrate what, for me, is the greatest story - that of Christ's birth in Bethlehem, but whether you share my beliefs or not, I hope you have a lovely Christmas season and New Year.
Just to finish: something from my From Light to Dark and Back Again book page on Facebook. A little Christmas scene and story...
In the middle of the Christmas rush
There was an old man carving a brush
He was clearly an expert in wood
He could make any timber look good
Right by the old High Street church he was
He so wanted to be there because
The God he loved was a carpenter
A worker should be at the centre
Of the scene, as the shepherds had been
There long before the wise men were seen.
The man liked a God who worked with His hands
In the tableau He was in swaddling bands.
Allison Symes - 22nd December 2017
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