I have long heard authors talk about torturing characters to make stories stronger. I have done a little of that with different characters in my stories. The thing is, I find it easier to torturer one-time characters. Going one step further, torturing those characters that only appear in a short story. I guess it’s like people. The better you get to know someone, the more protective of that person (assuming you like them) you get. Such is the way of it with my characters. In fact, I have had to mentally prepare myself to do the necessary torturing with some of my recurring characters just so I can write the scenes effectively. Even then I sometimes find myself easing off […]
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Doors and Windows
I’m sure you have all heard the saying, “When one door closes, another one opens somewhere.” I have also heard that saying expanded to include windows (so make sure you have your burglar skills honed). I will admit, when I first heard people using the phrase (usually in an attempt to cheer me up) I was skeptical. I mean, where is it written in the cosmic rule book that things need to be fair? Where is it written that for every minus there should be a plus (okay, Lavoisier’s Law of Conservation of Mass DOES say that, but I hope you catch my drift). My skepticism decreased somewhat when I saw examples of door close/door open but I credited that […]
Read moreGet Published Episode 145 – LDCrichton Talks About Agents
Happy New Year everyone! Have you ever had the experience where you buy a certain make and model car and suddenly you see them everywhere you go? Chances are pretty good that it isn’t because everyone else suddenly bought the car like you. It is more likely because you are more aware of that particular car. Why do I bring up this little analogy? Well, it seems like everyone I know is suddenly getting an agent. I know that isn’t actually true but I have certainly seen a number of people make that relationship a part of their careers. I’m pretty sure I’m noticing it more because it has been on my mind a great deal lately. So, because it […]
Read moreStepping Away from your Work
I have heard many authors say that prior to editing something, you should put it aside for a period of time first. That way you are coming back to it with fresh eyes. I’ve used that technique myself successfully many times but only ever on a finished project. Today, I had the opportunity to pick up something I had worked on a couple months ago but not completed. I decided to reread what I had already written so I could more easily pick up where I left off. The first thing that hit me was, the writing was better than I remembered (don’t you love when that happens?). The second thing was I discovered a way to enrich the story […]
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