Knowing Yourself As An Author

We cannot bring out the best in our writing until we truly understand what our own strengths and weaknesses as an author are. We play to our strengths and look for help for the areas we are weak in. We have to do both - doing only one or the other is going to end up in what I call "lopsided writing".

How do we define our strengths? Look at what comes easily to you. Are you able to envision the big picture of a project from the beginning? Are you good at defining your characters? Does that first paragraph write itself? Do your characters work well together? Are you good with details? Are you writing for your intended audience? Are you organized? Does your story hang together? Your strengths are what will make your work shine! Use them wisely!

How do we define our weaknesses? Truth be told, we may not know what they are. Some things to look for are: (1) Sections that don't hold together, or are simply boring. You run the chance of losing your readers here. (2) Losing focus. If your story starts wandering, it has lost its legs. Even if your readers continue reading, they have lost what your story is trying to tell them. (3) Your story doesn't flow. A story that flows holds the readers interest - one that does not loses them. (4) Writing that is too wordy. I am certainly guilty of this. We all like our own words, but we fail to realize that sometimes they just are not necessary. If your words are not adding to the story, they do not belong there. (5) Use of phrases that say nothing, like "in my opinion", "really", "actual". If a word or phrase says nothing - delete it!

Pay attention to your gut feelings when you are editing copy. If it doesn't sound right, if it doesn't feel right, then it isn't right! Change it, or delete it. You are the author, this is your story - make it shine!

(c) June 2019 Bonnie Cehovet

Reproduction prohibited without written permission of the author. 

Defining Characters

I am about to start the "redemption" of my 2010 NaNoWriMo mystery. I thought that I was going to be able to go back, make a few changes, and move things forward. Then I realised a couple of things - (1) this book has to be as tight as it can be, because I want it to be the first in a series of mysteries based on these characters, and (2) I had defined a major player - the partner of my main character - based solely on what I thought that I needed him to do in this book. He ended up in a very specialised vocation, which could/would be a hinderence in future stories - or he would have to be killed off and a new partner brought in. Back to the bible - this character is going to be recreated, as someone that works well with the main character, and could plausibly be her partner.

I already had to redefine the crime element, as, again, I had gone into too specialised an area, where nothing was going to sound authentic. Major rewrite time here, but better now than after the first person to read it says "Ummm I don't think that I can really connect with this story. It is well written though! Have to go ... talk to you later!"

I think that I am going to change where the characters live also. I am, yet again, writing about an area that I know nothing about. I can easily move the characters one state over, and still have the crime in the intended state and city. The city that I am moving them to has much more appeal ... and I lived there for seventeen years!

Dream the big dreams, follow those dreams, and act on them. But make them real, make them doable. Manifesting them will then be oh so much easier! ;-)

I really do think it is time for a nice glass of wine!

(c) August 2011 Bonnie Cehovet

Where Is This Book Coming From!

I am on my way with completing my 2010 NaNoWriMo project, which is intended to be the first in a series of mysteries. Lots of revelations, let me tell you! I knew that I had chosen to base my characters in an area that I had not only never lived in, but that I had never been to. What I didn't stop to think was how much research that was going to entail! From the little things, like how the city is laid out, to slightly more involved things, such as street names, freeways, and where other physical places are in relation to the city they live in. (i.e. Would they be driving 'up to" a given location, or "down to" said location.)

I made the decision to "upscale" my characters, way out of where I am in life, so here goes more research on where they would live, where they would dine, where they would shop, the designer cloths they would wear, the cars they would drive ... the list is endless! Incredibly interesting, but endless.

I am having a great time giving my characters background, placing them in interesting career fields, and moving them around the globe. Think kid in a candy store here!

A sneaky thought is becoming stronger and stronger, and is something that I did not expect. My characters are not based on myself, or on anyone that I know. That is just not how this book is developing. However, I have three major female characters (well, four in this first book, but the fourth character has not been introduced "in person" yet, just referred to), and while their physical characteristics are very different, I am coming to realize that their personalities are very much alike. They could be different aspects of the same person! I am going to have to watch that closely, to make sure that they come across as individuals.

I am beginning to think that it is a very good thing that I have already decided to have this book professionally edited. I am going to need massive help on this! The good thing is that I have a friend who has asked to read the book, and possibly submit this to an editor that she knows for with an online publishing company. If it gets accepted, it will of course get further editing and polishing, and I will be ready to move on to the next book in the series. If it doesn't get accepted, I will self-publish.

You have to love the process!

(c) March 2011 Bonnie Cehovet

Defining Your Characters

This is my first time writing for NaNoWriMo - no pressure at all! I am takng the next few days to define my characters, after which I will be working on defining theme and plot. I have five characters in mind so far:

1. My protagonist.
2. An oriental gentleman that moves the story along, appearing and disappearing at will.
3. The (allegedly) deceased father of my protagonist.
4. A mysterious woman who is connected to the allegedly deceased father.
5. A close friend of the allegedly deceased father, who has taken on the role of mentor since the father's alleged death.

The areas that I am going to use to define them are:

1. Age
2. Physical characteristics
3. Career/work environment
4. Home environment
5. Family/cultural background
6. Friends
7. Schooling

This should give me a fairly good idea of what drives my characters, and how they will act/react in any given situation. That's the plan, anyway! I am quite sure that in the end they will take over the keyboard, and I will end up as the editor, and not the author!

(c) October 2010 Bonnie Cehovet