Stuff I Learned at My Writing Workshop (That Iām Kicking Myself in the Head for Not Realizing Sooner):
-Ā The difference between a book that grabs you from the beginning vs. one that youāre on the fence about tossing out the window is winning your trust.Ā Itās why itāsĀ āeasierā to read books by authors you already know, or fanfic where youāre familiar with the characters. Winning the readerās trust as quickly as possible should be your first goal as a writer when youāre going back and editing your first draft. This can be accomplished by things like: speaking authoritatively about the subject (even if itās utter bullshit), graceful prose, orĀ establishing quickly in the story what itās about. For example,āCharacter A had a problem. Character B didnāt love them back, so Character A was going to kidnap them so they would.ā Maybe itās not a story you want to read, but you are now firmly couched in what you signed up for in this story and the promiseĀ the author is going to deliver on before the end.Ā
- Characters need goals. They need goals in every moment and in every scene. Every character needs a goal in every moment and in every scene. Maybe theyāre not directlyĀ pursuing that goal right this very momentĀ but itās probably always at the back of their mind. Romances and detective stories are the easiest to deliver on this need. Character A wants to win their love. Detective A wants to solve the case. Even when theyāre having tea with grandma, their thing is at the back of their mind. Keeping your character and your storyĀ focused on this thing they want helps pull your reader along and keeps them engaged on theĀ āSo what?ā andĀ āWhy are we reading this scene?ā questions of why they should keep reading.
- Characters shouldnāt just have things they like, they should have obsessions. This is the one Iām kicking myself for. The scientists in Pacific Rim are eccentrically obsessed with studying theirĀ thing. Thorin in the Hobbit is obsessed with regaining his home. Katniss Everdeen is obsessed with protecting her sister. Every crazy whackadoodle fandom darling character is obsessedĀ with something. What do they have in common? Theyāre intensely obsessedĀ with the thing that they care about. We loveĀ characters who are obsessed with things beyond reason, whether itās reclaiming their home stolen by a dragon, or building artisanal bird houses, saving your sister, or studying monsters. EveryoneĀ ālikesā things, but people and characters who are obsessedĀ with something fascinate us. Examine the characters youāre most attracted to writing in fanfic, and examine your original characters if youāre trying to build those, and figure out what are they obsessed withĀ and how does that inform their character. Thatās the thing thatās going to make readers care about them.Ā
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I still canāt believe this post that I wrote while running out the door at my writing workshop is still my most popular one.Ā
