Okay, I don’t think this post turned out exactly like what I wrote, and then accidently deleted last night, but it will have to do. I think last night’s intended post was more user friendly, but it is what it is. 🙂

What do you need to think about when you first begin to write a book? Characters, setting, and plot are essential elements of every story, but how do you develop them. Authors differ greatly in their approach to writing. Some authors just sit down and began typing, while others diligently outline and plan each chapter of their novel. I teach writing, and I instruct my students to outline and plan because it is necessary for their purpose. Outlining is also very helpful to writers who have little experience in structuring a novel.

What do I think about as I begin a novel? I think about the characters, the setting, and the plot. Although, I don’t set out an outline on paper, I engage in a mental process that actually sets the “work” into motion. There is a tremendous amount of thought that goes into character development, and it is my goal to create characters that my readers can truly “fall” for. My desire is to invent characters that are so real that even after the last page is turned, the reader is wondering what’s going to happen next.

Moon Dance has had this reaction on many of my readers. I receive e-mails and calls all the time asking about my main characters, Maggie and Joe. Every time a reader responds to my “character creation” this way, I feel I’ve accomplished what I set out to do when I “invented” them.

How do I develop a character? In a way, they are a compilation of people I’ve known throughout my life, and somehow they just come together in my mind. I attempt to develop vivid characters through the use of imagery, or painting a picture with words. I love adjectives, adverbs, metaphors, similes, alliteration… basically any sensory elements that help to “bring my characters to life”.

There are a lot of writers who write in this style, as well as those who detest descriptive writing. I think back on all the books I’ve read in my life, and what draws me into a story. Consistently, I find myself drawn to novels whose characters evoke an emotional response in me. For me, if I can’t visualize the story in my mind, it’s just dull. For example, think about Harry Potter. If J.K. Rowlings hadn’t applied such wonderfully descriptive words to describe her characters, the world would never have “fallen” for them as hard as they did. The characters of Harry, Ronald, and Hermione were not merely introduced to us, but “born” through emotive descriptions.

My latest creation is still in the “baby” stage. My characters haven’t fully formed in my mind. They haven’t “come alive” to me yet. I’ve written a short prologue/introduction/I’m not really sure yet what it will be, yet I know it will change over time as my characters develop. I’ll revisit this passage many times before the novel is finished to adjust and add to my characters’ personalities. I wonder how they will turn out.