The Hero's Journey

In 1949, American comparative mythology scholar, Joseph Campbell, published The Hero With a Thousand Faces. In it he introduced the concept of the monomyth. He observed that throughout classical literature, especially ancient Greek mythology, a pattern existed in the development of the main characters. He called it the Hero’s Journey. Even if your main character is not a classical hero, you may benefit from working through this character development exercise. If nothing else, it will help you develop a story arc for your character. In the best case, it may form the basis for your plot outline.

It goes something like this:

ACT I: Departure

1. Call to Adventure

2. Refusal of the Call

3. Meeting the Mentor

4. Crossing the Threshold to the Special World

5. The Belly of the Whale

ACT II: Initiation

6. The Road of Trials

7. The Meeting with the Goddess

8. Woman as Temptress

9. Atonement with the Father

10. Apotheosis

11. Reward, Seizing the Sword

ACT III: Return

12. Refusal of the Return

13. The Magic Flight

14. Rescue from Without

15. Crossing the Return Threshold

16. Master of Two Worlds

17. Return with Elixir

In my next blog post I’ll dissect each step in Campbell’s monomyth. Using this outline to develop your characters is a good way to really get to know them better. I believe that the antagonist of a story is often someone who took the hero’s journey but didn’t finish it successfully. Try brainstorming this outline with your major villain to see where he failed.

 

Keep writing, remember, Nanowrimo is just three months away!

Don’t forget to check out my trilogy, The Queen of the Night series at http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=series_rw_dp_labf?_encoding=UTF8&field-collection=The%20Queen%20of%20the%20Night%20Series&url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text/.

 

How to Make Your Characters Dynamic

The most interesting characters are those that change throughout the story. Examining what events will affect the characters perception and personality will not only help you understand the character better, it will start the process of developing the plot of the novel. I think that both the protagonist and the antagonist should be dynamic characters. If the novel is a romance, the love interest should also change as the story progresses.

Here are some questions that will help you determine how your major characters change throughout the novel.

What is the character’s self-image at the beginning? Is she an introvert or an extrovert? Is she an optimist or a pessimist?

At the beginning of the story, what makes the character happy or sad? What does the character want most? If she could change one thing about her life, what would it be?

How do others perceive the character at the start of the story?

Now, envision the character changing events that will become part of the plot. What obstacles are overcome? What decisions does the character make? What are the character’s significant successes or failures?

As a result of these events, what personality traits change throughout the story and are those changes desired or undesired? Do they make the character a better person or a worse person?

After brainstorming the major events in the plot that change the character, you should revisit the questions on self-image, things that make the character happy or sad, and what the character wants most at the end of the story.

Finally, how do others perceive the character at the end of the story? Who is affected by the changes in the character and how are they affected.

The main character in my self-published trilogy, The Queen of the Night Series, starting with SEEING MAGIC, is Maggie Stewart. At the beginning of the trilogy she is a self-absorbed, materialistic, shallow teenage girl from California. Her biggest worry is whether to hang out at the beach or the mall with her girlfriends. After her mother’s battle with cancer, and her own battle against the goddess of the Moon, she transforms into an environmental activist and community leader. Find out more about Maggie and her transformation at http://www.amazon.com/author/lauraewrites/.

Maggie is definitely a heroine and my next post will examine two studies of the Hero’s Journey. One examines the concept from the perspective of the great Greek heroes in classical literature. The other started as a primer for scriptwriters of Disney fairytale movies for kids. Until then, keep developing those characters. By the time Nanowrimo starts in November, they will be good friends and the words will flow from your fingertips.

 

Is It Okay to Talk to Your Fictional Characters?

I find that if I know my characters well before I start writing my novel, I’m less likely to develop writer’s block. For that reason, I spend a good deal of time developing my characters before I ever start writing the book, or before I develop the plot.

Every story has a main character. The main character is usually the good guy, or the protagonist. The main character is always dynamic. Throughout the course of the story, the main character will change. Either their personality will evolve, their career path, or purpose in life will become clear. Whatever the story, at the end of the novel, the main character will not be the same person he or she was at the beginning.

In order to conceptualize this change, I want to know everything about my main character. More importantly, I need to like her. Most of my stories feature bright, capable young women who reach beyond their fears and limitations to achieve something great. That means my main character is a heroine, changed by some event that she could not have anticipated.

I start with a detailed character sketch. I ask the questions, what is/are…

·                     Her name, and/or nickname,

·                     Her physical appearance,

·                     Her family, or who lives with her, including pets

·                     Her closest friends and her mentor,

·                     Her love interest (if any),

·                     Her worst enemy,

·                     Her personality traits, i.e. introvert/extrovert, quirks, assumptions, secrets, regrets, weaknesses, vices and past trauma,

·                     Her goals, dreams and fears,

·                     Her special skills or innate abilities,

·                     Her religion or moral values,

·                     Her likes and dislikes, i.e., favorite color, food, music, etc., and

·                     Her most significant childhood memory, and character changing events in life so far.

How do I find out the answers to these questions? I ask her. So yes, it is okay to talk to your fictional characters, provided they don’t really talk back. After all, as Hermione said, “Hearing voices is never a good thing.”

Good luck getting to know your main character. In the next post, I’ll discuss how a character changes over the course of the story and how to develop that change as part of your character sketch.

 

Remember to check out my books at

www.amazon.com/author/lauraewrites

Prepping for Nanowrimo 2016

What’s the trick to writing a good novel? I don’t know, and I’ve written eight of them. I do know that every novel must have three things: interesting characters, fascinating settings and an intriguing plot. This year, I’ve been thinking a lot about how I want to develop these three things for my own novels. I’ll discuss exercises, templates, outlines and examples of how to develop these elements of novel-writing before starting a new novel, and hopefully, become better prepared for Nanowrimo 2016 this November.

I use Scrivener to organize my novels. My Scrivener template will be available on my Google Drive for anyone who wishes to download it. Just follow the link: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0BzGNFy181nZiM0J5TGI3WXJyUkE/

My template is organized into the following sections:

1.      Manuscript – Chapters and Scenes

2.      Plot Development – contains exercises and the final outline

3.      Character Development – contains useful exercises for developing characters

4.      Setting Development – contains links and ideas for visualizing settings

5.      Front Matter – Contains elements needed for publication like copyright notices and dedications

6.      Research – a repository of all research including web pages and scanned items

7.      Marketing – a repository for submissions to agents, contest entries and advertising

If you want to get your own copy of Scrivener, go to their web site at http://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php/.

My next post will examine how to develop an interesting character, and don’t forget to check out my self-published novels at http://www.amazon.com/author/lauraewrites/.

Interview with author, Liz DeJesus

FIRST FROST (Musa Publishing, June 2012) is a charming novel that falls into my very favorite category, the Young Adult Fantasy. Like the popular TV series, Once Upon A Time, FIRST FROST assumes that fairy tales are real in another dimension, but that’s where the similarities end. The descendants of Snow White seek refuge from persecution by relocating to Delaware…and it works. Bianca Frost and her mother run a children’s museum filled with fairy tale artifacts until an evil witch tracks them down. The witch wants Queen Mirabel’s spell book and revenge. When she kidnaps Bianca’s mother and drags her through a magic portal, Bianca must risk everything to bring her back.

This week I’ve had a chance to interview the author of FIRST FROST, Liz DeJesus. 

What drew you to write in the genre of YA Fantasy? 
I’ve always been interested in fantasy, fairy tales and young adult books. I think that the right story and characters came along when I needed them to. :) 

How did you come up with the idea of FIRST FROST? 
I got the idea for First Frost while watching a commercial for a local children’s museum. I thought about how cool it would be to have themed museums (pirates, dinosaurs, fairy tales) all geared towards children. And once I got the idea for a fairy tale museum I just knew that I have to write this down. And before I knew it, First Frost was born.  

Tell us about the sequel to FIRST FROST, GLASS FROST (Musa Publishing, July 2013). 
In Glass Frost Bianca goes back to Everafter with Ming. Queen Felicia has asked Terrance to find Bianca and ask her for help locating Cinderella’s glass slipper. 

What other publications have you released?
I have written a novel titled Morgan (Indie Gypsy, Summer 2014), The Laurel (Musa Publishing, Winter 2014, and a few short stories that were featured in these anthologies, Night Gypsy, Someone Wicked and Twice Upon a Time. I’m also the author and creator of the comic book Zombie Ever After (Emerald Star Comics, Winter 2014). I’m still working on the third installment of the Frost Series, Shattered Frost. 

This blog tour just happens to occur during National Novel Writing Month. What advice would you give to new novelists? 
Don’t let fear stop you from writing. A lot of writers let fear and anxiety stop them from writing their novel or from finishing their work because they are often worried about what people will think when it gets published. I don’t think about that kind of stuff. I write to entertain myself first and then I worry about what everyone else will think. 

Do you participate in writer’s organizations, critique groups or writer’s forums? How have memberships in these groups helped you as a writer?
Personally, I don’t do critique groups. I had a bad experience in the past and decided that I was better off on my own and I like not having the pressure of impressing my colleagues. But the one thing that has helped is a Facebook group called 250 Plus. The goal is to write 250 words a day and in this group you share your progress and people give each other positive support for however many words you were able to write. 

You’ve published FIRST FROST and GLASS FROST through Musa Publishing. How did you become involved with Musa? 
I LOVE Musa Publishing. I still can’t remember exactly how I stumbled upon their website. All I know is that ever since I signed a contract with them my life and career has changed for the best. I have learned so much about writing through them and I will be eternally grateful for them for everything they’ve done for me.

Why did you choose them to produce your work? 
I chose them to produce my work because I liked the fact that they were supportive of authors and their contracts were available on their website at the time. It was full transparency. They weren’t hiding anything from the authors. 

They have things set up that I can check on my sales any time. I can email them a question and hear back that same day. I can call and speak to an actual person when I need an answer right away. If I need postcards? They design them and place the order for me ASAP. I need a banner? Same deal. They’ll  design it and order it for me and I’ll have it in my hands in a few days. I can seriously go on and on about how amazing the staff is at Musa Publishing.

Thank you for taking the time to share your work with us.

About the Author- 

Liz DeJesus was born on the tiny island of Puerto Rico.  She is a novelist and a poet. She has been writing for as long as she was capable of holding a pen. She is the author of the novel Nina (Blu Phi'er Publishing, October 2007), The Jackets (Arte Publico Press, March 2011) First Frost (Musa Publishing, June 2012), Glass Frost (Musa Publishing, July 2013), Morgan (Indie Gypsy, July 2014) and The Laurel (Musa Publishing, November 2014). Her work has also appeared in Night Gypsy: Journey Into Darkness (Indie Gypsy, October 2012) and Someone Wicked (Smart Rhino Publications, Winter 2013).

Liz is currently working on a new novel and a comic book series titled Zombie Ever After (Emerald Star Comics, Fall 2014).

Find out more about Liz DeJesus and all her published works at the following links:

Goodreads- http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18040360-glass-frost

Amazon- http://www.amazon.com/Glass-Frost-ebook/dp/B00E123XBG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1375746951&sr=8-1&keywords=Glass+Frost

Barnes & Noble- http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/glass-frost-liz-dejesus/1116108178?ean=2940148381792

Goodreads-  http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/338350.Liz_DeJesus

Website- http://www.lizdejesus.com/

Frost SeriesTwitter- https://twitter.com/Liz_DeJesus23

Zombie Ever After Twitter- https://twitter.com/zombieeverafter

Amazon Author Page- http://www.amazon.com/Liz-DeJesus/e/B004HJN9YY/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

Frost Series Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/FirstFrost1?fref=ts

Zombie Ever After Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/ZombieEverAfter

"Strange Donation"

My Halloween-themed flash fiction piece, "Strange Donation" just won second place in Morning Rain Publishing's Freaky Flash Fiction 2014 Contest. Follow this link to read my story and all the other winners at http://morningrainpublishing.com/blog/.

Interview with author, Simon Paul Wilson

This week I’ve had the opportunity to interview author, Simon Paul Wilson, whose novel, YUKO ZEN IS SOMEWHERE ELSE, will be released by the Pankheast Group on October 31.

YUKO ZEN IS SOMEWHERE ELSE started off as a the introspective musings of a loney man, morphed into a coming-of-age novel for a teenage girl, and ended up being a sci-fi/fantasy battle of good versus evil. Unique and always surprising, YUKO ZEN IS SOMEWHERE ELSE is a joy to read. The major turning point of the story, the point after which I couldn’t stop reading, was when Yuko lost her best friend.

What made you think of this plot twist as the way to move the story less from the ramblings of a teenage girl, and more into a supernatural thriller?

Personally, I like movies and books that start as one thing and then gradually morph into something quite different. Something I really wanted to do with Yuko was create a character that readers would become attached to or relate with, to give people a character they would be interested in and root for. My intention all along was to build Yuko's world, knock it down, and replace it with something that was far from normal. If a reader is truly into a character, then they will follow him or her, no matter where they go. That's what I hope people will do with Yuko. 

In the end, the main characters are challenged by the forces of evil, which fear Yuko’s potential power. This part of the story reminded me of the parable of Job, where Job becomes an unwitting pawn in a games of wills between God and Satan. 

Do you think we are all playthings for the forces of good and evil?

Interesting question! I think we all have good and bad inside us. It's up to us which one of those we decide to be our master or guiding force. If we were to think of our emotions and how they can control us, I guess we could say we are playthings of good and evil, in a way. Yeah, interesting question...

At the end of YUKO ZEN IS SOMEWHERE ELSE, good wins out and circumstances are changed. Here in America, our western ideology demands that good always prevails. That’s not necessarily true for other cultures. 

How much of your work is influenced by the teachings of Eastern mythologies versus Western ones?

To be honest, the original ending of Yuko Zen was a little bit more ambiguous and in keeping with Eastern fiction, especially that of Japan and Korea. Having traveled and lived in Asia for many years, my writing has been deeply influenced by Eastern mythology and culture. I like stories that end and make me think about what may happen next. As for Yuko Zen, does good really win at the end? Or is it a small victory? As the writer, I have my own opinion of what may happen next, I would be very interested to hear what other people think. 

What can we look forward to reading from Simon Paul Wilson in the future?

I am very nearly at the end of a third rewrite of a novel called GhostCityGirl - a cyberpunk ghost story set in future Japan. I have also started work on a new magical realism novel called Ten Things To Do Before I Disappear. I'm very excited about both of them. Let's see what happens!

Tell us more about yourself.

Simon Paul Wilson writes quirky fiction. Originally from the UK, Simon traveled to Asia and found his second home. Heavily influenced by his time in China and Thailand, Simon's stories usually feature kooky Asian girls and ghosts with very long hair. When not writing, Simon listens to post and prog rock at a very loud volume. He also likes to play air-guitar.

Let’s talk about Pankhearst. What excites you most about being part of the Pankhearst group? 

Honestly, I think everything the Pankhearst group releases is top quality writing. I really do feel honoured they like my humble scribbles. I would also like to say I have not been bribed to say good things.

Participate in the launch events (competition and giveaway) at https://www.facebook.com/events/906808869349180/
Before October 31, pre-order YUKO ZEN IS SOMEWHERE ELSE at the following links:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OLYHCOS
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00OLYHCOS
After October 30, get your own copy of YUKO ZEN IS SOMEWHERE ELSE at http://getbook.at/YUKO/

Find out more about Simon Paul Wilson at the following links:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6586179.Simon_Paul_Wilson/

http://spwwriter.weebly.com/

Follow the Pankhearst Group at http://pankhearst.com/.