Insecure Writer's Support Group. Discouraged

IWSG was started by Alex J. Cavanaugh and is designed to encourage and support us writer's who struggle with insecurity. To read other post go here.

I got the blues. It happens to all of us. I don't get them very often. A few years ago I was depressed for a long time but that was 100% related to a severe illness. Now, I'm just down.

Why?

Well...I know that I am a talented writer. Anytime I doubt that I can read my reviews or connect with my critique group and they will tell me, but...

Who the heck invented the word 'but' anyway?

But...I am self published and I'm still struggling for readers to find me. I have a plan, and I'm stubborn enough to follow through with it. Still...

Every time I enter a contest to get published I'm over looked. No explanation. While others around me, some of them I've read, get their work published.

Yes, I've read a few of these people, not all as I said. A handful only and they are not as good a writer as I am. No, I'm not a snob. I've been doing this for close to thirty years and I know good writing. So...why am I not offered a spot in someone's publication?

Well...I don't search out publishers and try very hard because I was humiliated at a conference once and my self esteem can't take to much rejection. My life has been full of rejection and abuse, so I fear too much of the same will silence my muse permanently.

Any suggestions? Any advice? Does Alice have a happy pill?
Nancy

It's a new year, 2016 Insecure Writer's Support Group.

Greeting all on this first Wednesday of the month. Once again, it's the first Wednesday of the month and in this case, of the year. Thanks to Alex J. Cavanaugh. it's also the first post of ISWG for the year.

Insecurities. What are they?

When my daughter was a newborn, I was a little insecure about feeding her, bathing her, getting her dressed and changing her diapers. That all passed in a few short days. Why? Because I had experience and experience builds confidence. Even so, we are often plagued by our insecurities. At the tender age of 64, I can tell you, much of those insecurities are swept away in the aging process.

So besides insecurities, what are your writing goals for 2016?

Mine are to finish, The Rise of Lord Sinon, I'm in the first round of edits now. To write another Halloween Collection and a faerie collection for both Christmas and Valentine's Day next year. Not enough time for V. Day this new year. And of course, to start on Book three of my epic fantasy series, The Chronicles of Gil-Lael. If you look at it all bunched together it looks overwhelming, but if you handle each thing a day at a time you can succeed.

What are some of your insecurities and/or writing goals?
Nancy

To read what others have to say go here.

To purchase any of my books, click the link in the side-bar. A review is always appreciated. 

Insecure Writer's Support Group December 2015

The last post of the year! IWSG was founded by Alex. J. Cavanaugh and has grown to offer a support group and critique group on Facebook. Very impressive.

So, what are you insecure about? Or, can you offer encouragement to others? To read what others have written, go here.


For this last post, I find myself insecure about two things. They are ongoing.

1. My health. I have vasculitis, a form of cancer which has been in remission since I left the hospital at the beginning of April 2014. However, my specialist has me on medication that makes me so tired I hardly get anything done. With an early death a real possibility, I fear not being able to complete my stories.

2. Money or the lack thereof. I am handicapped and unable to work a real job. I was turned down for disability and sweating to make ends meet every month. I wanted to start a small press, but with my fatigue that seems a bad idea. To start a small press, I need classes in promotion, and other business stuff. I am plain too tired.

For the encouragement part, I am determined to pull through. After all, my wonderful grandmother lived to be 104 and a half years old. If she can do it, why not me?

Now for some disturbing news. Amazon is deleting any review they deem written by a friend or family member. If you give a book away, and that person leaves a review, Amazon thinks you paid for the review. Here's the link to the post about it. Disappearing Amazon Reviews.

It might be time to expand away from Amazon.

To end, let me wish you all Happy Holidays.
Nancy

Dreamstime photo number:

 Christmas Drum

ID: 179256

IWSG September sneaks up on us.

Welcome to another Insecure Writers Support Group post created by Alex J. Cavanaugh. It's September, 2015!

My thoughts have turned toward Halloween and with that in mind I'm working on some flash fiction for a Halloween Collection. I'm not a horror writer so mine will be more on the silly to thoughtful side. I have 7 stories that my critique group is looking at. Here's the subjects:

Faerie, Ghouls out trick or treating, Ghost. Zombie. Vampire and Nymph. I believe I have two ghost stories but without looking I can't remember. I wrote most last year and added the nymph and vampire this year.

So, what are you doing? Are you going to enter the IWSG anthology? I need to look into that myself.
Nancy

To read more IWSG post go here.
Nancy

Insecure Writer's Support Group. August 2015

Here we are again, another first Wednesday of the month and posting for IWSG. Thank you, Alex for starting this group.

The last couple months while living in hotels I had such spotty Internet service that I wasn't able to post. Fortunately we now have an apartment.

I am not feeling very insecure at the moment, just exhausted. I finished my manuscript and have been catching up on my critique partners stuff. I'm starting on the edits fo my ms. soon.

So how is life treating you?

I know this isn't every long, but I wanted to at least post something.
Nancy

To read more insecure post go here.

Insecure Writer's Support Group: Mom

Greetings. Another first Wednesday of the month and thanks to Alex J. Cavanaugh another IWSG post.

For the last five years or more I have thought come January 1st, that things couldn't possibly get worse, and yet they do. I have faced one adversity after another, sometimes thinking I wouldn't make it through. But in every situation from nearly dying to being homeless and many more I haven't posted about, I give my heavy heart and the desperation to Jesus. What can I say? Without God I surely would have perished by now.

At this writing I am faced with yet another heavy loss and have cried more than once. Yesterday, I saw my mother for the last time in her lifetime. Today, by the request of her husband, his son is flying them to Seattle, Washington where they will live out their lives. My mother has congestive heart failure along with a host of medical conditions related to that as well as other problems. She is 92 and will be 93 in June. In addition, she has dimenshsia. In the last two weeks, she's been in and out of the hospital twice. She's on oxygen and a special diet. Her husband is in complete denial over her condition and wants to control the situation which includes eliminating her diet needs and oxygen and has told her she won't need them in Washington. If she survives the plane trip it will be a miracle. Not so much from the high altitude, but from exhaustion.

So there you have it, a source of diblitating anxiety and worry. Yesterday, I told her that I loved her and nothing could separate us from our love. She did likewise. That is my comfort. Last night I couldn't write.

So how did I fill the three hours of our last visit? By keeping things positive. I told her how tulips bloom in Washington in February. I told her about a TV special I saw about bird island and described different birds to her. She is a published author too, so I told her about my current WIP and showed her my published work on my kindle. We talked about my childhood experiences. My husband was with me so my mom talked to him too. Her memory is such that sometimes she mixes up current events she's seen on TV with things she did as a child. That can be a challenge. She told me she needed to get back to writing. I agreed with her, after all, writers are writing even in their heads all the time.

Today, I will continue to write, I'm almost done. I will read the submissions from my critique partners. But my heart and thoughts are flying to Washington.

Nancy

To read other inscure post go here/ 

Insecure Writers Support Group; Housing

Greetings. In the last five years I've been through a lot. We lost our home but rescued it in a short sale so we didn't suffer a foreclosure. That procedure took 4 years alone. I published my books, see side bar. I lived in a roach and black mold infested apartment and nearly died. My doctor said break the lease or die. We did. The apartment evicted us and came after their money. We won the court case and they were told to remove the eviction from our credit report. Now we were turned down for an apartment because of the eviction and that we owe too much money since Bank of America hasn't removed their lien on us, illegal on their part. Fortunately we have all the legal documents. Unfortunately, our current landlord gave us two weeks to move. We aren't the only ones. The parking lot is full of rental trucks. The landlord is turning these units into section 8 housing. For non Americans, that means the apartments will be rented to poor people who need government assistance to live. The landlord will then charge the government $1,300.00 a month. He currently gets $850.00 a month. Do you smell a skunk yet?

We were turned down for an apartment due to the above mentioned foreclosure and lien. No apartments are available until May. Those fly by night motels want $70.00 per night or $350.00 per week. We don't have enough unless we don't pay our bills and give up eating.

Are you out of breath yet? I am.

A year ago I was admitted to the hospital and spent ten days in ICU (Intensive Care Unit.) I almost died. Then I was transferred to a rehabilitation center for 5 weeks. People loved me because I was so positive.

All this, the struggle to live, only to be homeless. It sucks!

I've finished chapter  25 of my sequel to The Treasures of Carmelidrium.

Not sure if I'll have the internet to visit anyone. I'm writing this on February 28.

There where two things in life that I valued above all others. To be loved and have security. For me, security is a home. I married a man who was so abused as a child that he doesn't know how to love. He knows how to criticize. And I have no home. Panic is an emotion I'm submerging in boiling water to release myself from it's hold.

Sorry this is a downer.
Nancy

To visit others who will be ore positive, go here.

Insecure Writers Support Group, What's Up?

Greetings all, it's the first Wednesday in February and that means it's time for IWSG, created by the thoughtful Alex J. Cavanaugh who is practicing his ninja skills even as you read this. But instead of flashing swords, he brandishes a guitar. If you'd like to read more IWSG post go here.

My name is Nancy and I publish under my initials, N. R. Williams. I'm too old but, I won't tell you just how old I am. Sorry.

I'm about 3 quarters of the way done with the sequel to my epic fantasy, The Treasures of Carmelidrium. Which is available as an e-book on Amazon. See the side bar. I could use some more reviews.

I bet I can guess what you're going to say. "I don't read fantasy." No problem, my book is easy to read for anyone. There's mystery and suspense, music, a villain and romance. Oh yeah baby. It has it all.

The sequel is long over do but I have a good excuse. I almost died. My recovery has taken some time. But now I'm whipping through the chapters at about five a week. Of course, once it's done I have to edit, rewrite, edit and then send it off to my editor.

The title is, The Rise of Lord Sinon and I hope to release it this fall.

That's my news, same as last time. What's up with you?

Nancy

Here's a tease.

Warning: Includes a spoiler to the ending of the first book.

Lord Sinon Awiergan stood in the center of the Library at Château de Talaith. Coal from hell burned his stomach. High King Healden sat at an intricately carved desk in the middle of the room and had yet to look up from the study of a stack of papers. A grandfather clock on Sinon’s right ticked away at his nerves.

The oval room had a spectacular view of the west gardens and the stable. The late summer sun shone through multiple windows and splashed against the rich deep blue carpet. A circular wrought iron staircase connected the main floor to the upper interior balcony which supported grand bookcases. The rosewood dome ceiling finished the magnificent room.

            It was rumored that the windows had been imported from L'Amérique, the queen’s home world. Another time Sinon might have enjoyed the vast display of the grounds and gardens of the château, but at this moment his nerves cut him like razors. 

Insecure Writer's Support Group

It's time for another addition of ISWG, created by Alex J. Cavanuagh.

Today I'm going to make this short. In the post below you'll find my two newest e-books. Both are flash fiction stories and in the next couple weeks I'll have an additional 5 join  them. I'm hoping that readers will finally discover me. Trapped Memories Linger will be free as soon as Amazon changes the status.

Why am I Insecure?

Well, that has to do with my general inability to believe in myself. All I can say is; how we raise our children matters. What we instill in them is important. Even so, life sometimes leaves a stable person wounded. I am one of those. But I have the attitude. "Never give up, never surrender." Galaxy Quest.

I'll let you know if my strategy works.

Nancy

Now Available:

Links are on the side bar.

Nancy

Insecure Writers Support Group, Critique

Time again for the ISWG post, created by Alex J. Cavanuah. To read what others  have posted go here.

I'm not feeling insecure at the moment, but I am feeling a little frustrated. I've been trying to find quality critique partners for some time. My health is finally on the mend enough to allow me to concentrate on my writing and my art for book covers. Critique is an integral part of writing.

What is critique? You may ask.

There are two kinds of critique, maybe more.

Line critique which generally checks for grammar and spelling.

Story critique which checks for the following:
Back story
POV shift
Show don't tell
Hook
Description
Pacing
Plot and more.

I'm very good at the latter.

It is very important that when you send your writing to a critique partner that you first re-read what you have written more than once and correct as much as you can. Our time is valuable, to send off your rough draft is rude.

How to read your critique:
It's important to remember that all critique is opinion. However, much of it is educated opinion. 99% of the time it will be spot on, so consider revising what has been recommended. However, if you really disagree with the comment you shouldn't revise it. If your critique partner didn't understand something, there's a good chance the reader won't either.

So now you've written your story, you've had it critiqued, do you need a beta reader. Not really. Do you need an editor? Absolutely. Especially for those of you who are self publishing. Hire and editor. I know several if you need a reference.

So, that's it for now.

Come and join me for the Write...Edit...Publish challenge later this month. Title: Changing Faces. Go here to learn more.

Nancy

Insecure Writers Support Group, Plot

Greetings everyone. It's time for the ISWG post, created by Alex J. Cavanauh. Great idea don't you think? If you would like to read what others have written in this insecure bloghop click here.

For my submission I'm going to talk about plot.

Oh yeah, plot.

I have never liked the word 'plot.' Sorry but it sounds too much like plop.  So what do you do? Do you plop down a plot? I mean, really. Couldn't we find a more descriptive word to discuss and use to replace the word plot?

What about the word structure? Doesn't a good story have structure? Every detail in it's place. Mapped out to perfection, or at least an attempt at perfection?

Or how about the word framework? When you build a house it must have the frame in place before you can put up the walls, paint it, clean it and arrange furniture.

I recently received a critique about a story I wrote that said I didn't have a plot. It's a romance. You know, boy meets girl, love and marriage. Isn't that the plot of a romance? I don't know. I don't usually write romance. 

I had a book on plot and I wanted to re-read it, but we have moved so many times in the last four years that I fear it has been lost or packed away in a mysterious box. So for now I will just ask the questions above.

Advice is welcome. What do you think?
Nancy

I am looking for experienced critique partners. I have more than 25 years of experience to offer you. Let me know in the comments if you're interested.

If you would like to read my epic fantasy, 'The Treasure of Carmelidrium,' click the link on the right hand side below the book cover. A reveiw is appreciated.

ISWG Emotions and Characters

Today is another addition of the insecure writer's support group or ISWG, brain child of Alex J. Cavanaugh. To read other post go here.

In am a writer. I lay claim to this title by right of my abilities and talent and by the fact that I have written and are still writing. If you are reading my post you are probably also a writer. Why? What drives us to write?

Excellent questions but I'm not going to answer them this time. Rather I want to talk about emotions, both mine and my characters. Some people don't care much about characters. But for me it is the characters that drive the story. If I'm going to invest my time in writing or in reading I want to have interesting characters.

In case you don't know, I am too honest and haven't hidden the fact that my personal life has been difficult and continues to be a challenge both medically and emotionally. I believe this very fact is what makes me a good writer. I have experienced so much sorrow and disappointment coupled with triumph and joy. So in light of all this I am going to make a little fun with a few emotions.

Can you guess the emotion, the health, or the attitude?

1. My gray shades have all turned black.

2. What's the point of trying?

3. I need a nap.

4. Arrgue

5. Interrupted by meaningless tattle.

6. The T.V. is on all day.

7. Pain...pain...go away.

8. Did you see that? Or that? Or what about that?

9. I heard this, because someone said that, because I did this, because, I don't know why.

10. What the heck am I supposed to do now?

The bottom line is that we all have things happen whether we are clear headed, rattled brained or in pain. Sometimes we are all the above. Dust yourself off and type away anyway.

Nancy

In case you didn't notice I have two e-books available. The Treasures of Carmelidrium, an epic fantasy and The Magic of Windlierwoods. Just click on the link below the picture of the book on the side-bar to buy and please remember to leave a review. Thanks, Nancy

IWSG What's in your glass?

Wednesday, February 5, 2014

The first Wednesday of the month is time for the Insecure Writer's Support Group or IWSG, started by Alex J. Cavanuagh. I missed last month partly due to a new computer, a lap top, which I've never had before and subsequently, a big learning curve. To read other submissions in this blog fest or hop or whatever you want to call it go here.

I've been thinking about the over used cliche, Is your glass half....and you know the rest.

Most of us reading these posts are writers in various genres. When we begin a new story we also develop characters for our stories. How much of this cliche do you consider? Is your character a pessimist or an optimist? How does their glass affect the other characters and the over all tone of the story? What about your own life? How do the people you interact with on a daily basis affect you and therefore, affect your writing?

My mother is 92 years old and has dementia. An interesting phenomenon that occurs with this illness is that the happy memories are brought into clearer focus for them. This means that if there is a memory that may have previously brought out some other emotion, it may be (not always) that the person will remember only the good. Why am I telling you this in reference to the glass thing?

When I was a child a teacher switched me from my left hand to my right hand and gave me a learning disability. I wasn't learning. The school wanted my mother to institutionalize me. She taught me phonics and spent a lot of time with me so that I was able to overcome this problem. From my mother's perspective this was a terrible thing and stressed her out a lot. She used to say quite often, "There's something not right with Nancy." I heard that so much that I was held back by those words as much as I was held back by my learning disability that really went away as soon as I could read.

In this case, my mother's half empty glass affected who I became as an adult. On the one hand, she was there for me, but also her attitude limited me.

Recently when I went to visit her she said, "When I told the doctor what they (the school) said about you. (Inferring that the school thought I was mentally disabled.) He (the doctor) laughed. He said you were a brilliant child."

I am 62 years old and I have never heard this before in my life. What a difference this would have made to my self esteem and confidence if I had been told as a child that I was brilliant instead of something was wrong with me.

I strongly believe that when we interact with others we need to bear in mind what we do and say. Likewise, do I want a half empty hero? Or one who may face obstacles, may even stumble, but comes out a better person for it. It's okay to scar your characters, but as a reader, life is hard enough without ending in quick sand.

Of course, you may totally disagree with me. I'd love to hear your thoughts so please leave a comment.

ISWG Why

It's the first Wednesday of the last month of 2013 which means it's time for the Insecure Writer's Support Group or ISWG. Brain child of Alex J. Cavanaugh. When your finished reading my post (and after you comment hopefully,) I have provided a link so you can read other post.

The idea behind this blog hop is to be encouraged or provide encouragement to the blog author who is participating. This month I need a virtual tissue.

It is Monday night as I write this and I have been crying for two hours. Why?

Because I have a demon that follows me around. He is a big blue blob with a down turned mouth and droopy eyes and his name is 'Why should I bother.' Another name he goes by is depression. Oh yes, I suffer from this terrible illness and it has me in its grip tonight. Why?

I have been working hard on a series of short stories with a goal to put them up two weeks apart starting the week of Christmas. My goal is to allow readers to find me. Readers haven't discovered me in any number even though I've got two e-books available. Sadly, I won't achieve my goal. Why?

My computer has been attacked by numerous virus over the last three years and this week it stopped allowing me online. So I put all my stories on a USBkey and dug out my old computer. When I transferred my stories they disappeared from the virus computer altogether. Tonight I tried to put them into the old computer. This monster is very, very, very slow. My stories are not on the USBkey. They have all vanished. Not all is lost though because I don't erase my important emails and my first short story was edited. So I downloaded it. That worked but was very slow. So much so that I fear this computer will not last long enough for me to find enough money to replace it. This means that my almost completed second short story is dust. I have an excerpt here on my blog but that is all and I only had a little more to write. It also means that all the work I did on the sequel to my epic fantasy is also lost, as well as numerous ideas and notes.

I bet a lot of you have had similar things happen to you and you are wondering why I am so down. Let me explain a little further. This kind of thing happens to me all the time. This year alone I have faced one crisis after another. I've listed them.

I need to save $3,000.00 to get my teeth pulled. That doesn't count the dentures I will need. The insurance pays half which means it will really cost over $6,000.00 and no Dentist is willing to help me without the money up front.

I've been trying to save. Because I have a heart murmur this is a life and death crisis. I'm not kidding.

Last spring I was rear ended. They totaled the car. My husband was between jobs so we had to keep the rental past the time frame the Insurance co. paid for it. We had it for six weeks total. Out of pocket cost for us was over $1,000.00.

Three months later I was rear ended again. Everything was paid for by the Insurance co. however that was the week we had hail and flooding here in Colorado. We have a $500.00 deductible. The car repair place said we'd have our car back in 5 days. Because of the weather we added out of pocket Insurance in case the car was hailed on or someone ran into it. Our car took 11 days. Out of pocket cost for us was over $300.00. that is all I had saved for my teeth.

The starter went out on the car the first week of November. We had to go to a loan shark. $600.00

My husbands hours have been cut back. They aren't as busy this time of year.

Last year the company my husband worked for was based in Nebraska. Unknown to us they didn't pay any income taxes to the State of Colorado. We don't owe a lot and we assumed that Colorado would simply keep our tax return. No. Two weeks ago we received a letter stating that his new job had to pay an additional 25%. That equals $200 on $800. I can't pay all the bills now let alone save for my teeth.

Now, my computer has died and I've lost all my stories.

So you see, I have a good reason to cry. And because these kinds of things happen to me year after year, I have begun to ask the question. Why should I bother?

If you'd like to help my stories are on Amazon in e-format. Click the links at the top left banner of this blog. they are both only 99 cents. If you'd like to read an excerpt from my short story scroll down to the post below this one. (The Treasures of Carmelidrium, an epic fantasy and The Magic of Windlier Woods, a children's story.) Some of you have already purchased and read them, thank you.

Thanks for your time.
Nancy

To read other post click the link below.

http://alexjcavanaugh.blogspot.com/p/the-insecure-writers-support-group.html

PS. It's Tuesday night. My eyes are burning due to all the crying I did. My emotions are better so it's back to work. I must write. I'm a writer. Nancy

IWSG First Person You Say

Greetings all my friends. November already and time for the Insecure Writers Support Group post created by Alex J. Cavanuagh. We post the first Wednesday of the month.

Copyright 2013

Today I'm talking comfort. In your writing that is.

What voice best suits you? Do you switch it up?

My best voice is 3rd person. However, I have a short story series I'm working on that must be 1st person. Everything is viewed from my heroine's point of view because she is unique. She is a phoenix. So not only am I writing in 1st person, out of my comfort zone, but I'm writing from the view point of a bird.

Problem:

Oh yeah, there's a problem. I struggle so much with 1st person. The writing is much slower then I want it to be. I struggle, write something, delete what I wrote, write something else, delete that, until I finally figure out what the single most important thing to my character is in that particular story. Add to this that I'm traveling through real history and putting her in various locations and you have maximum stress. Why?

Why? Because I'm comfortable making up new worlds and inventing monsters that aren't real. History, while I love it, and sticking a fictional character into it, and having something worth your time to tell, are difficult for me.

Nevertheless. This character introduced herself to me and her story must be told.

Can you relate? Let me know.
Nancy

To read other IWSG post go here.

Curious about my short story series. Here is an excerpt.

Anastasia Phoenix, Book 1, Capture.

Chapter 1

Fine spun silver reflected the spring sunlight. I angled my head slightly to study it. A shiny silver aura glowed from the metal, untarnished by recent handling. Sparkling jewels and precious metals fascinated me. I, who have the entire world as my treasure, desire the beautiful things that come from within it. I wondered who’d lost the necklace? A gentle woman, no doubt, but it must have been some time ago since I didn’t detect her scent or see her imprint on the metal. I knew the danger man posed to our kind. We stayed clear. Even studying men had risks. If one of them caught me, I might be plucked like a hen, or worse. Still, there was no scent of man nearby.

I waited. The heart of the forest throbbed to a rhythm that I saw as well as felt. The trees glowed in their natural aura of browns and greens. The nearby pond issued little blue bubbles that broke just above the calm water. A single fish leapt from the pond and caught a fly, their essence becoming one before my eyes. No wild beast drew near, not even the stag that bore fourteen prongs on his magnificent antlers. The scents of boar and fox were strong, but I didn’t see them.

Satisfied I was alone I lifted from the treetop and spread my brilliant red wings gliding toward the ground and the silver necklace. Landing, I rested my claws in the soft grass within pecking distance of the metal. Each silver link had been finely crafted, glistening in the light, drawing me closer. My left claw touched the cool metal.

A flash of green light and a single word, “capture.” Instantly the silver lifted from the ground and ensnared me. I thrashed, unable to spread my wings, unable to throw off the silver that was not a necklace at all. A man arose from behind a bush. He wore a fox pelt over his head. He rushed at me. I knew he must be a wizard since the enchanted silver had trapped me.

He grabbed my body, wrapping me even tighter in the silver, yanking out my golden tail feather. Without it, my magic weakened. I couldn’t summon the fire.

He said, “I am Lloyd, your master.”

I have no master, I wanted to say. But without my golden feather, the words failed me and my cry was no more than a screech.

Copyright 2013
To be released Dec. 2013
All rights reserved.
N. R. Williams
 

IWSG, Character

Welcome to the October 2013 edition of the Insecure Writers Support Group, (IWSG). Alex J. Cavanaugh is the founder extraordinaire.

For this edition I've decided to write about characters. Mainly because I've been thinking about them a lot lately. What inspires you, what makes you create a character? Do you base it on people you know? On yourself? What do you admire? What do you detest?

I have many writer friends who base all their main characters on people they know and on themselves. There is nothing wrong with that, but you'd better be careful in case one or more of those folks gets it into their heads to interfere in some way with your writing. We are talking dangerous ground here.

In writing fantasy I often use a quest plot, the description of my worlds are based on this world, dialogue is no longer a challenge for me after more than twenty years experience. So what surprises me? It is always character. They invade my life and demand I tell their story which isn't always good for the manuscript I'm working on.

Back to people you know. With permission I'm going to tell you a little about my friend.

She is an optimist. As a child she was verbally abused and saw her father beat her mother and sister. This trauma caused her to gain weight and gave her a debilitating fear of boys, and men even thought she had an older brother she loved. She has close to zero self confidence and is horribly shy. When she did marry, the man she married continued with verbal abuse. She never left him because she didn't make enough money to support herself and her children and refused to abandon the children.

That's enough information. Given what I just told you, would you use her in a book? Would she be a villain, a hero or a minor character who troubles the hero? What character strengths and/or flaws would  you incorporate into your story?

Hope this gave you some food for thought, to coin a phrase. Ugh, two cliches in one sentence.
Nancy
Copyright 2013

To read other IWSG post go here.

I am participating in two Halloween bloghops. One on Oct. 30 and the other Oct. 31, 2013. The beauty is that one story will serve both bloghops. To learn more or sign up and participate click on the links below.

Denise Covey at Write...Edit...Publish is hosting Haunting.

October. 30, 2013

Francine Howarth is hosting Trick or Treat Hallowe'en, There will be treats with this one.

October 31, 2013

Hope to see some of you or all of you.
Nancy

Now Available CassaFire

Captain Ninja, Alex J. Cavanaugh is proud to announce his new book and sequel to CassaStar is available. CassaFire! Cool names don't you think?

Alex is kicking off his blog book tour. It will run from February 27 through March 9. Everyone who comments on his blog post during the tour will be entered to win a special package from Alex's publisher. A copy of CassaFire and CassaStar, a large tote bag, and a mug. Way cool. Take the mug with you and the books in your tote and enjoy sunshine and Alex's characters in the park. Or at your favorite coffee house.

To learn more, or to order please visit Alex and let him know I sent you.


Cheers,
Nancy