Comments on: Writing craft http://evannelorraine.com/2007/05/writing-craft-27/ Dangerously Sexy author blog Sat, 12 May 2012 00:00:04 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: Evanne http://evannelorraine.com/2007/05/writing-craft-27/comment-page-1/#comment-263 Evanne Sat, 19 May 2007 01:41:00 +0000 http://evannelorraine.com/index.php/2007/05/writing-craft-27/#comment-263 Lori, You are so right I started out blissfully ignorant. . . still miss that excited happy feeling that I was telling a great story . . . This may illustrate my current lack of education but I figure if I work real hard maybe I'll get it back - not that I'll know everything that there is to know about craft but that I'll have learned enough and internalized enough that I can go back to simply telling the story. Lori, You are so right I started out blissfully ignorant. . . still miss that excited happy feeling that I was telling a great story . . . This may illustrate my current lack of education but I figure if I work real hard maybe I’ll get it back – not that I’ll know everything that there is to know about craft but that I’ll have learned enough and internalized enough that I can go back to simply telling the story.

]]> By: Lori Borrill http://evannelorraine.com/2007/05/writing-craft-27/comment-page-1/#comment-262 Lori Borrill Fri, 18 May 2007 18:28:00 +0000 http://evannelorraine.com/index.php/2007/05/writing-craft-27/#comment-262 It really is hard keeping it all together. I hear from so many authors that writing gets harder the more books they write. Universally, we start out fairly ignorant, whipping along having fun with our stories. But the more we know, the more we realize what we have to put in. The end result is a better product, but it sure isn't the picnic it was in those early days!<br/><br/>I think you've got great insights when it comes to this stuff. Now to put those insights on the page! It really is hard keeping it all together. I hear from so many authors that writing gets harder the more books they write. Universally, we start out fairly ignorant, whipping along having fun with our stories. But the more we know, the more we realize what we have to put in. The end result is a better product, but it sure isn’t the picnic it was in those early days!

I think you’ve got great insights when it comes to this stuff. Now to put those insights on the page!

]]> By: Evanne http://evannelorraine.com/2007/05/writing-craft-27/comment-page-1/#comment-261 Evanne Thu, 17 May 2007 04:49:00 +0000 http://evannelorraine.com/index.php/2007/05/writing-craft-27/#comment-261 Lori, It just occurred to me that perhaps the reason you didn't care if a particular couple got together or not may have had other root causes. Like there was no believable inner conflict to their romance.<br/><br/>A common enough situation when the happy ending is a given. <br/><br/>Or while sympathetic neither of the characters were engaging. They need conflict, flaws, honor -- sheesh! I hate that you have to do so many things right to make a story work. Lori, It just occurred to me that perhaps the reason you didn’t care if a particular couple got together or not may have had other root causes. Like there was no believable inner conflict to their romance.

A common enough situation when the happy ending is a given.

Or while sympathetic neither of the characters were engaging. They need conflict, flaws, honor — sheesh! I hate that you have to do so many things right to make a story work.

]]> By: Evanne http://evannelorraine.com/2007/05/writing-craft-27/comment-page-1/#comment-260 Evanne Thu, 17 May 2007 04:32:00 +0000 http://evannelorraine.com/index.php/2007/05/writing-craft-27/#comment-260 Lori, IMHO sympathetic isn't even the issue, you can be simply fascinated or even repelled, yet riveted. It's about a connection, usually sympathetic (I think saying always might be safe in if we stick to romance LOL). <br/><br/>The sympathy factors are universal everyone knows what it feels like to be embarrassed, left out,to be loney, to be treated unfairly, et cetera. If the author gave the protagonist a touching conflict that didn't engage you it was their bad. Truly. <br/><br/>Not everyone loves every story, we all have likes and dislikes. Some authors have an entirely different approach enticing you into the story world with a beautiful setting, a mystery to be solved, or a dream to be pursued.<br/><br/>I'm just now figuring out why the poor heroine is so often struggling with a problem as the story opens. Lori, IMHO sympathetic isn’t even the issue, you can be simply fascinated or even repelled, yet riveted. It’s about a connection, usually sympathetic (I think saying always might be safe in if we stick to romance LOL).

The sympathy factors are universal everyone knows what it feels like to be embarrassed, left out,to be loney, to be treated unfairly, et cetera. If the author gave the protagonist a touching conflict that didn’t engage you it was their bad. Truly.

Not everyone loves every story, we all have likes and dislikes. Some authors have an entirely different approach enticing you into the story world with a beautiful setting, a mystery to be solved, or a dream to be pursued.

I’m just now figuring out why the poor heroine is so often struggling with a problem as the story opens.

]]> By: Lori Borrill http://evannelorraine.com/2007/05/writing-craft-27/comment-page-1/#comment-259 Lori Borrill Thu, 17 May 2007 04:02:00 +0000 http://evannelorraine.com/index.php/2007/05/writing-craft-27/#comment-259 Evanne, I think you've shared some very good insights. I've read some books where the writing was wonderful, the plot intriguing, but I just didn't care if the couple got together. For some reason, I wasn't rooting for them and was completely indifferent as to whether or not they found HEA in the end.<br/><br/>But the real problem with that is, I couldn't put a solitary finger on what the problem was. Some books I'll even overlook wincing dialogue or lousy prose because the writer has seriously hooked me into wanting to know how things turn out. <br/><br/>I'm feeling like this is really key, but putting my finger on what exactly creates a sympathetic character feels elusive.<br/><br/>Maybe it's because as individuals, we each sympathise with different things. Yes, there are universal themes like wounded puppies, but it could be that whatever it was the writer used as their sympathy card in that particular story didn't fit with me personally. Therefore, they've created characters I'm indifferent to, which I think is almost worse than characters I hate. Evanne, I think you’ve shared some very good insights. I’ve read some books where the writing was wonderful, the plot intriguing, but I just didn’t care if the couple got together. For some reason, I wasn’t rooting for them and was completely indifferent as to whether or not they found HEA in the end.

But the real problem with that is, I couldn’t put a solitary finger on what the problem was. Some books I’ll even overlook wincing dialogue or lousy prose because the writer has seriously hooked me into wanting to know how things turn out.

I’m feeling like this is really key, but putting my finger on what exactly creates a sympathetic character feels elusive.

Maybe it’s because as individuals, we each sympathise with different things. Yes, there are universal themes like wounded puppies, but it could be that whatever it was the writer used as their sympathy card in that particular story didn’t fit with me personally. Therefore, they’ve created characters I’m indifferent to, which I think is almost worse than characters I hate.

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