Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Originality can come only from what you bring of yourself to your story - Donald Maass

Since I’ve stalled a bit in producing word count for Love By Design, I’m going back to finish Donald Maass’ The Fire In Fiction. I was a couple of chapters in when my writing took off so I put it aside and now I’m hoping to re-light the fire. I decided to start at the back of the book instead of re-reading from the beginning.

I recommend this book highly - but I'll share just SOME of the ‘ahhhhs’ I’ve had from...

Chapter 9 Fire In Fiction

“Meaning lies not in the experience that you select to portray - but rather in what that experience means to your characters: and, before that, what it means to you”

“What is the truth that you most wish the rest of us would see? That is the purpose of your novel.”

Chapter 8 Tension All the Time

The secret of making backstory work is to use the past to create present conflict.

Tension in exposition - dig deeper into your character at this moment and find inside of him contradictions, dilemmas, opposing impulses, and clashing ideas. Put your character’s hearts and minds in peril. Use emotions in conflict and ideas at war.

More next time... 

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