The Characteratron! - And no, Emilie is not dead. Hem hem...

Hi, everyone!! I BE BACK! Yay! I didn't get abducted by aliens! Sorry about my absence, I've just been uber-busy, and stuff… I know, it's not a good excuse. But hey, what can I say? School can only be destroyed in the fire from which is was forged, and I ain't got that fire!
     Anywhodiddle, today we're going to be creating characters with my all-new, totally-professional, Characteratron! Take notes.

Robotic Voice: "Welcome, Guest. Please identify which gender you want your character."

Okay, I just decided to name the Characteratron Grady, which happens to be the same name as my ratbird. But anyway, you will pick your gender as Step One. This part is literally the hardest part in the entire sequence. You have to know what exactly your characters serve for as a role in your story. Why are they existent? Are they just fat on the edges? Should you pull a socially-insecure-teenager and trim them off? You have to know why you are creating them. Say you picked a girl.

Robotic Voice: "You have picked: Girl. Please insert name personality."

Now we decide their personality. This girl will be name Eralia Warner, (and you can't steal this name btw because I'm already using it in a story XD SUCKAAASSSS) But anywho, this girl is named Eralia. Now for her personality… well, she's the hero in this story, so I'm going to make her sacrifical, kind, a little too headstrong… **imputes data**

**bleep bloop bling-blong KABOOSH shwim-shwim POW** Robotic Voice: "Eralia Warner: Sacrifical, Kind, a Little Too Headstrong. Please insert looks."

Eralia is a hero, right? So, Ms. Warner shouldn't look goth, or scary. She should have… blonde hair, sparkling blue eyes, and maybe like, a red streak in her hair.

**bloopy-blam-blam-shing!**

SHE'S BEING CREATED!!

**blingblingblingblingblingblingblingblingblingblingblingblingREADY!**

It's alive. ALIVE!! MWHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHA!!!

ahem.

Haha, okay, so I probably didn't HAVE to use Grady (thanks, big guy!) but I wanted to illustrate the important factors that must be considered in making a character. You can't just plop them in there. You have to be able to develop them in a tight situation (running for their lives, being overheard in a conversation, vague prologue… etc.) They have to look like their personalities, which is a way to develop them. Also, you have to make a unique fact about them. I. E: Eralia's dad was killed mysteriously. She misses him and nostalgically puts her hair up in a bun because her dad always liked it that way.

I like being random, but still, that was a good example. Making your characters have personal touches makes them more personal. And you'll end up feeling sorry for poor little orphan Eralia Warner who's hair is always up in a bun.

Well, keep writing!
- Emilie

A Simple Guide To Simple Editing... Patricia style.

A simple guide to simple editing.

 

1.    In dialogue, when one character directly addresses another, put a comma before their name. Ex. “Hello, Grace. How are you?” This enables your reader to detect that the character is talking to another character, rather than about. Here is an example where the rule applies, but not in a direct address. “My friend, Grace, likes the color blue. It might be her favorite.”

2.    End-mark punctuation. Periods, exclamation points, and question marks always cause some confusion. Generally, and usually, the end mark goes on the inside of the quotation marks. Ex. He looked up from his lunch, and saw a flock of birds flying overhead. “My, my,” he mused. “It is getting late in the year.”

In that example, I showed you two commonly confused methods. The first one, the end mark was outside the quotes. And that’s because I interrupted the quote to describe who, how, and what about was speaking. The second set was just finishing the first. Since it is the second part, we already know who, how, and what about the person is talking.

 

3.    Commas. Commas are very helpful tools that help us add meaning to our writing. They are also used to imply voice inflection. A comma signifies a pause. A break in thought, and slight tone change, or an interruption. Ex. “Well,” she paused. “I don’t know,” she said slowly.

Commas are used for items in a series. Ex. “That is a lot of expensive art supplies for a third grader,” Mrs. Morris mused. “Crayons, colored pencils, a pastel set, markers, drawing pencils, and shading tools.”

Commas are supposed to be used when using multiple words to describe something. Ex. “Helen was the most beautiful, prized, loved, and adored woman in the world. And the Spartans were willing to do anything, and everything to get her back safely.”

 

4.    Outlining your plot.

Now, this is probably the most VITAL thing to do, if you want to remain happy in your editing. I started out writing without a plot, or writing out who my characters were. Bad. Idea. That editing experience was almost enough to make me stop writing. For good. Aren’t we thankful that it didn’t? I had to trash, basically, my whole idea, for lack of plotting my story line. And it wasn’t because my ideas weren’t good. Heckles, no. It was a great idea. It was very creative, and quite easy to work with… (till Mr. Editing came along). The problem was this: Me, not plotting, or planning anything, resulted in hundreds of writing errors. Like, I would say that something was going to happen, and then it never did. When I finished the first draft… (it was really, really short, and not worth publishing, even after editing.) And read back through it. I was so disappointed.

So. Life lesson, and moral of the story? Plot. Your. Whole. Story. I. Don’t. Care. How. Long. It. Takes. What is Nike’s motto? JUST DO IT.  

 

Keep Writing!

<3

Patricia Rane

Random ideas that will help you say what you mean.

Wow. That was a really long title. Oh, well. Yup. It's Patricia. Again.

So I'm just diving in. No friendly greeting, no explanation why Emilie hasn't been on, no nuthin'. 

(Yeah. That was really "just diving in", Patricia. Seriously...)

Anyway. Here are some tips that will help you with your story(ies). Hah. I just made up a new word! Sorry...

1. If you're keeping it on the computer, (which you most likely are. It's the 21st century, guys.) than start a story on paper. Yes, you read me right. On paper. Kaboooom!!! And just like that, paper still exists! Yeah. So keeping a story on paper will help your computer googley eyes to calm down. Because if you attend VPSA, than you know what I mean. And if you don't? I mean, com'on. You probably spend a lot of time each day looking at a screen. 

So. Just keep a story in a notebook, a binder, I don't really care. Just do it on paper. It doesn't even have to be really good. But it really helps to have, what I call my "escape story". If I want to write my heart out, but am sick and tired of my computer, than I go to my story on paper. And it really works, too. 

2. Like we've said before, if you don't know what to write, don't write anything at all. If you're suffering from writers block, just take a break. I find that most of my awesome, amazing, wonderful, best seller ideas come when I am taking a break, because of writers block. And if it doesn't come to you while your taking your break? Ask a friend for help. I have a friend named Emma, and she gets writers block sometimes. (And vice versa). When this happens, after reading our stories to eachother, usually the other person asks: "so what do you think should happen next?"

It really works, too. It has helped me get un-stuck several times. 

So, yeah. Sorry this is short, but I actually have a life outside of blogspot. And that's why Emilie hasn't been on. 

~

Keep writing!

<3

Patricia Rane

Inspiration--- A writers best friend.

It's Patricia, here. 

I know this is the second post in a row, but Emilie is kinda busy. Well, I am too, but that's ok. I consider my fellow authors important... Ok, fine, Emilie. You consider them important too. 

So in this post, I will be talking a lot about inspiration. Inspiration is very important. Think about it. What got you to start writing, in the first place, anyway? Inspiration. That's it. You thought of an awesome idea, and were inspired to develop it. That's great! That's a very important thing for an author, to get a wonderful idea, and base a novel off of it. 

But what happens when the inspiration leaves? It decides to take a vacation to your closet. What happens then? Well... You're not going to like this, but it's my job to tell you the truth.  

Your writing becomes trashy. (I'm not saying you're a trashy writer, heavens no. I'm saying that without the energy of inspiration, your writing isn't as good.

Now you're probably like: "yokay... So, you gonna give me some useful information?" And the answer is: yes. 

So.... How do you get the inspiration to come back from vacation?

Well, unless you want to spend hours, digging through your closet... With a disappointing result, you can follow these steps. (Yes, I am sticking with the blog theme. Take things in steps!)

1). Think about it. 

Where does your inspiration come from? What is it made of? What does it feel like?

Inspiration is a very funny thing. It isn't something physical. It's an emotional, or mental feeling. It's an emotion. When I am inspired, I feel very excited. Like there is a ball of glowing light rising in me. It's enough for me to forsake my sleep, and stay up hours into the night writing my heart out. That's inspiration, guys. It's what motivates you to write. If I sit down and write 20 pages, and my mom asks me what I'm doing, I have gotten used to saying: "my inspiration is back up. It's fixed."

She immediately knows what I'm talking about. 

2). Think about your story. Think about how many hours you've spent, pouring your heart into it. Think about getting it published. Think about people reading it, with a cover on it. 

Doesn't that feel inspiring?

3). Act your story out. I know Emilie used this as an example in another post, but it, truly works every time. When I do this, I usually end up on my bedroom floor in fits of laughter, because I'm acting so ridiculous. And what she said earlier, you end up thinking: "we'll movies are never accurate, anyway, so why not?"

And who knows? Maybe in doing that, you will be able to see flaws in your writing, and make it better. 

What's my favorite line? Yep, you got it!

Keep writing!

<3 

Patricia Rane

Choosing the perfect traits, for your perfect character--- A post by Patricia Rane

Hello there,

It's Patricia, here. And I am here to help you create the perfect character. Yes, you heard me right. I am going to HELP you, not tell you everything that is wrong with you. Now, maybe I might tell you some things NOT to do... but that will only offend you if you are already doing those things. (PLEASE! IM NOT FINISHED!)

So... I bet you've noticed that Emilie and I really like doing things in steps... I think that all of our posts have been in the Step 1, Step 2, Step 3... I think you get the picture. Well, guess what! I am sticking to that format! (Haha... bet you didn't see that coming...)

So, here are some ideas, and steps to making the legitimate character, for your legitimate story.

1. Make your character characterized by something. Ok. That sounds a lot more complicated than it really is... hmm. Let us see... Ooh! I know what will help me explain myself to you! An example!

OK. So I am making an example character for my posts and examples. Her name is Grace. If Grace is more of a humorous, comical person, than I should characterize her with something that fits with her character. Maybe she could be characterized by being sarcastic with people who are against her... (I mean, come on! There has to be a villain! There always is!)
If she gets captured, for instance. I would have her say something smart alec-ish.
BUT. If she's more of a solemn person. Someone who really takes life seriously, and regards her duties in the highest position. IF she is more like that, I would go easy on the humor. I'm not saying take the humor away completely! You know what my greatest pet peeve is? Meeting someone who has no sense of humor. It makes it awkward for everyone. Especially if someone says something sarcastic, and it the humorless person gets offended.
Yeah. Unless you want it to become awkward for your characters, add some humor. (If you want to make a scene awkward, I just killed two birds with one stone! <3 aren't I talented?)
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2. Do a really good job of describing your character.

If Grace has blonde hair, I need to say so. If she has emerald-green eyes, I should say that too.
Now you're probably like: Ok, time to scroll down... it's not like I didn't already know that.
DONT SCROLL DOWN---- THERE IS MORE! ALOT MORE!

When you think about how you describe your characters, you should put all you've got into it. You've put all you've got into your novel, right? So why not do the same with your character description?

And here's another thing to think about... When you're reading a book, what makes you understand, and imagine the characters?
The thing that helps you understand the characters are what they are like. If Grace is sarcastic, you're gonna remember that while reading my book. If she's sweet and kind, you're gonna remember that too. If she gets kicked out of school for under-aged drinking, you are probably going to give her the stereotype of being rebellious.
The thing that helps you imagine the characters is their appearance. If Grace wears jeans with holes in the knees, and a lime-green hoodie, you'd probably classify her as more on the punkish side of things. But, if she wears her school uniform each day without complaint, you would say she's properly normal.  If she has long red hair, and deep blue eyes, you're going to remember her by that.
See what I mean? The appearance and character traits of your characters are crucial! Don't skip over them because you're in a hurry to finish the book! If you take the time to do it right, editing and revising won't take as long, and won't be as night-mare related as you think.

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3. How I play the game. Now that I have given you some ideas to feed your ever-writing brain... I'm gonna tell you how I do it, while you let the heavy stuff sink in.

The first thing I do, when thinking about my character IS.... *trumpets* THEIR NAME! No, I don't think about hitting the panic button. The only button I hit is the 'on' button on my computer.
Yes. Yes, their name. The reason is this: If I'm gonna be writing and developing on this specific character, I need to choose a name that I can stare at for hours on end.
So once I think of my character's name, I think about his/her character traits. And I'm gonna pick on Grace, again.
I make what is called a character sketch. I sketch out my plans, traits, and the life of this character. And, again. It just depends on what you're planning on doing with your character.
Once I do my traits, I write out all the technical details of my character. How old are they? Where do they live? What is their family life like?
After I do this, I write the first few chapters before I continue on with the sketch. And this reason make sense. ( I hope). Planning for your book, and writing in your book, are two totally different things. Once I start writing, I might not like a character trait that I have chosen for my character.

And after that? Well, there is only one more thing for me to say...

Keep writing!

<3
Patricia Rane

P.s. You can email us if you have any questions, and we will do our best to answer you ASAP.

raneandgraye@gmail.com

"I'm not feeling it anymore."

Dear depressed, lonely person,

    I know what it's like when you stop "feeling" your book. I know the feeling all too well. That is the answer to the age old question; " why are all of my story ideas in the virtual trashcan on my computer?"  Well, it's like this. Once upon a time, you had a great story you were really excited about, but then Mr. Chapter-Two came over and you suddenly didn't feel so hyped. Next thing you knew, you threw away your story idea and went depressed for the rest of the day. The end.
     I know why you're like this, I get it. It's okay to lose the groove. It happens to the best of us. But I have a couple tricks to get to groove back, which doesn't happen to the best of us (because they don't know the secrets XD) Here are some of the reasons why you are giving up, and the remedies.

PROBLEM 1: You're moving way too fast.

    This is a common problem. And here's the reason; when you have a story idea, you're usually most excited about something that belongs around the middle of the book. Like, someone dying for instance. Then you're brain goes on hyperdrive, and you find it too hard to be patient and just slowly get to the part. So you write it in the first chapter, and then you cut your ideas in half and you only have half the material. This happens all to often.

ANSWER: Generate new ideas.

    This can sometimes be a challenge, but if it is a challenge, it's a sign that your plot isn't completely developed yet. And you can email us if you are having trouble developing your plots; we love helping out! Because we know how it feels. So just try to think up a motive for the character to occupy you till you get to the coveted part.

PROBLEM 2: You don't have enough plot material

     This can be a product of going too fast. You think up the idea, two minutes later, you're at your computer writing it. Not gonna work. -_-. You need to try to develop the plot before you start writing, make up the book before you actually start writing it. If you don't have anything to write about, surprise, surprise! You won't be able to write anything!

ANSWER: There's only one answer for this. Take some time to make up a plot.

It doesn't have to be a masterpiece. You can always tweak it. And make sure you plan the plot twists too, so you can go all Rick Riordany and reference things to come before they actually happen. *gasp*.

PROBLEM 3: You're lazy.

Don't take that as an insult, but it's true. No offense, but you're not working hard enough. And if you want to write a novel, that's not really going to work. Because your brain is like this:

"AAAAAAAGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I don't write to want 500 PAGGGESSS of this stuffff meeh meh mehhhhhh lets just compress all your ideas, to, say… 2 pages? You can just use a big font and nobody will notice!!"

Not. Happening.

ANSWER: Try to have fun.

No comment.

~ ~ ~

This is really all the help I can give you! Now, GO AND WRITE A NOVEL!!

- Emilie Graye

Plot twists: They can twist your brain. --- A post by Patricia Rane

Hey, there. It Patricia, here. And I am here to help you twist your plots! Yup. Now.... either this post will end up sounding really stupid.... or it will sound really smart. I am shooting for the second.

Here are some questions you can ask yourself, if you're trying to decide whether you should throw in a twist.

1. Is your book interesting enough?

My favorite terminology to use when writing is: borxciting.... yesh. I know it's weird. It, actually, sounds kind of like a ship name... sorry. I need to stay on track.
Anyway, borxciting is mixture of the two words 'boring' and 'exciting'. To an author, their writing will (almost) always be interesting, and/or exciting. And that's because it's their's. It's what they pour their hearts into. It's what they spend their time working on. But, the only thing about that is this. Often times, when we think our writing is interesting, we could be doing more to make it that way. (OW! PLEASE! I'M NOT FINISHED YET!) I'm not saying that your writing is not exciting... I'm saying that you should run the extra mile, and try to make it as exciting as possible.

2. Is your book missing something?

Maybe there are two characters in your book. And your writing sounds fantabulous. But it just seems like it's missing something. What about making a relationship happen? Whether it be a crush, a kiss, or a couple, it will fill in the gap.

That was just an example, guys. If you want to keep your literature relationship-free, go right ahead and do that. A relationship is just a good way to fill in gaps.

3. Does the twist that I'm thinking about fit with my plot? My storyline? My characters?

If you answered 'no' to ANY of those questions, you need to finda different twist. If you have fallen in love with the twist, that just doesn't work, try taking a different approach.


So, I've given you some questions to proof your twisting... now what about those twists?

WARNING: Once you add the twist, it will be hard to remove, so think carefully about your next step.

Here are a couple of good ways to twist your plot.

• (I mentioned this earlier) Bring a relationship into your story.
• Bring a new main character into it.
• Have an obstacle in the way of the plans of your characters.
• Change your writing style. (Ex. if you're using 1st person past tense, change it to 1st person present tense)

Have fun!

Keep writing!

~

Patricia Rane <3