V is for Values

Not my own or yours, but characters. One aspect of building a character is to consider the types of values that they would hold close to them and what others they wouldn't honor. Value systems can say a lot about not only the character but also the world of the story.

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List of Values:
Here are some values, the rest can be found at list web site
Abundance
Acceptance
Accessibility
Accomplishment
Accountability
Accuracy
Achievement
Acknowledgement
Activeness
Adaptability...


But what are values really?
Definition: Important and enduring beliefs or ideals shared by the members of a culture about what is good or desirable and what is not. Values exert major influence on the behavior of an individual and serve as broad guidelines in all situations.
Read more: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/values.html#ixzz1t1cHLkDp


Other Links:
http://www.selfcounseling.com/help/personalsuccess/personalvalues.html
http://www.values.com/
http://www.gurusoftware.com/gurunet/personal/topics/values.htm



What does your character value?
Do you use values as a focus in any of your stories?

U is for Unicorn

Growing up, I loved unicorns. They were horses but with the single horn and magic, something special and unique. I even have some of the beanie baby unicorns from when I was a kid. At one point I even had a statue thing of a unicorn head that was in my bedroom, though I don't have it anymore.

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While I loved unicorns, I can only think of one story I've read that even included unicorns. It's interesting because there are some things I love that I never read enough of and yet others talk about them all the time. Another example is elves. I hear people talk about how they are tired of certain types of elves in fantasy and I love fantasy but haven't read very many novels with elves and personally I would like to read more.

In another weird topic not really related to unicorns, I often read things that I don't write and write things that I don't read. I read a lot of stories with strong female main characters, but I rarely write female main characters.

And I have no ideas that involve unicorns.


Do you like unicorns?
Have any books you recommend? 

T is for Timing

Quite a good topic for a late post, or so I thought. I had planned to write this post earlier today but ended up called in early to work, so here is my T post on Timing.

In stories, timing can be very important.

Romance, for example, timing can be key. That includes many aspects of the story. When the character meets their love interest, even when the reader expects that to happen within the first two chapters, it is still based on timing.

Timing can also involve when something is brought up that will later be used to save the day in different stories. Just using a random power, tool or person out of the blue that ends up helping the protagonist survive/win/etc can be jarring. There have to be some timed points earlier in the story when they are mentioned before the big moment comes upon the characters.

This also relates to ourselves as writers. Sometimes we need to worry about our own timing, and to make sure we are ready but also realistic. Knowing the time it takes to do something like write and submit a novel can help or hurt a writer. I see some new people on a site all the time saying they will have their book out in the next year and while a couple people can achieve that, it can lead to disappointment.


How are you at timing?

S is for Sequel

So many books nowadays are part of a series it seems. Makes it hard when trying to read many different authors because that means I've read book 1 of several series but haven't gotten to reading the rest yet. I also am writing series, though I have a few stand-alones (wow, many S words, lol).

But when does one start writing a sequel?

I have heard many people say not to write the sequel until the first book has been purchased by a publisher because they might request big changes that would affect what goes in the second book. Which makes sense. But so many writers don't follow that. I know many who write a few books before they even have the first one ready to be submitted.

So far, I have written book one in a few different series, but I have yet to start a book two.

What do you think?
Write only one book at a time?
Or write part of the series whenever?

R is for Reality

Reality check time, or at least some people sure need it, or so I have noticed.

Reality check: A word or phrase used to bring a person back into the life of those around them, sometimes used to smash hopes and dreams.

Don't get me wrong, I love ignoring reality. I write after all. I'd much rather spend my days not working but staying at home and playing in the fantasy worlds in my head. My characters are far more entertaining than part time minimum wage work at the deli. But I can't stay away from reality for too long because then I would become out of touch and that leads to more problems.

Reality can also help us as writers. Even when doing speculative fiction in worlds very different than our own having at least one foot in the realm of reality can help make a story stronger and for readers to want to read it. Readers like to have a link to reality in a story, no matter how fantastical the world involves.

Reality checks can also be good for character development. I love a character who dreams, who yearns for something more but the end result doesn't have to be the complete success of the dream in the way they expected/desired. In the book The Forest of Hands and Teeth, she dreams of finding the ocean and while those in her village think she needs to focus on reality, she follows her dream but the end result isn't what she expected.

So, while dreaming can be good, there needs to be more as well.


What do you think?
Do your characters get a reality check at some point?

Q is for Quality

This is a topic that I've seen discussed in a few different writing chats over the last couple of months. The topic has to do with quality, in particular should readers expect self-published books to have the same quality standards that they expect from "traditional" published ones.

There are some who say that because the books are self-published, they shouldn't be held to the same standards. That people should, essentially, expect less from a self-published book.

Others on the other hand, think that because of the stigma that many have against self-published work that it's almost necessary for the self-published author to focus even more on producing a quality product. That some will even hold them up to a higher standard than a big name published book.

So, I'm curious what bloggers think.

When it comes to quality:
Do you think self-published authors should be held at a lower standard?
Or should they be at the same standard as other published methods?
What do you think?

P is for Preen

Preen - (verb) to make oneself appear striking or smart in dress or appearance.

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This is a term commonly related to birds though humans do a fair amount of preening themselves if you think about it.  But what about writers? And no, I'm not talking about the fashions authors wear or make their characters wear. When trying to make our novels perfect we have to preen (edit/rewrite) to make the story shine.

Without a little preening then the sentences, chapters, and such can come out Plain. And plain takes the risk of being boring. While it's okay not to go over the top, we need to work on our stories, word choices and sentence structure to capture the attention of readers. In other words, we need to preen.

On the other hand, there is such thing as too much preening that leads to another set of P's. While plain text can lead to boring, preen too much and that can lend to Purple Prose.

Purple prose is a term used for writing that is over dramatic, over flowery, and in general, over done. With purple prose there tends to be over description and a number of adjectives used, among other things. In general, it is "too much." Another definition of purple prose is: writing that calls attention to itself because of its obvious use of certain effects, as exaggerated sentiment or pathos, especially in an attempt to enlist or manipulate the reader's sympathies. And in general, it is recommended to avoid this.

I am close to the preening stage. Once I get done with the highlighting, using colors to help me see things I need to fix, I will be preening to make the story shine (but not blind anyone).


Do you preen your words?
Do you struggle between plain and purple prose?