Part 8 of Finding Your Writing Passion
We’ve looked at our bookshelves, found our favorite genres, delved deeper into their subgenres, selected our top authors, and discussed what turns us on about heroines, heroes, and secondary characters.
You might not realize it, but if you’ve done the exercises you hold in your hands the basic ingredients of a magic formula that will help you write your next book with passion.
You know what you love and why you love it.
Now, let’s take what we’ve discovered about our favorite elements in what we read, and translate it into what we write.
Genre /Subgenre
Practical application:
In the beginning, anyway, write what you like to read.
By this I mean if you love reading urban fantasy, then don’t write inspirational—even if it’s the up and coming thing. Write urban fantasy. Life’s too short to write what you don’t enjoy. Write what you love to read.
Why?
- Because you’ll already have unconciously absorbed many of the conventions of the subgenre you love.
- You’ll be familiar with the language—if you don’t know what the ton is, chances are you don’t read Regency era romance, and this lack of familiarity will show to those who know.
- You’ll have a certain familiarity with the structure of stories in your chosen subgenre—even if it’s a subconscious one.
Favorite Authors
Practical application: How do they do it?
A few years ago I took Margie Lawson’s excellent Empowering Characters’ Emotions course online. Of course I applied it to my own work. But because I wanted to write a series, I also took a series that I loved– Nora Roberts’ Three Sisters Island trilogy: Dance Upon the Air, Heaven and Earth, and Face the Fire–and went through it using Margie’s EDITS system;
- color coding page after page for Emotion, Internalization etc
- writing in where the tension was
- analyzing how the author used dialogue to move the story along
- learning how much information Nora revealed to whom, and where
- absorbing how she used setting to enhance her characterization and plot
- getting a “feel” for her pacing
It was worth the effort.
Top Pick Characters
Practical application: Heroes
Take your current Work In Progress in one hand and the character trait lists you’ve written for your favorite heroes in the other hand.
Compare the hero in your current WIP with the heroes you know you love.
- How does he measure up?
- What traits on the list does he have?
- Where does his character miss the boat?
- Why have you avoided using a trait that appeals to you as a reader?
- When (in your WIP) can you introduce the reader to one of these positive character traits in your hero? How?
- Who (in your story) is going to bring out the positive and negative sides of these traits?
Practical application: Heroines
Repeat the above exercises for your heroine
Do your heroes and heroines tend to fall into certain personality types?
For more information on personality—and how to maximize conflict and tension between the types—have a look at:
- using Enneagrams
- the Myers-Briggs system
Practical application: Secondary Characters
Rinse and repeat the above exercises for your secondary characters.
Angels and Demons
Practical application: Strengths and Flaws
Choose three of your personal strengths (of course you have them!) and three of your personal weaknesses (oh yeah, them too!). Now, to each main character (hero, heroine, and villain) allocate one of those strengths, and one of those weaknesses. You can mix and match them for maximum effect.
Why are we doing this?
Because as a writer you need to identify with your characters and if they have one of your own traits you’ll subconsciously sympathize and identify with them on a deeper level. The result is more believable characters.
Your Turn…
This concludes the series How To Find Your Writing Passion. You now have the basic ingredients for your “Perfect Mix” or “Magic Formula”. From these beginnings you can create your own unique recipe for writing your next book with passion.
If you’ve made a wonderful discovery about your writing process and passion please leave a comment in the comments section below!
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