When I am asked about my book, one of the most common questions is, "How do you
come up with the names for your characters? There are so many." Oddly, creating names used to be a pet peve of mine. Then I turned it into a challenge. Admittedly, many of the names I use are ones I just liked the sound of hearing. As for the others, I use a variety of approaches. Sometimes I take two words that describe the character and blend them together. Sometimes they are words spelled backward or anagrams. What is really fun for me is that the reader would have to put some thought into discovering what method I used. It could be simple and it could be complicated. That's the beauty of writing. I can fill my story with hidden meanings. If you do not catch them...it's still a great stroy. If you do catch them, you begin to wonder if you caught them all. I want my readers to think. It is not an attempt to be cruel, but rather to give you just a little more in which to sink your teeth. There was a song I loved for years and I was singing it one day. Then a friend said, "Hey, did you ever know that it was actually about..." Whoa! Totally blew my mind. That's what I strive for with my readers. My father was an editor. In grade school I was entering a provincial writing contest and was in search of a topic.
He instructed me to, "Write about a topic on which you have some knowlege." It was the simplest advice but as was usually the case with Dad, he knew what he was talking about. I followed his advice and placed in the top ten in the province (I lived in Ontario, Canada at the time). The best writers I find draw on personal experiences or interests for their work. I incorporated my fights in school into my book and it fit perfectly. I knew how it felt to be on both sides of a punch. Do you find Dad's advice to be accurate? |
AuthorFantasy fiction is my passion. This series embodies my love for a good story and action. You will find it to be many things, but not boring! Read what you love and love what you read... Archives
July 2018
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