Friday, April 13, 2012

Friday Round-Up - #201






Inluvwithwords talks about mothering our characters a little too much.


Writers: Are you the overprotective type or do you make your characters suffer?

Readers: Do you ever think a writer has gone overboard with the number of problems they give their story people? Why?

Have a blessed weekend!

 

9 comments:

Sarah Forgrave said...

I tend to be the wicked stepmother when it comes to my characters, lol. Of course, I make up for it in the end by giving them a happily-ever-after. :)

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Sarah -

I get my characters into a heap o' trouble as well. Sometimes even I wonder how I'm going to resolve the situations. :)

Blessings,
Susan

Chatty Crone said...

Just stopping by to say hello and hope you have a fantastic weekend. sandie

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Sandie -

Thanks. Enjoy your weekend!

Blessings,
Susan :)

Carol J. Garvin said...

That's a question I hadn't thought about until I had a writing coach evaluate my first manuscript. She pointed out that my main character was becoming too much of a victim. I like James Scott Bell's suggestion that just when our characters think the worst has happened, hit them with something more. A lot of bad things were happening to my MC, but not all of them really moved the story ahead. And, to answer your question, that's when I think the problems begin to feel contrived. It's not so much the number of problems as the rationale for them. Do they serve a purpose in the story?

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Carol -

Excellent points. When a character isn't fighting back, I tend to get impatient with them. It's hard to have sympathy for a doormat mentality.

Blessings,
Susan

Ruth Schiffmann said...

Thanks for linking to my post, Susan. I'm constantly aware of my over mothering tendencies lately. But that's a good thing because now I can work on changing that.

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Ruth -

You're welcome! Thanks for a good post.

Blessings,
Susan :)

Susan said...

Hi Susan....So glad you stopped by my blog and commented, too. Hope you have a good week ahead! Susan