by Guest DiAnn Mills
Readers are looking for an intense
experience that whisks them away into our character’s world. No longer do they
want to read about a character on a journey; they crave to be that person.
Readers must be passionately involved with every breath, thought, word, and
action in our stories. When readers are disappointed in a writer’s inability to
create this world for them, they toss the book aside. And they may never read
another word of ours again.
Writers, we can’t let this happen.
“Fill your paper with the
breathings of your heart.” ― William Wordsworth
How can we ensure our readers have
the adventure they deserve?
The writer must have passion
for the story.
Only when a story robs us of our
sleeping hours and keeps us in a fog during the day can we begin the process.
Until then, the words are merely taking refuge on paper.
The writer must spend time
getting to know the character.
Prewriting our novels takes time,
thought, and lots of mental exhaustion. Ask questions, research, interview, and
probe through the forbidden dark places of your character’s mind. Sometimes
those places come from our own minds. Use the one fear that stalks them to show
character growth and change. Know the character’s backstory as it effects the
story. If it doesn’t matter to the character, it won’t matter to the reader.
“First, find out what your hero
wants, then just follow him!”
– Ray Bradbury
The writer must create from her
own personal pain.
For readers to feel anger,
happiness, sadness, fear, contempt, disgust, and loneliness, we must rip the
scars off our hearts and write authentically. Be that character no
matter how foreign the experience. Emotions in conflict add tension to every
line of story. Slam your character into a corner, watch her squirm and fight
her way out.
The writer is convinced her
character plays the perfect role.
Only your character can be the one
to tread where no one has gone before. Only your character has the past, flaws,
weaknesses, victories, goals, and determination to ensure the story ripples
with emotion. We all experience life in a different manner, and your
character’s inner and outer expressions have to coincide with how she perceives
each moment of story.
The writer must select the
exact point of view.
This tip is twofold.
1. The deeper the POV, the more
the reader can identify with the character. 2. Every time we change point of
views, we are asking the reader to step out of the character’s closet, undress,
and dress again in the new character’s POV. How many times is that transition
necessary for our story? How often will readers move their passion to another
character?
Passion wraps its arm around
emotion, and within that depth of writing, the writer can provide an adventure
that ripples with credibility and unexpected happenings.
How do you create passion in your
story?
DiAnn Mills is a bestselling author
who believes her readers should expect an adventure. She creates action-packed,
suspense-filled novels to thrill readers. Her titles have appeared on the CBA
and ECPA bestseller lists; won two Christy Awards; and been finalists for the
RITA, Daphne Du Maurier, Inspirational Readers’ Choice,
and Carol award contests. Library Journal presented her with a Best
Books 2014: Genre Fiction award in the Christian Fiction category for Firewall.
Connect with DiAnn here: www.diannmills.com
A SUSPICIOUS DEATH, A SECRET PLOT, A BUDDING ROMANCE. A pacemaker should have saved oil and gas magnate Nathan Moore’s life. Instead, it provided his killer with a perfect means of execution. Special Agent Tori Templeton teams up with US Marshall Cole Jeffers to investigate Nathan’s murder and whether it’s connected to a recent bombing at one of Nathan’s oil rigs. The closer they get to finding the killer, and to each other, the more intent someone is in silencing them for good.
