Last Friday our topic on the MFRW52weekblogchallenge our topic was how much of ourselves we put in our story. I’m a character-driven writer, so I put a lot of myself into my characters and my life into my settings. An example in my current WIP BaseBall Bats and Cowboy Hats The story is about an empty nester and how she handles refilling her nest. I relate to that as both of my kids are now grown and moved out with families of their own. Each time one left I felt differently and after my house was empty I really was lonely. I lost my first husband when the kids were 11 and 8 like in the story, though I was divorced and he had a heart attack, not an aneurysm. I got the story idea about hosting prospect league players on a trip to my dads. Hannibal has a prospect league called the Cavemen and we would go to the home games. At the last game, they thanked the hosts, so I did a little research and a story was born. I did not meet or have a young man fall in love with me or have a best friend rich cowboy fighting for my attention. I’ve never been kidnapped by drug lords and saved by two sexy men. That’s the fiction part. A little bit of me and a lot of imagination, research, mixed together let simmer and tada… a romance is made!
Courtesy of Pixabay
In the secret project I am subbing this month I use my house, the ice storm that hit our town in 2009, an incident where I was hit by a falling limb and you may see a bit of my personality in both men. I do plan to start sharing photos of my dome house, the furniture mentioned my husband made and other bits in my romance group
Cat’s Romance a-holics so if you’d like to see more crazy facts each time I start a new book feel free to join me there.
I don’t always use just myself to create characters sometimes I use friends (permission of course)like in Baseball Bats one of my chatty Chick friends is the main character’s sidekick. She let me use her name and I added a few tidbits such as her goat farm and geese. Her character adds a touch of humor to the angst.
I also like people watching.
Courtesy of Pixabay
One day I was in the WalMart parking lot The girl got out of a mini cooper. She was about 5-4 slim, wearing knee boots, thick leggings, a long turtleneck sweater and bomber jacket. Se had long slick brown hair in a ponytail that swung when she flounced across the parking lot. I could just imagine attitude. This spurred a story as well. She will be more antagonist than the protagonist. A little twist there from the woman being the one needing to be saved LOL.
When I read a favorite author’s book, I like looking for things I think are bits of them or their life.
I feel like a story needs strong characters, well developed with lots of personalities.
Do you like character-driven stories? Do you like seeing bits of the author in a book.?
One response to “Cooking up characters #Wednesday #writerlywednseday #amwriting”
Cathy, this is really ironic. I don’t do just one thing at a time. I do several. So, I came to your blog after a notification that you had written on my blog reminded me to check yours. I was in the middle of working on FB, having just created a GROUP called Wytchfae World Conjuring the Magic. Oh my gosh.So now I read your post here see your fun FB group Cat’s Romance-Aholics and join. Great name! What a hoot life is!
Love your post about how parts of the books are you and parts are fiction. I always like to hear how you go about your craft.