A Weekend of Writing Talk (Patricia Potter)

My blog will be short this week because I’m off to our chapter’s annual Retreat which began Friday night and will run through Sunday. It’s a sleep-over event and I’ve been looking forward to immersing myself in the craft of writing amid many distractions.

I’m doing some critiques and a hands-on session on character building and conflict. I’m not talking much. I’ve done that. But I want the participants to give us the characters – a heroine and hero – and all of us together develop stronger internal conflicts between the two.

I noticed in several of the projects I’m critiquing that the greatest problem is lack of a really strong internal conflict. Superficial ones, yes, but not gut-wrenching how-can- these- two- people- ever- get- together ones.

I might add here that Krissie is a master with this.

But it’s really fun to open a discussion and see everyone reach deep to build characters that create really strong conflicts and have an emotional appeal for the reader. I have a rule of four when building conflict through characters.

I use five basic conflicts and make sure my hero and heroine have at least four of them keeping them apart.

Conflict of backgrounds. One of my favorites was in “Broken Honor. My hero was a career army officer who came from a long line of career army men. My heroine was the daughter of a “flower child,” who is now a college professor with a specialty in peace movements.

Well, you get the idea.

The others: conflict in values; conflict in long term goals; Conflict in short term goals/quests, and my favorite, conflict in loyalties. I figure if I can work in at least four, I’m in good shape.

So, it’s great fun in brainstorming these values. Why does this heroine want only peace? What in her background – in addition to her mother -- makes her this way. Who was her father? Her grandfather? What in her life turned her against the military?

I love brainstorming ideas, particularly in character development. I love knowing my characters from the moment they were born. I like knowing every incident in their life that make them what they are today. And I particularly want to to know why they are going to be in direct confrontation with their counterpart.

Which brings me to another point. I would like to blog more about writing, and I need your help in doing so. I would love some input, questions, comments on writing. I would like to know what kind of characters you like. Beta versus Alpha heroes. What sub genres you enjoy. Is there one you really miss? Some you would like to see more of? Or less of?

Do you have any questions about writing you would like discussed in future blogs?

I may not be able to answer until Sunday, but I would love to hear your thoughts.