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The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Characters

Characters

Beyond the Hook: Character Flaws?

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon November 9, 2017
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My husband gave me a turquoise ring I enjoy wearing. For one, the stone was unearthed from the Sleeping Beauty Mine in Arizona, which has since closed. The location seems cool to me since our agency’s corporate headquarters is located in Phoenix. And since the mine is no longer in operation, the stone possesses special cachet. But more important, my husband likes the ring and wants me to have it.

But perhaps not everyone would have wanted this ring. Why? At first blush, the stone appears flawless. But closer examination reveals a visible matrix from the host rock. Rather than decreasing my enjoyment of the ring, however, I find the pattern fascinating. It adds interest. I often study it.

Likewise, a character who’s seemingly flawless might reveal, upon closer examination, a unique and intriguing matrix. I’ve been told by many readers that they don’t enjoy reading about two perfect people falling in love. Rather, eccentricities and flaws add interest and dimension.

Your turn:

Can you name a character who seemed perfect, but with flaws that added intrigue?

What flaw does your current hero or heroine display?

Are your characters’ flaws endearing, or aspects to be overcome?

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Category: Craft, Writing CraftTag: Characters, Writing Craft

Beyond the Hook: What Makes Your Reader Care?

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon November 2, 2017
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Any book lover who’s made the hobby of reading a lifelong habit can name stories that kept him reading well past anything else – dinner, chores, bedtime… What makes this happen? The Problem Sympathetic characters can help as a start, but while they serve to draw in a reader, the story’s dilemma itself keeps the reader engaged. The reader can’t put the book down until the characters solve the …

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Category: Craft, Writing CraftTag: Characters, Craft

Beyond the Hook: Writing Sympathetic Characters

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon October 26, 2017
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The first page may be promising. The opening chapters may be engrossing. But a reader might still abandon your book if it doesn’t deliver. How can you keep your readers going? Sympathetic Characters Some writers are talented in creating sympathetic characters from page one. Perhaps Page one occurs during a fire, when the characters have lost everything. Or the heroine has been abandoned by a …

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Category: Craft, Creativity, Editing, Romance, Romantic SuspenseTag: Characters, Craft, Reading

How to Ruin Beloved Characters

By Karen Ballon June 14, 2017
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Did you all read Steve’s post about Edgy Christian Fiction? An excellent post, and one that addressed vitally important issues for us as Christian who write. So why am I writing about it when Steve dealt with it so well. Because last night I experienced the ugly effects of edginess on characters I have enjoyed and loved. First, let me say that I know my experience has nothing to do with …

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Category: Writing CraftTag: Characters, Edgy, Writing Craft

Easily Entertained

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon February 16, 2017
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Recently my husband, daughter, and I had dinner with my parents at King’s Barbeque in Petersburg, Virginia. My paternal grandfather discovered this restaurant in the 1950s and it is still one of our family’s favorite places. Since it was near Christmas, they displayed a unique decoration – a pig wearing a Santa hat. Amused, I took pictures with my cell phone. I heard voices. “That’s a first!” I …

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Category: Creativity, Humor, PersonalTag: Characters, Creativity

I Never Wanted to be Mary Tyler Moore

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon February 2, 2017
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After Mary Tyler Moore died recently, several celebrity women said they were inspired by her character in her eponymous 1970s show, about a single career woman. Depression I hadn’t even entered double digits in age when The Mary Tyler Moore Show first aired. And to be fair, I was not their target viewer. But to me, the whole scenario had a pall over it. Mary had broken up with her boyfriend and …

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Category: PersonalTag: Characters, Personal

Why Some Readers Love the Antihero

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon November 3, 2016
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Last week I wrote about information dumps, offering sketches of Valencia, Brad, and Joan. You might have noticed that all three fit the antihero characterization. They aren’t the type of people most of us would seek to spend much time with in real life. So why should they be in a book, particularly as main characters? According to Dictionary.com, an antihero is: …

Read moreWhy Some Readers Love the Antihero
Category: CraftTag: Characters, Writing Craft

Variety Is the Spice of Characters

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon May 5, 2016
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Recently I read a general market novel where I noticed that the characters sounded the same in a way. For example, for earning money, two disparate characters said, “made scratch.” The phrase jumped out at me the first time because it’s one I simply don’t use. So when a second character used the same expression, my mind wandered out of the story and into thinking about the expression. The book …

Read moreVariety Is the Spice of Characters
Category: Craft, Creativity, Writing CraftTag: Characters, Craft, Creativity, Writing Craft

Nuance: A Key to Real-Life Characters

By Karen Ballon June 24, 2015
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I love watching movies and TV. Love being transported by the stories and entertained by the characters. Lately, I’ve been keying in on something, though, that is helping me with building characters in my fiction. Nuance. It’s defined by good ol’ Webster’s as “a subtle or small distinction,” but I’m finding that it could be defined as “the difference between real-life and stereotypical characters.” …

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Category: Craft, Writing CraftTag: Characters, Craft, Writing Craft

Your Conflicted Characters

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon March 5, 2015
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I am blessed to work with many talented authors with great ideas. Recently one of my clients, Renee Andrews,  submitted a wonderful chart outlining her characters’ conflicts. You may have seen similar charts before, but I especially like the way Renee laid hers out: [Character Name] INTERNAL EXTERNAL Goal — What? Motivation — Why? Conflict — Why not? Renee is a very successful author at the …

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Category: Craft, Get Published, Writing CraftTag: Characters, Writing Craft
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