Do Your Characters Have an Inner Tormenter?

Most of us have things we reach for when we’re under stress.  We may not even realize we do so, or that we have these certain habits.  If I asked you to think about what the case is for you, what would come back with?

Do you seek comfort in:

Alcohol?

Chocolate?

Social Networking?

Isolation?

Loud music?

Smoking?

Doing drugs?

Taking sleeping pills?

Sleeping around?

And potentially it could be a number of the things listed above depending on the motivating circumstances.  These habits, or “vices”, are usually the result of an underlying emotional condition.  Another noteworthy point, is some of these things do not even need to be done to access.  For example, alcohol.  A bad day can have you reach for a glass of wine, or it may be more extreme such as a bottle of wine, or maybe you drink everyday.

Now while this isn’t a discussion on having people examine their lives (although it’s not really a bad thing to do periodically), it does help in strengthening our characters on the page.  After all, the more you know about yourself and understand people in general, the better you can understand your characters.  How so?

For the most part, I think we tend to look at the motivation and then the effect.  For example, Joe is upset because his girlfriend said no to his proposal.  He’s heartbroken but his pride refuses to admit such.  However, it’s demonstrated in his sudden need to party, drink, and possibly sleep around.

This seems straightforward, but what if we’re coming at it from the other direction?  In writing, if you’re like me, your characters have a life of their own.  You may have a character that acts a certain way, or has habits and have no idea why.  It may have just come naturally to the character as you wrote the scene(s).  But think:  if you stop and look back, dig deep into the character’s psyche, how much stronger will that character become?  Root out their motivations, the buried feelings.

I guess it’s a relatable situation to that of, what came first the chicken or the egg?  If you meditate on character motivations and backgrounds, you’ll find that they are inseparable from reactions, vices, and/or habits.  Just as you need a chicken to lay an egg, you need an egg to make a chicken.

Did you know...

At the end of May, I was approached by Preethi Kashyap, Editor-in-Chief, of Inspiration Unlimited Magazine.  She found my blog to be inspiring and motivating and asked if I would be interested in submitting articles for their magazine.  I accepted her invitation.

Since June, I have been honored to be featured in both July and August editions.  Here's a glimpse of the articles and links to read more.

July Edition

RUSTIC REJUVENATION 

An article on how to break free of time constraints, and find renewed energy and motivation in life.

"I just don't have the time."

Ever hear yourself speak those words? It's quite possible you have, and on more than one occasion.  Life's responsibilities and endeavors seep in and take a lot of, not only our energy and money, but also our most valuable commodity-time...Read the rest of the article here.

August Edition

INFUSING LIFE INTO THE WORKDAY (page 13)

Not interested or motivated when it comes to your day job?  This article provides a total of 13 tips to apply before and during your shift.

For 71 percent of Americans their day job doesn’t bring them happiness or fulfillment; it’s simply for a paycheck.  According to a Gallup survey they are “not engaged” or are “actively disengaged” from their work.

Some deal with larger issues such as a bad boss or bullying in the workplace (which statistically is worse than sexual harassment).  Bullying in the workplace has been described as “a silent epidemic”.  How is it possible for those undergoing this to infuse life into their workday when they feel like calling in sick every day?

While these are larger issues that need to be addressed, the focus of this article is on those who not interested or motivated when it comes to their work.

How can you make the most of the workday?...Read the rest of the article here in the August edition, page 13.

What is Inspiration Unlimited magazine?

The whole objective of Inspiration Unlimited is to bring you a touch of variety of perceptions and expose you to people of diversity with respect to culture, thoughts, ideas, occupational backgrounds, age group etc.

Be sure to subscribe below not to miss any editions.

Triple 7 Challenge

As tagged by Kenneth Hoss, I’m to share 7 lines from page 7 of my latest release, or 77 words from a work in progress.

I’ve chosen to share a small excerpt from SACRIFICE (A Madison Knight Novel):

Stepping out of the morgue, Madison braced a hand on her hip above her holster.  “So, we’re left without an identity and only have a surmised cause of death.”

“Richards seems pretty certain it was a drowning even though he didn’t want to speculate.”  Terry mocked the ME’s words.

Madison had noted that too. Richards was typically a person who ran based on facts, not assumptions.  She had found it strange how he kept coming back to drowning as the COD without being certain.

 ~~~

Now, it’s my turn to nominate 7 authors.  I pick:

Katie Jennings

Derek Graystone

Kirkus MacGowan

Richard C Hale

Ann Swann

Carmen DeSousa

Harvey Burgess

Writers—Disciplined?

Maybe the title of the post made you smile, the first thought being writers are the greatest procrastinators.  And while it’s true that we have the ability to network for hours, and let anything push our writing further along in a day (even doing the dishes), writers are a disciplined bunch.

If we weren’t disciplined, first drafts would never be finished or seen through to the end.  In fact, I’d go as far to say that writers are a very hard working group of people.  We sacrifice time from family and friends to write, to edit, to pursue our passion—but that’s okay because we love writing.

Now if you took the love of writing out of the recipe that would make an author, it would like leaving yeast out when you’re trying to make raised bread.  There would be no success.

So we’ve established writers are hardworking, the question is can we go to the extreme with it?  Does our passion outweigh other important things in our life?  Or are things tilting the other way are circumstances or situations interfering with our ability to focus on our passion?  Do negative attitudes from around us, or from within, critique us to silence?

And here’s a question:  Do you have as much joy and passion for writing now as you used to?

If you hesitate to answer the question, narrow in on what is making your impulse response no.  Is it writing itself or the business of writing?  Have you allowed obsession over sales figures to have a power of your self-worth as a writer? 

Root back to the core of your writing passion. 

We have the choice as to which direction our life will go, and on a smaller level how each day and each interaction will go.  While it’s true we encounter unpleasant conflicts in life, it’s what we do with these that matter.  (Think of the cliché: “if you’re given lemons, make lemonade”.)

Here are some tips to reignite a spark of writing passion:

Choose to be positive.

As mentioned on this blog before, there can be a lot of negative influences around us.  Like the post So You Wrote a Novel--Big Deal? shows a lot of people will shrug their shoulders when you tell them this, or offer “oh, that’s nice”.  They assume you woke up one day and just thought you’d put words to paper; they don’t realize it’s your passion.

Don’t let these people have power over you.  YOU control YOUR life, YOUR passions.  No one can dredge that from your soul—unless you allow them to.

Choose to learn from obstacles.

There’s no way around it, we will face obstacles.  It is what we do with them.

Do we let every hiccup get us down?  Do we let larger setbacks stop the pursuit of our passion?

If so, I’m sad for you and hope this post will help reignite your passion.  We have to utilize these conflicts and make them work for us.  Instead of focusing on the negative, “I give up”, focus on the positive:  what can I learn from this?  In looking at things this way we empower ourselves, not the situation.

Choose to be unwavering in the pursuit of your passion.

Building on the previous point, by empowering ourselves, we are not expelling our energy in vain.  We will have energy to pursue our passion.  We will make it happen!  And when we make it happen, we shine!

~~~~

Here are a couple of good posts I’ve come across among my networks recently that also discuss this topic:

Not Giving Up, Even When You’re Giving Up by Sonia G Medeiros

Unlocking Your Great Future—5 Keys to Writing Success by Kristen Lamb

Sacrifice, the 3rd in the Madison Knight series, is Here!

I'm proud to announce that the third installment of the Madison Knight series, SACRIFICE, is now available for Kindle.  The paperback version will follow shortly.

Although, I had anticipated releasing it back in June or July, I think it will have been worth the wait.

Here is what some pre-reviewers have said:

“Sacrifice is fast-paced with unexpected twists and turns and sudden bursts of humor that make for a relaxed, enjoyable reading adventure...Arnold’s style is...a cross between Mary Higgins Clark and Janet Evanovich....” 

—Betty Dravis, Award-winning Author and Journalist

“If you’re a fan of Law & Order and Rizzoli & Isles, then dive into the Madison Knight Series...It’s a fast-paced, fun and absorbing ride...” 

—Katie Jennings, Author of The Dryad Quartet

Here's the book blurb:

When the son of business tycoon Marcus Randall washes up on the shore of the Bradshaw River, Detective Madison Knight must sacrifice everything—including her career—to find justice for the “perfect murder”.


With Randall already on the radar of the Secret Service for fraud and counterfeiting, the investigation sheds new light and they require the full cooperation of the Stiles PD. But with power and money to back him, Marcus has a reach that extends right inside the police department. 

If Madison’s going to find out the truth, she’ll have to sort through the lies and balance diplomacy with politics.

Buy on Amazon


Read an excerpt:

Prologue

He equated his past deeds to shades of gray with no distinction between black and white, right and wrong, good and bad.  He knew others would see things differently, but it didn’t matter.  Few people possessed the ability to intimidate and influence him.  The man he was meeting had the power to do both.

He walked into the dimly lit Fairmont Club, and as he followed the maître d’ to a back table, he inhaled the smells of grilled steak mingled with imported cigars.  Appreciatively, he watched her hips sway as if she put extra effort into it.

“Patrick, how nice of you to join me.”  The man in the pressed Armani, with whom very few conversed with on a first name basis, sat at the table.  A glass of Louis XIII Black Pearl, priced at fifteen hundred an ounce, was in front of him.

Patrick noticed the man’s bodyguard sitting at a nearby table.  He was Armani’s prized stallion who instead of being stabled was toted about and showcased.  The man went by Jonathan Wright, but Patrick doubted that was his real name.  He was super intelligent and an ex-marine.  Wright nodded his approval and went back to his steak and red wine.  

Another young woman, a potential Asian model, stood at the edge of the table.  “Your regular, sir?”

“French with a twist.”  Patrick smiled at the waitress remembering the feel of her skin and the smell of her musky dew.  Although a married man for thirty years, he didn’t think his wife had noticed him missing that night.

A few minutes later, the waitress came back with his Perrier water and lime in a rocks glass.  The weight with which she set it on the table told him her memories were back, but she had to act like a civilized woman; after all she was working.  She had to know, with a body like hers, she begged men to take advantage of her.  He still believed he could have her again, if he were at all inclined.

Armani held up his glass in a toast gesture before swirling it lightly and taking a deep inhale.  He followed with a small draw on the cognac.  “When are you going to join me and have a real drink?” 

“I’m on the job.”

“Time for that new chair, my friend.”

“Is that why you called me here?”  Patrick smiled.  Maybe the time had come to be repaid for past favors?

Armani let out a laugh.  “Hardly.  I need your help with something.”

Patrick’s heart palpitated with adrenaline as it did every time this man made that statement.  It was too late in his life to change to one of innocence.  Should his past deeds ever require an accounting, his only option would be a bullet to the brain.  “You name it.”

Armani played things smart, though.  He always reminded him of the stakes involved first.  “You help me with this and I’ll ensure you make Mayor.”

  

Chapter 1

The pungent odor hit Madison instantly upon opening the morgue doors.  She pinched the tip of her nose, but it did little to save her from the smell of decomp becoming embedded in her lungs and sinus cavities.

“Whoa, he’s a ripe one.”  Terry, her partner, stepped through the doorway behind her.  He grabbed for a cloth mask from the dispenser mounted on the wall, and handed her one.

Cole Richards, the ME, stood by the body as a tall, dark guardian.  He kept his eyes on the body as he spoke.  “It’s the exposure to the air accelerating the putrefaction process.  This is why the autopsy must be done tonight.”

Madison noted Richards spoke with his eyes on the dead, an unusual thing for him.  Maybe something about this death touched him on a personal level?  She looked from Richards to the body.   Read more on my website, or download the book for Kindle here.