Yay!!!! The Great Blogging Experiment has finally arrived! Wow today is going to be a super fun today!!!
Elana, Alex and I are excited to have had such a great turn out for this fabulous experiment! I look forward to reading all of your entries and seeing how different all of them are!
I hope you brought your personalities today... it's time to shine!
Writing Compelling Characters.
A tough sell, I mean you want to think you have THE most AMAZING character that ever lived, but not everyone can have Harry Potter (not to mention in your story he probably wouldn't fit in.
The main ingredient is your character's VOICE without it your reader will bore and leave the book at the nightstand underneath the rest of the novels that will NEVER be read.
Just a few other things to help keep your characters interesting. Here.We.Go
1. It's like Peanut Butter & Jelly - Your readers have to have a connection.
2. Guys Wanted - Geeks, Jocks, Guitarists, doesn't matter who they are, just make them hot!
3. Personality - Strong, independent, broken. Everyone needs fixing, the more obstacles the better. Let's just watch the insanity, we want borderline crazy, not toppling off the cliff crazy.
4. Cool names - The more rockin' the name, the longer I stick around.
5. Vampires - Always works as a fall back, again, just make them hot!
I'm off to check the others out!! See you there! Thanks for stopping by! Happy Friday!
111 comments:
Maybe the only one I wouldn't agree with is vampires. I'm a little sick of them. But vampires eating peanut butter and jelly might be interesting! Great post!
Completely agree! If I had to pick one key ingredient - it would be Voice - without it we're lost! Great experiment my dear! ;)
Have a fab weekend!
I totally agree with voice. That's uber important.
Nice post :-)
hahaha, you're hilarious! "Just make them hot!" LOLOL OK, Sergeant!!!! ;o)
So bummed I missed doing this NON-Blogfest! HAH. Already had committed to another writer's guest post, though. This is great. Love chats about character development.
LOL- with those tips, I don't think anyone can go wrong!
Great tips Jen, voice is essential for a character. And the hot vampires don't hurt either.
Thanks for hosting the experiment...it has been so much fun!
I love how your advice is short and to the point, sprinkled with the flavor of Jen:)
I love the humor you injected into this Jen, but I also seriously think you hit the nail on the head here when you said borderline. They key is to immerse the reader in the story, and to provide nothing that will remind them they are actually READING.
Flawed characters are important, but they can't be SO flawed that they aren't believable.
Hot vamps....bwahahahaha!!!
Hot vamps with cool names and a penchant for PB&J. Check! :D I love that you brought us some very important points in a humorous way. It'll help each of us remember all of it. We always remember the funny stuff. ;D
I'm having a blast reading everyone's posts! Great job!
Hot vamps eating peanut butter and jelly with cool names--wait I think everyone said this but now I want to read a story about it.
Wait, I'm getting a visual--nice. You rock, Jen. Too funny.
Voice is the most important.
Thanks and have a great weekend!
Voice sticks out to me. Because without it, I'll lose interest in the character. Too bad there is no formula but voice except time.
haha I like your points --PB&J! I passed on this one but am enjoying reading them!
Voice. Huge! Thanks for the reminder and thanks for being a host for this awesome fest!
A strong voice will lead you through the dark back into the light. And here's to hoping that voice belongs to some hot guitar-playing vampire! ;)
Glad, Jen, you emphasized the hot part. ;)
The big ones for me are voice and my ability to connect with the character (which is due to numerous reasons).
Great list, Jen.
I love your list: short, sweet and to the point. LOL!
YeeHa Jen! What a day this is going to be! It's gonna take me many days to read all these contributions!
Woot, I so agree on the voice. I need to connect to a voice to want to read on.
Plus, cute guys... OMG, I'm so with you on that. :)
Lovin the blogfest. :)
Ahahaha! This post makes me think of those recipes that say "just add water."
Just add vampires. Hehehe! Great post!
So I've decided my next character is going to be a geeky hawt vampire guitarist named Remington Zaid. And every other chapter he's going to be eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, only in a very brokenly way. Thanks for the tips. :)
LOL! I love it. Yes, make them hot! I agree, there definitely has to be a connection (I love the peanut butter & jelly reference!) Voice is probably the most important for me!
I like a cool name too ;o) My MC is named, Snow ;o)
Great post! Have a great weekend ;o)
ahhh everyone needs fixing - perfectly said! :)
Cool name, hot looks. Sexy voice. Oh, wait, I mean true, original voice. :)
C'mon! I'm sure Harry would fit into ANY story. Can you imagine him in the Hunger Games? If he could destroy Voldemort, those jerks from Sector 2 would be child's play.
Hot P and J... i am all about the super rockin' names.
great post!
:)
jeremy
iZombie
Haha, there are some great and unexpected tips here. I think I agree with whomever said a PB&J-eating vampire certainly would be interesting!
Congratulations on the success in your experiment (would have participated myself, but I was too scatter-brained when I planned my week-in-posts) - that's a whole lot of different takes on the same subject! :)
Voice! I like that. I focused on rational flaws in my post, but voice is absolutely 100% necessary to get right as well. If the voice is off, the reader can't connect, and it's buh-bye to your book.
Great post!
"Not toppling off the cliff crazy"
Haha
Love this list. Cool names are important. I hate trying to read about a hot, sexy Arthur or something. Totally throws off the vibe.
Jen you always have the best analogies "It's like Peanut Butter & Jelly" hahaha.
This is a really cool experiment. The entries sure are piling up!!!!
It really is interesting to see all of the differences.
have an awesome Friday and an amazing weekend!!! Give the hubs a big hug!!!
Jillian
Oh. My. Heck. I love your list! It's so you Jen :) Great points for sure!
Yeah, not interested in the vampires.
And not sure I'd call them 'hot,' but I have lots of guys for you! (Okay, all of my characters are men. So sue me.)
Ha ha! I would say your personality definitely comes through on this one, Jen! And holy long list of names, girl!! How on earth will I get to them all? :-)
What a success you guys are!
Haha, I love this list! Yay for vampires working as a fallback option :)
PB & J! You are adorable, Jen. :)
I don't know if I agree with 'hot' or vampires (even though I like hot and hot vampires)...but I DO agree with voice.
Have a wonderful weekend, girlfriend.
Love,
Lola
Thanks for helping host this awesomeness! I like your thoughts on a strong, independent, broken personality.
Thanks for hosting this experiment! I guess good characters are like peanut butter in that they stick to our readers. ;)
What a wonderful blogfest! I'm sorry I didn't see it in time to participate, but I must say I love the guidelines you've laid out here. For me, vampires and the like don't do it, but if there's a love interest, do make him hot! Love that.
Click over and read the entries to my blogfest today--it's Southern City Mysteries' birthday!
I'll catch your next blogfest. :)
Michele
SouthernCityMysteries
Ha! Fun post! Love how you added vampires at the end. Hilarious!
Thanks for sharing,
Tere
I'm a PB&J fan, too! So is my MC in my current WIP. How funny!
The only thing with cool names is don't make them too over the top. I've read some books where the names are all so unusual it's hard to remember or pronounce and I spend more time on the names than the story. I always try to have at least one terrific unique name in the story, usually MC so that its memorable. Or a sprinkle in a few cool ones but not too over the top. Love your ideas!
Hmm...vampires wouldn't work in my epic fantasy. But you never know where the writing muse will take you. I'm part of the experiment too.
Nancy
I love the peanut butter and jelly part! And it's true. I love best those characters I can relate to and see a little of myself in. :)
The voice is what draws me in and makes me stick around. Of course, hot boys would never hurt either. :)
The more obstacles the better...so true!
And personally? I'm a little burned out on vampires...hot or not. Unless someone can come up with yet another new twist on the theme!
Voice is certainly KEY in writing good characters! If you can't keep your reader's attention with your character's voice then you've lost them forever.
And hot guys certainly don't hurt a story ;)
Dude, you totally cheated. You went for VOICE, which is a writing thing, totally NOT a character thing.
Okay, okay, it can be both, and in fact, should be. All right, you're really a genius.
Love your list! Yes, people, they need to be hot... and available won't hurt either.
CD
I think you just solved my MS problem! no vampires. I knew it needed something...Thanks!!
Great post btw.
Great post, Jen! :) It is so true what you said, participants of The Great Blogging Experiment is a success and we all wrote differently! Amazing! :)I like your 'peanut butter & jelly' bit :)
This was such a great idea, Jen! It's been so great to devour so many words of wisdom on such an important subject.
Can't wait to see what you pick next time. :)
Along with what you said, you characters each need to have their own language, words they like to use, words they'd never use...
Love that you mentioned character names! I wrote a blog about that not too long ago, hating a characters name is a big pet peeve for me.
Great points, excellent and thought provoking. Names are uber important to me too. I wonder what people would make of my character Suzanne in my blogfeast submission? Someone told me they thought she was dull and that they wouldn't want to meet her LOL!
Happy Friday to you too! Thanks for the list of what you like in a character... I gotta admit it made me laugh. :o)
Thanks, Jen. I'm kinda partial to hot guys too. I always try to include at least one.
ha! Great list Jen! I especially agree with names. Names can really make or break a character. I especially like names that are a little ironic. :)
You're right...you've got to "hear" the character...be it a hot vampire or a quirky kiddo named messy marvin. ;)
Have a wonderful weekend, Jen!
Voice is so important. Without it, the writing is flat and frankly, not worth reading.
Yup right there with voice and vampires :)
Just make them hot....haha. Great idea! Hot guys always make me want to keep reading.
This Ozark farm chick just listens to the voices in her head, 'just no use to look any further!!! Heeehehehe! Great advice sir. :o)
Ya'll have a wonderfully blessed weekend from the happy hills and hollers of the Missouri Ponderosa!!!
Oh man! I love the pbj analogy! I should totally get some of that in my characters!
This has been so much fun Jen! Thanks! =)
Thank you for using PB&J as an example of connection. It made me really happy :-)
Does it stand to reason that all vampires are compelling?
Voice is SO important! If it's not there . . . I lose a lot of my interest in the book! I'm a little tired of vampires right now, but as long as they're original I'll stand them--maybe even like them!
Oh, voice - completely! There are so many voices I've read that I've fallen in love with. When I can almost hear the exact pitch and tone of the speaker, I know it's something that'll captivate me, even if the story is subpar.
Great post, Jen!
Voice is about as sticky as peanut butter and jelly to nail but so important to the authenticity of character.
Thanks for hosting this fun event!
You're hilarious! Love this post. "Guys wanted" huh? Me likey a lot that part.
And it's a good point. :)
-H
Great post and experiment!
Thanks for hosting!
I'm with ya--voice is a huge part of character.
(I've hereby linked here from my post!)
I think the most important one in your list is the one about having a connection. If I can't connect with a character, I don't care about them at all.
I especially love the rockin' names part, lol! True though. :)
I don't write vampires, but man, I really love to read them and especially in YA.
Great post and great experiment! Thanks!
So oriignal! Love your advice. You sure have a voice of your own:)
I will read anything if the characters can attract and hold my attention. The compelling character is the key.
LOL! I agree about voice, too. (And hot guys, in certain types of books. Like the ones with vampires.) Great job with this post!
No more vampires aaaaaaaaah! Just kidding. I still love them. Sigh...
Vampires, hee hee. I wrote my first vamp story a coupla days ago and it has been received well, due to sympathetic characterisation I am told. No matter who our characters are, we must give our readers a reason to like them on some level even if it is peanut butter and JAM!
Thanks for short and hot post..:)
I've missed you! School's been killing me but I KNEW I needed to make time today. I'm so glad I did. This is a crazy awesome experiment and people really do sound different.
I love your advice, especially the peanut butter and jelly. It's just so you! You have such a strong voice on your own and I know it comes across in your characters too.
Great focus on the more obstacles the better!! Thanks!
One should never underestimate the power of hotness. :)
Excellent! Fun tongue-in-cheek post that is full of truths. Especially the make 'em hot parts. ;)
Great experiment - it was fun to see different takes on the same subject. Voice is definitely critical (as long as it's consistent).
Familiar and yet also unique=compelling. I agree!
Also, I'm glad you're a fan of vamps. Seems to be a dwindling population, sadly.
You cover the most important things sweetly and succinctly. Not sure I'll ever be writing about vampires, but anything can happen.
Lee
Tossing It Out
Jen - I LOVE it. Hot. A bit crazy. A cool name AND make them a vampire . . . =D So much fun.
Oooh, I love peanut butter and jelly! If I can make my characters stick to the reader like that my job is done:)
Jen, what a rocking 'experiment'! Thanks so much for hosting!
~~that rebel, Olivia
Jen! Thank you so much for hosting this fest for us! It's been an interesting adventure. Don't you just love writing? <3
Come and visit me!
Loved your PB&J tip! Voice is so important. My fav characters always have a voice that resonates with me, sticks with me, long after I finish the book.
Yikes! I don't have vampires as a fallback position! I'd better get on that... :)
What? No sparkling??? Lol, I love that everyone hit on the Voice issue. It's pretty darn important. Too bad it's often also the most difficult to nail down, especially for newer writers.
Sometimes it makes me feel like Pinocchio waiting to become a real boy (or Pinocchia waiting to become a real girl?), the way I wait to get a real voice. Maybe I have it already. I really do hear it in others, but I wouldn't hear it in me if it yelled into a bullhorn against my ear.
Ha, I agree with these. I have a couple of the will Never read ones. You know, you go to the bookstore, start reading, decide to buy, go home, keep reading, then get bored..haha
I hope you have a wonderful weekend.
LOVE!
The Great Blog Experiment is clearly a huge success! Everywhere I've gone today in the blogosphere has been about writing compelling characters.
Jai
Aw! I think toppling off the cliff crazy would make for a compelling character. ;)
This has been a great experiment! And I haven't come across any two posts that were the same :)
I loved that you said "broken." I love a broken character. =]
I love the PB and J Connection! That's a great image, and I think it's so true. We need to feel connected to the characters we read.
Thanks for putting together the Great Blogging Experiment!
lol - if all else fails throw in a vampire. Funny post - thanks for hosting.
This was a fun blogfest ... errrrr ... blogging experiment. It was fun to visit other blogs and read their perspectives of what makes compelling characters.
I agree characters need a catchy name. My protagonist is Chase Manhattan. Originally, I had him living in Manhattan (changes to Laguna Beach, CA). It has the word MAN in it. And HAT. Tough guys John Wayne and Indian Jones wore hats.
I selected Chase because because he is either chasing someone or something, or someone is chasing him.
And women love him. I made him kinda like me, only a little bit taller, a little stronger, faster, smarter, a litter better (ahem) endowed. Chase was a fun character to develop.
Stephen Tremp
Peanut butter and jelly.
Didn't see that coming. Love it!
Great post!
This was such a great idea, glad you guys 'hosted' it for us!
Have a great weekend,
Karen
Oh Hail yeah sistah! Make them hot, hot HOT! Amem to that!
You are so right about the little crazy! Not too much! Great advice here!
Guys Wanted - Geeks, Jocks, Guitarists, doesn't matter who they are, just make them hot!
Ummmmm...I kind of lean in the other direction...so where is the Gals Wanted list? :)
Okay,I definitely agree with you about the personality thing. Is it wrong is I secretly love characters with deep issues and the people who learn from and/or help them? That's my sort of story.
Also, I love the use of pbnj to describe character connections. My be stealing that in the future. "Whose the jelly to this peanut butter?"
I like your fun take on the blogfest.
I dunno about vampires. Many agents are specifically saying, "No vampires".
Let's leave all the hotness to Hollywood and mix a little imperfections into our stories.
Just make 'em hot. Very funny.
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