Killer Blogfest - Antagonists

Yesterday was tough for me, but today I do have a clear winner  for my favorite antagonist and his name is... Erik from Gaston Leroux's Phantom of the Opera.
Erik has been painted in so many different roles. Some of them have been incredibly spooky and some have been sincere and sweet, but in the original, you can't help but love him for all that he is and all that he's not. Controlling, caring, conniving; in a word, complex. It's a great combination (and alliteration!)

This Killer Blogfest is brought to you by E.R. King and Deana. Thank you for hosting!

Killer Blogfest - Protagonists

For the Killer Blogfest, I wanted to take my favorite killer characters and tell you why I love them. That's when I realized that What's killer about this blogfest is deciding who my favorite anything is. Especially when it comes to protagonists.

Someone pass me an envelope with the answer in it, please. Anyone? Anyone? Okay, fine.

The award for best female protagonists (You didn't think I'd actually just choose one did you?) goes to... Oh, we have a tie!  Azalia from Entwined and Elizabeth Bennett from Pride and Prejudice. Katmiss and Christine Daaé were close seconds though.

The male protag also was too close to call. Jean Valjean from Les Miserable and Wesley from the Princess Bride took it, in the end.

What do all these brilliant characters have in common? Soul. Strength. Weakness. They care about others and their love touches our hearts.

This Killer Blogfest is brought to you by E.R. King and Deana. Thank you for hosting!

Ten-Word Tuesday

Anything can happen Halloween Night. Watch out for bone-chilling inspiration!

Killer Blogfest - Supports

For the Killer Blogfest, I wanted to take my favorite killer characters and tell you why I love them. That's when I realized that what's killer about this blogfest is deciding who my favorite anything is.

The winner of best supporting character goes to... Leo from the Hourglass Door Series.

Why? How many people do you know who would suffer for centuries just to redeem his friends? That's killer support, baby! He's totally red carpet material in my book.

This Killer Blogfest is brought to you by E.R. King and Deana. Thank you for hosting!

When to Say No

We all have our two cents to throw into the mix. Do you remember ever playing that game where you had to guess the number of jellybeans in a jar and whoever came closest won a prize? I wonder what we would win if we threw all the proverbial two-centers in a jar and guessed how many everyone had tossed in willy-nilly. Yep, I digress.

The point of this post is not to actually discuss two cents, but MY two cents. On critiques. I must admit to being a pushover at times. I used to accept every comment that came my way a little too openly because I figured everyone knew more than I did. Well, that part's still true, but I came to realize something. Everyone knows more about their stories, about their writing processes, about their genres than I do. Not necessarily mine.  

Let me back up. There was a point while I was mulling over critiques that I realized how off one of them was for me. If I followed the advice, my story wouldn't be the story I wanted to tell anymore. It would be a completely different, very cool story in its own right, but it wouldn't be the one that has been screaming at me for the last couple of years.

I have received (why do I still want to spell received with the i first?) the best advice from those who have critiqued me and I am forever grateful for all they've taught me and the inspiration they've shared. Now I also realize that sometimes it really is okay to say no, too.

Fancy that. I hope y'all are quicker than I am. It will save you a lot of hours worrying!

Ten-Word Tuesday

A little mystery goes a long way in any story.

Shannon Whitney Messenger: Wishes come true in the biggest blog contest I've ...

Go support Shannon! She's crazy! Er... I mean her giveaway is crazy. You're not going to want to miss it. ;)

Shannon Whitney Messenger: Wishes come true in the biggest blog contest I've ...: Whew--last week was officially one of the most surreal, crazy, amazing weeks of my life. I seriously can't thank you enough for all your com...

Midweek Mixer

I never drink, but on words. Wednesdays feature quotes and phrases that make me heady because we all need a boost to get us to the weekend.

"Better to write for yourself and have no public than to write for the public and have no self."
    ~ Cyril Connolly

Ten-Word Tuesday: Goals

Help others. Success is more satisfying when it is shared.

2011 Debut Author Spotlight

This beautiful idea of spotlighting  debut authors is brought to you by Christina Lee. She is amazing and sweet. Go check her blog out here. 

I've discovered something about myself. I'm terrible at reviews, but that's not going to stop me from gushing over a few debut authors whose books I've fallen in love with. I'm just going to do it my way: in ten words, of course!

Entwined by Heather Dixon

Magic bleeding over from centuries past seems harmless enough until...

Shifting by Bethany Wiggins

Strong characters rise when good sense tells them to fall.

The Liar Society by Lisa and Laura Roecker

Ghostly emails, haunting friendship, clues, threats, love equal fantastic read.

Theatre Trick

(Blogger thinks I spell theatre wrong. I'd stick my tongue out, but I don't think blogger would care.)

Back in my college days, I learned a little acting trick to help bring out emotions. When I first started writing, I realized it worked just as well to bring out emotional responses in characters. It's so simple you're probably already doing it, but I'm going to pass it along anyway.

Grab your favorite pillow and lie down on the floor, Ask yourself what emotional response you're trying to trigger. Let's go with shyness because it's not one we usually think about. Go ahead and walk yourself through the situation you remember, Then figure out what part of your body is feeling the emotional response. It could be your heart, hands, face, stomach... I feel a lot of my emotions in my stomach. The feelings are random for everyone, but when you can place that emotion with a part of your body it's easier to bring back and when you're feeling it, you can more easily show, rather than tell, your readers how your characters feel it.   

Ten-Word Tuesday: Goals

Spend ten minutes a day on you; inspiration needs motivation.