Norman in the Painting, Chapter Three when Norman disappears again: “A strong waft of air swooped into the space. Jill, with eyes closed as her hair blew into her face, clasped the edge of the desk . She couldn’t hang on any longer and fell to the floor.”
Sisters meet at Starbucks in Norman in the Painting
In Chapter Two of my novel, Norman in the Painting, Jill meets her sister, Vivian, at Starbucks. She wants to tell Viv about the strange appearance of the man in the antique store, but she’s worried about her response. Most of the chairs at the tables were full. Since it was a weekday, the patrons […]
A Motif in Norman in the Painting
Foo dogs are a motif in my novel Norman in the Painting. Here is an excerpt from Chapter One. Jill meets Norman for the first time when he appears in the antique shop and asks Jill what she is holding. She answers foo dogs and he wants to more about them: “They are believed to […]
Protagonist Takes on Environmental Issues
In my novel, Norman in the Painting, Jill, the protagonist, is passionate about environmental issues and about helping the homeless. She researches issues such as landfill problems. The following are today’s statistics she finds: 22 billion plastic bottles ended up in landfills last year. National Geographic, Green Guide. It takes thousands of years for plastic […]
Activewear in My Protagonist’s Closet
My Protagonist, Jill Steele, in Norman in the Painting, wears what I called a pink jogging suit. In a critique group, I was told the terminology is activewear, not jogging suit. Apparently, people don’t jog now days, they run. Jill’s sister convinces her to buy new clothes. Jill doesn’t like to go clothes shopping but […]
How Do Other Characters in your Story View the Progagonist?
If we imagine other characters in our story seeing the protagonist through a keyhole view, what would they say or write? If the story is written with a single point of view, the thoughts of the other characters can’t be used or we’d be head hopping. Their judgements can be revealed in dialog, directly in […]
Protagonist’s Positive and Negative Traits
Our characters have positive and negative traits like people do. As writers we give characters flaws to prevent the protagonist from being too perfect. Some writers are afraid to do anything that might make the hero or heroine less likable. But the character who exhibits flaws is more believable, more human. Their flaws often worsen […]