Writer’s Digest University’s “How to Find and Keep a Literary Agent Boot Camp” is half-way finished for this week. I’ve learned a lot about query letters. We’ve viewed two videos, had two days of two hour discussions, and tomorrow we submit our query letter, first five pages, and synopsis for our agent’s critique. I choose […]
Rollo May Quotes
Today, I opened a book at random and found the following quote by Rollo May: “The boundaries of our world shift under out feet and we tremble while waiting to see whether any new form will take the place of the lost boundary or whether we can create out of this chaos some new order.” […]
Writer’s Digest University
For the first time, I’m taking a class with Writer’s Digest University. “How to Find and Keep a Literary Agent Boot Camp.” It includes a tutorial presented by agents at the Dijkstra Literary Agency explaining the process of submitting to an agent. For two days, two hours each day, there will be Q and A […]
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 […]
Characters’ Flaws and Fears
Jill, my protagonist in Norman in the Painting, has a fear of taking risks. She went to the university closest to her hometown although she was accepted in several that were in different states. She wasn’t afraid to leave her parents or to leave her few friends. The small town in the story is a […]
Motif
What is the difference between motif and theme? A motif in narrative is a recurring element throughout a literary work. A motif can be an image, words, an object, a sound, color, or ideas. A motif is not a symbol. A symbol represents something, for example, a light bulb means “new idea”. Often symbols occur […]
Writing Characters’ Habits
When writers write characters’ habits, they can show body language like rubbing a nose, flipping long hair, etc. Habits can include lucky objects that a character uses before a challenge like a rabbit’s foot or a special crystal, penny, or any number of choices. In my novel, Norman in the Painting, I wanted Jill, the […]