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Attachment to characters.

I had an interesting conversation yesterday about how I strangely become emotionally attached to the characters I write in my books.   I mentioned before in a blog how, when I begin writing a new character (round or flat) that I ask myself: who are they?  what do they want? I believe it is from this moment that the attachment begins.   Writing fiction gives one a unique opportunity to know what the character is thinking and who they are inside, something we never experience otherwise.  In my newest release, Abraham, I found myself a bit overwhelmed by what happens to Abba.    I was so deeply aware of the kind, strong and loving man that he was, internally and externally.  I actually morned him.   I felt a bit odd about that and slightly taken aback.   I mean, I was morning a fictional character that I created.  I was horrified about what this poor man/character endured and what he endured was what survivors had told me that they had endured, which, with their permission I made his plight.    I suppose what I love about books, reading or writing them is that we live them as we travel through them.  We create the visual in our minds and walk the streets with the characters as they walk down them.  In a way, a book becomes a part of our experience, and in a way we befriend the characters we meet along the way.   It’s this attachment that lifts and conveys emotion.  A new friend pointed out that she loved a character in my first published book: Memoirs of a Monster.   She asked me something interesting:  How did Hamish and Giacomo meet?  What created their bond?   I knew it intimately, I knew and felt their bond and their friendship.  I wrote Giacomo as a sort of filler character, to help move the story along, never thinking that the reader may become attached to him.  I suppose I also made him stand out in a way that was, well... rounder then I had originally intended, because I liked him! I promised to revisit their bond in book two.      

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First review of “Abraham” on Goodreads.

S. Soper 5 stars.

Abraham was one of the best books i've ever read! Putting aside the very harsh and hard reality of the world he lived in at the time, it was a pleasure to get to know Abraham and his family. I find myself thinking often about him and wondering what he would do in certain circumstances. This book opened my eyes a little wider to the struggle people faced at the hands of the morally wicked. I have acquired a little deeper appreciation for all the comforts and freedoms I have taken for granted growing up, as this novel draws you in and really challenges you to confront and re-evaluate your own inner feelings of tolerance, family, hate, trust, hope, perseverance and most importantly, love. Set during a time of unimaginable devastation, Abraham was a very hard book to read in parts because no one likes to read about the horrors that mankind suffers at the hands of our fellow man, but at the same time, it also tells the story of one mans triumph over evil, and in this day and age, we all need just a little more faith that there is good in the world. This book offers that slice of hope and really showcases the power love has to overcome the most horrific of circumstances. I feel this book is a must read!!!

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https://www.amazon.com/Abraham-J-Curtis-ebook/dp/B07YXQNHH6/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Abraham+by+A+J+Curtis&qid=1570892906&sr=8-1

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Abraham by A J Curtis

Hiding under a bed in an abandoned apartment, the morning after the soldiers killed his sister right in front of him, Abraham hears the cries of a baby coming from somewhere in the apartment.   He finds a baby German girl, starving, ashen and cold, wrapped in a Nazi flag.   Abraham believes that he is the soul living survivor of his family, not knowing that his father is alive and has been moved to the Ghettos.   The story travels alongside both of them, their journeys of survival, their trials and horrors of this war.   Abrahams life becomes about survival and keeping this baby alive and safe, while Abba (Abrahams father) is drawn deeper into the darkest side of the human condition.   It is a heartbreaking journey of hope, set in wartime Poland, Germany and Austria.   Although the characters are fictional, most of the accounts within are real.   The Author interviewed Holocaust survivors and was given permission to interweave their stories into the life of Abraham and his father Abba.   Somewhere off in the distance of this story, there exists the faintest light, that rises up throughout the slow and sad ache of darkness that surrounds them, giving both the characters and the reader - hope! 

https://www.amazon.com/Abraham-J-Curtis-ebook/dp/B07YXQNHH6/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Abraham+by+A+J+Curtis&qid=1570892906&sr=8-1

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Kindle book free for 5 days

Memoirs of a Monster will be available for free for 5 days on amazon/kindle starting September 20th through to September 25th.   Please enjoy a free copy and if you enjoy it, spread the word and please leave a nice review on goodreads.com 

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Most recent reviews:

Memoirs of a Monster by A J Curtis. 

First, I would like to extend a huge thank you to those of you who have read my book and for taking the time to express your enjoyment and for spreading the word via reviews.   Thank you!!!   

Below are the most recent reviews that have come in from readers around the world. 

Favourite Book of the Summer

Initially I wasn’t sure about this book but a friend recommended it to me and wow was I suprised by how gripping it was. Could not put this book down and I would definitely recommend it.  

Instant classic

Beautiful character development. A fast-paced, romantic, engaging novel, beautifully narrated. Listening to the story feels like you’re sitting with the main character listening to his story.

Can’t wait for the next book!

Loved the story and the narration.

I loved the characters especially Hamish the main character. Great adventure traveling thru history, cultures, love lessons thru his life journey.

Chewed Right Through It

Had a hard time putting this one down. Refreshing take on the whole Werewolf genre, great tour through history and interesting characters you actually care about. Great listen would highly recommend.

Sensational Story!!!

So I've read this story twice now, and listened to it once. I purchased it in Paperback and also on audiobook here. The story for me is fantastic, with just enough factual writing to make my mind wander....and also wonder, how much is true and how much is fiction!! 

I love the passion Hamish has for his compass, Lenore.....you don't find that in real life so much anymore.

Some books I find take me so long to finish, they just don't hold my attention. Not so with this one....I couldn't put it down. It has a bit of an 'Outlander' feel to it, but much more compelling in my opinion!!

The narrators dialect was so genuine, it actually made me feel as if I was there, in his homeland with him...sitting across from him in a pub listening to his story in person!!

I really think this author has meshed fantasy and fiction and fact in a brilliant way and I cannot wait for book 2!!!

Wow, great read!

Fast moving, never a dull moment, good character development and plot. Let me wanting more, hopefully there will be a part 2.

Was really surprised I loved it!

Normally not a fan of this genre. (Werewolves, vampires, etc.) A friend of mine recommended that I read it. I had no idea what I was getting into, I couldn’t put it down, read it straight through. It just keeps moving forward and keeps you wondering what will happen next. I agree with the last person, saying they could see it as a film. It’s in the descriptions. They’e simple, not overdone, and somehow immediately draw you in, in a way that you feel like you’re there.

Justine Jones it was amazing!

"Memoirs of a monster" is a great yarn, as we say in Australia.

An historical jaunt through time, tackling masculinity, immortality, love and loss. 

Similar to Anne Rice novels but with werewolves.   It definitely is one of those books that you cant put down, its was quick to read, with an easy to read size font, which leads you to read just a little bit more ,to find out what happens next.   I even cried in some parts....remembering the great loves of mine that are now gone forever. 

Cant wait to hear the audio book with the author narrating. (Available on Audible)

I like the way it ended ,with the possibility of the sequel.... could go into the future since the book covered the last 800 yrs. 

"Memoirs of a monster" would make a great film/TV series, travelling through time and place with interesting characters through out. 

Highly Recommended 

Justine Jones

C F - Great character development. The story beautifully catches the different time periods it plays in. I’ve been reading this book with a Scottish accent in my head - powerful stuff. Can’t wait for book 2!!

Shaunette Soper 

This book is a wonderful mix of history and fiction! The storyline is gripping...the characters are believable….And the descriptions are so true to life!! It's an addictive page turner and I can't wait for book 2!!!

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Kicking my own Butt!

So I always talk about it and make these promises to myself that I will get back into shape.  Months go by, the talk is still there and the disappointment in myself mounts.   Theres not many things that are more damaging than letting yourself down.   Breaking your own promises.   Then the excuses come in, like, I haven’t had any extra time, I have deadlines, I'm too tired etc, etc.   So, I finally did it a few weeks ago.   I got my ass out of bed...Wait, let me back up.  I was invited out for a private tour of Jet Propulsion Laboratories, as I am writing a new sci-fi novel and this is a great place to do some solid research.  While I was there, a friend of mine took a photo of me standing next to an engineer.  I looked at the pic about a week later.   I can not express to you how shocked I was at how I had let myself go, my weight was through the roof, my hair was disheveled, I was... Well I knew it was time for a change.   I had never let myself go like that before.   All the exciting things that have been happening in my life recently with my newly published book and traveling etc, were no excuse for this.  Also I knew that the key to energy is movement.   So where was I... Ah, yes!   I got my ass out of bed one morning (the next morning after seeing the photo) and I went down to the local gym and got a three day pass and got myself on the hamster wheel for 20 minutes, then did a light weight yet extensive chest workout, went home and made a healthy breakfast.   Normally I would wake up, make a coffee and sit outside, read my emails from the night before and smoke my vape and then eventually make my way back into the kitchen and make eggs and bacon or a breakfast rice stir fry, etc.   On this morning, I got up, made a coffee and put it in a togo container, went straight to the gym.  On the hamster wheel, I watched motivational kick your own ass, go out and take the world by storm youtube videos and listened to a little Bob Marley while I worked out, came back and made this breakfast:  Greek yogurt with a spoonful or organic honey, fresh blue berries, half a banana and some raw almonds, hemp seed and a little added fibre, then 3 eggs with some chicken Breast scrambled in.   Ok, so, yeah, I was tired.  I could barely move, but wow I felt proud of myself.  Something just kicked in.  Seeing that photo of myself set a fire in me, motivated me to really just get up and take care of myself.  Not for my wife, not for my friends or family, but for me!   I’m deep into week three now, and my results are mind blowing.  First, my energy level and enthusiasm for life and the projects I have been working on are through the roof.  Part of that might just be because I am proud of myself, for actually doing what I’ve been telling myself I should be doing for so long.  The other reason is because I am seeing a noticeable difference in my body and energy levels, strength, waist size, etc.   I’ve lost about 15 pounds, I trimmed the hair, trimmed the beard, bought some new closes, just got myself to looking like a person who is an active participant in his own life, rather than a house bound writer sitting for hours in front of his computer everyday and eating crap!   This was something that I had to do for me.   My wife had been asking me to go back to the gym and take better care of myself, this made me feel pressured and I started to feel resentment and used that as an excuse to just keep putting it on hold and continue being lazy.   My friends were teasing me about being fat.   Let me say this, there’s nothing wrong with being fat, as long as you are healthy and active and trying to eat well.   Still, I have always been the guy who was in extremely good shape and yeah! I got husky! lol.   Very husky!    The second week was tough, I’m not gonna lie.  I was exhausted and my body, every muscle in my body, was sore, but I knew that going in, and I was motivated, something in me just said, enough!!! get yourself back into great health and a great mindset.   So here we are in week three, 15 pounds lighter, energy already through the roof and I’m completely turned off by pizza and heavy carbs, the things I normally love to eat.   My wife and friends have commented on how they are amazed, at how quickly I have transformed my body and my look and health, how dedicated I am.   That feels great! Also I will add that muscle has memory, so if you were in shape before, it will come back quickly, you just need to put the effort in.   One of the other things I’ve noticed is that my focus has increased greatly.  How do I find the time?  I get my butt out of bed early and make a coffee and go straight to the gym, then come back to a nice healthy breakfast and get to work.  Best way to start my day ever.  Also, one more thing, this time I haven’t put any pressure on myself.  I just go to the gym, get active, my desire is to be healthy! I had always gone before with the mindset of a competitor.  Not anymore.  I just want to be lean and healthy and have the energy I need for my life and to feel good about myself.  I’m not rushing anything or putting insane expectations on myself either.  I am being patient and kind with myself and I am enjoying the process.   This is what I need to accomplish those things.  So there’s a wee tid bit about my life.      

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Self publishing with Amazon.

I never imagined I would ever publish any of my writing. I dreamed about it, but never thought it would actually happen. Over the years my friends world wide encouraged me to continue writing Memoirs of a Monster. I used to just write for fun and I would share tid bits or chapters with friends. I found this very inspiring and so I dug in deeper and finished the book. I probably could have written it in a year, but in the end it took me almost 4 years, from writing the first word to publishing on Amazon through Createspace, which is now KDP. It has definitely been an exciting adventure, especially editing, as I have terrible grammar and spelling. Lol. So working with Amazon had been both amazing and frustrating beyond belief. The people at KDP are wonderful and a great help, the author services are outstanding, as long as you don’t have an issue that directly relates to Amazon. My book, a week after publishing, for some reason, wouldn’t accept reviews. I have contacted Amazon directly over 37 times since march of this year and KDP has tried repeatedly to help with this matter and they have contacted Amazon numerous times, trying to get this fixed. Apparently this is happening to many authors. I have many readers who are prime members writing me asking why they can’t leave a review on Memoirs of a Monster on Amazon, they have sent me screen shots of their attempts and I have forwarded them to Amazon and they have also written Amazon and all to no Avail. It seems there is no solution and Amazon simply won’t look into the matter. They always send a computer generated response that literally has nothing to do with the issue and a different name in each response everytime. The thing is reviews are what sell a book, word of mouth is so vital to success. Still and to my amazement, Memoirs of a Monster hit the best sellers list in Historical fiction in America for about a week! And in storytelling in the UK for a few days and it is selling! Last week it sold a hundred copies in three days, I couldn’t believe it. I am getting reviews without any issues on Audible thankfully. I haven’t been able to do any promotion on the book as of yet, I have been meeting with PR companies over the past few months and looking into online advertising and reading blog after blog on how to self promote a book. In the end it comes down to a ton of money or insane amounts of time and dedication to self PR and social networking. In truth I would have fitted the bill and gone with PR, had this blocking of reviews never happened. I have been actively redirecting readers to Goodreads and Audible and I’ve created this blog, thankfully readers are spreading the word. If you are an author on Amazon and you have had this same issue and had it resolved, please send me a note on how to effectively troubleshoot this with Amazon. I am so grateful to everyone of you who have purchased my book and for all of the amazing responses I have received and for all of the encouragement from readers and friends to write a sequel. As I have mentioned in previous blogs, I am deep into the writing of Memoirs of a Monster book two. I never planned on a second book, it’s a wee bit terrifying actually! Trying to figure out where to go with book two, still slowly but surely it’s coming together and to my surprise my beta readers are loving it and are deffinetly great with suggestions. To sum this up. If you go with Amazon via KDP, its a very smooth process, the hardest things was the formatting, other than that, its just an exciting adventure. Be prepared for things like I mentioned above. I of course hope that you are lucky and don’t have these issues and don’t hesitate, if it’s your dream, then do it!

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Pitch Bible.

So apparently, according to my lawyer, my book is being looked at by four major movie companies to be optioned for a movie/mini-series. This is of course very exciting and presents new challenges. I had heard about a pitch bible some years ago from some producer friends of mine. I’ve been trying to build one on my own, well, with the help of people I know in the industry, to get a better idea of what is happening and to be prepared should the day come. Books and movies are deffinitely different animals. One of my friends said that “Producers are in the business of visuals”. This made a lot of sense to me. I have no experience what so ever in screen writing and I have attempted to read a couple screen plays, I just found it hard to follow, somewhat unnatural. So here is what I have been doing. I mentioned that I had been creating pages for characters, who they are and where they are from and what they want and getting that down into a few paragraphs for each charater. This was the first great tool I had and fit nicely into my pitch bible. Next I searched the internet and I am still doing that, for actors, models, etc, that look like my vision of each charater. This has been going on for a year and for most of the characters I have nailed down at least three people that fit into what I envision. Lenore has been the hardest one to find. So if you’ve read my book or if you are about to and you have an idea for who would be great playing her role, then please do not hesitate to write me here. Next I have been looking at locations, all the places I have them in the story, but specific locations that set the scene. I have used personal photos and again searched on the internet. Honestly sometimes I get a bit lost in the search and end up falling in love with these places and then start surfing the web. Ok so next which has been the most challenging is period piece costumes. Sometimes I’m watching a show and then pause it and take screen shots, because yeah! That’s perfect, still this is presenting a huge challenge. I will add that there is a 99% chance they will never use my version of the pitch bible, but it has helped me in so many ways in writing, in creating a scene, in writing descriptions. The other challenge is finding real maps and names of places and drawings of towns and people from the 1500’s even farther back to the 1200’s. Remember that it’s also very specific to the place I am looking for. Like London 1556 for example. All of this in a PowerPoint creates a strong visual of the movie/mini series. Something easy for a producer to visualize and get on the same page as the author/screenwriter. Finding the time is the honestly the most challenging thing. Between writing and promoting and taking care of normal life, it can get a bit overwhelming. Still it gives me great respect for the people who do these things on a daily basis. I know this is something that I am not required to do or even need to do, but I find it exciting and very educational and it has helped me as a writer. The thing about a book that I love is that it takes you in and you have to imagine the streets and walk along them with the characters. It engages you, you are an active participant in the story. In a way, you live it and it becomes a part of you. It’s also exciting how everyone seems to take away something different from the same story. A pitch bible would help to incapslue your vision of the book to the director, and yet having read the book, He/She may have a very different vision and experience than you. Continuing this ramble. I’ve learned this over the years. While I’m creating something, it’s mine. Once I publish it, it’s not mine anymore, its the worlds and they will have perspectives that may differ greatly from mine. And yet that has also been a wonderful experience. Many times I’ve been like: Really? You got that out of that? Then I have gone back and tried to revisit it from their perspective. So in short, I highly suggest trying to write a pitch bible.

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first couple pages of Memoirs of a Monster.

 METAMORPHOSIS

Well... I guess if you're asking me to start at the beginning, then I should take you back.   The year was 1556 and I was not but twenty-eight years old.   We had ported in London before the Sun's arrival, we had spent the day unloading and uploading the ship with supplies, we were all exhausted, and in need of more than a bit of rest.

We had been at sea and away for a long time, Europe, Africa and Europe again.   One of our crew members had been injured along our journey home to England.   One of the crates had given way while he was below deck, and his screams led us to his unfortunate disposition.   His wounds quickened with infection and turned black.   We hadn't the medical tools needed for an injury as such and the medic on board (also our cook) was no surgeon, or he would have made it I suppose.   We were all mourning his loss.   He was a wonderful fellow, always a bright word or a smile, you know the type.   And so we headed to the inn for some mead and good cheer, and then rest before we set sail for my beloved Scotland.

I hadn't set foot on her shores in nearly six years since I boarded in Edinburgh and kissed my family and my beautiful Emily goodbye.

I had hoped to make enough for a small piece of land to call my own, buy some livestock and marry her.   She promised she would wait… and I promised I'd return.

The inn was bursting with noise and I remember a fiddler was playing a song I hadn't heard in as long, it made my heart ache.   The inn reeked of mead and fish and the sea, and the air was poisoned with stories so tall that there was barely enough air to breathe.   I almost feared the ceiling would fall upon us.   

We pushed our way back to the bar and after a while we had our drinks in hand and raised our glasses to Thomas.   

May his soul rise high and never a rough wind blow!   

I took another sip and felt something beyond my shipmate’s hand on my back.   You know that strange feeling when someone is watching you.   I turned and found what it was that was pulling me that way.   Her eyes locked with mine and quickly turned and then disappeared into the sea of people and their tall stories.   

We stayed there for what seemed hours talking and dreaming of what we would do when we reached home.   A tap on my back broke me away from conversation.   She was standing in front of me.   She didn't say a word, just looked at me with big blue eyes and a soft comfortable smile.   She was beautiful! hypnotizing.   I felt her hand in mine as she pulled me away from the bar and through the crowd, stopping only once to my surprise, to slap a man in the face that I imagined had wronged her, before we reached our unknown to me destination.   We were outside quicker then it took me to reach the bar upon entry.   

She pulled me round the side of the inn and under a torch.   She pushed me up against the wall and pressed her full breasts against me.   I remember the weight of her and how warm she felt, and then she kissed me.   I remember it clearly as if it just happened only moments ago.   She kissed me.   She tasted of mead and vanilla… All at once I felt a guilt come over me.   I had stayed true to my promise to my beautiful Emily.   I pushed her away, well I attempted to and then found myself completely not myself, and a bit lost in this magnificent creature that had stolen me from the bar without a word.   I was…well it was if I were hypnotized.   Something in me gave way and I turned her quite aggressively and put her up against the wall where I had once been.   My hand finding her thigh as I pulled her dress up along her hip and kissed her, I felt as if I were on fire. 

It was strange when I think of it now, when I recall it out loud.   I had always been a bit of a shy lad, not really a ladies’ man.   Oh! I had the looks, but never the confidence.   I was on fire!   I wanted her, I had to have her, it was like… It was hunger!   Yes, that’s it!   I was possessed with a new hunger that had never been stirred in me till then.   I felt strong and my hands held her hip and hair firm, and I kissed her, I ate at her mouth as if she were life’s nourishment.   She sighed as I made my way to her neck.   She returned the kiss as passionately and made her way to mine…

The pain I felt next was unimaginable, and I remember… Well it doesn't make sense in memory, not now, not after knowing what I know now, not after what I've experienced since.   No matter, it adds no flavor to this recount of events. There was pain and when I opened my eyes, three months had passed.   My body felt as a ship that has wrapped itself around an unseen rock must feel, broken, weak, and hungry.   My God! The hunger was insatiable. 

I looked around, trying to make heads or tails of what might have happened, not knowing anything of the time that had passed.   Was the girl a dream? Where was I?   Had I had more mead then I remembered, or was it a more potent brew?   I was in a bed, in a room that was strange to me.   It smelled of field flowers and beeswax and coffee, and light was coming in through the snow covered window. 

Snow? I thought.   But it’s August I thought to myself, how could this be? 

I heard a noise and then foot steps.   She walked into the room not knowing I was awake, she startled when I called out to her. 

So you weren't a dream!

She turned and looked at me, and then I remembered the pain.

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Character voicing continued.

I just reread my post from yesterday and it got me thinking about the opening scene in the movie Inglorious Bastards. Every time I watch this, I am just amazed at how well the scene was done and how amazing the writing was. The writer clearly had a powerful view of who these characters are and what they want. The dialog is outstanding! I think that this is an incredible example of character voicing. I’ve recently begun reading a Tom Robbins book called Fierce Invalids Home From Hot Climates. I had read his book Jitterbug Perfume years ago and absolutely loved it. He has a great talent for bringing a character to life and creating distinct characters with unique voices. A good example is the first conversation between Switters (the main character) and his grandmother Maestra (Fierce Invalids). Again they are distinctly different voices, clearly Tom knows who they are and what they want. You can also feel the connection between the characters and the influence they have had on each other, and yet they remain completely different individuals. If you’re wanting to better your skill at voicing characters that you write, I suggest giving these a look. I think it’s important for a writer or an artist to go out into the world and look at things wide eye’d like a child and take things in like a traveler in a new place, then going back and revisiting those moments in memory and bringing those experiences into your writing. I think the more we do this, the better voicing we will be able to give our characters. In my last blog I wrote briefly about creating a page to jot down characters and to write about who each charater is, where they are from and what they want. As I was writing Memoirs of a Monster, I referred to this list many times. I wrote the characters down in order of appearance and I tried to keep each characters details to about a paragraph or two. About a quarter of the way through writing the book, I was amazed that I had so many characters and as I read through the list, I found that the book was there, hidden in the simple descriptions of characters, the story was alive in it. Each character was distinct and yet you could see how they intertwined with one another like they were all caught in a spiders web. It was also a powerful spoiler. Rereading this charater list helped me to get through a period of writers block as well.

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Memoirs of a Monster, first blog post.

This being my first blog, I’ve been trying to think about what to write here. The first thing that comes to mind is some of the more interesting questions I have had from other aspiring writers and also everyday people. This is one of my favorites: “How does one come up with different characters and more, how do you go about writing different voicing for each one”? I am by no means an expert of any kind, but I have found something that seems to work for me and believe me when I say, that this is a work in progress. I am always hoping to do better with each page that I write.

Ok so lets look at voicing the characters. After deciding on a character and more, deciding if this is a main character or a flat character, meaning a background character there to help move the story along. I look at the character. I usually seem to have an immediate visual that never leaves me. But how do I write this character? I ask myself two questions: A, who is this character? B, what do they want?

So who is this character? Where are they from? Normally they will be from somewhere in the geography and timeline of your story. Are they from this place or are they travelers, did they immigrate here, etc. Finding out where your character is from is a big step, because environment plays such a huge part of who we are. Also the timeline, such as: when are they from? I think you get the idea of where am I going with this. Next is, what do they want? This is where it gets interesting. If you look at a hero in a story, there is the set up, or picture that is painted with words about this hero and then the hero must have a problem that they need to solve. So finding out who they are is so vital to bringing this character to life. You already found out where they are from, but what happened to them, to make them a hero? What kind of problem would they want to solve. What is it about them, that would make them take action? Maybe your character is from a farming community and dreams of running away and having adventure and excitement in their lives and maybe they feel overly burdened by work and gossip and religion in the community and want to be free. This is starting to paint a picture of what they want. This will also help you in dealing with how they handle this new adventure or problem, once they are thrown into it. Maybe your hero wants love and has their eye on a particular character. But it needs to run deeper than just a desire for someone. Because getting what we want often comes with a whole new set of challenges and often finds one longing for what we had just tried to escape from. Does this character have brothers and sisters, are their parents alive? If they aren’t then what happened to them? How do you imagine this would effect your character and how would it shape them? I’m not saying you have to write any of this in your story, but taking the time to imagine this character into life and jotting down points that you have come up with about this character, will greatly improve your ability to write this character. Are they funny, are they angry? Etc, etc. For every single character I write, I try and jot down at least a few points about them, Sometimes I write a new character into the story and then pause to try and figure out who they are, what they want and why they appeared all of a sudden. The more information you can gather or imagine about a main character the better, this makes the character round, full and alive. There are also flat characters who seem to be main characters, because they keep popping up in your story. These characters need some development in your list of characters page, where you jot down ideas. Then there are flat characters that I mentioned before. Even these characters, who may only appear for a sentence or two, ask yourself who are they and where are they from? Because even if nothing about this character is revealed, it will help you to visualize the character and the scene better and it will also help to develop your skills at writing. Writing Memoirs of a Monster challenged me in every possible way as a new writer, research, development, continuity, plot, story, etc. But the most challenging thing was creating different voices. I’m halfway into writing book two and these things that I learned, these simple things I’ve mentioned above, have become so incredibly valuable to me as a writer and I am getting to know each character on a much deeper level, especially knowing what they want. Also with writing fiction, you have the unique opportunity to actually know what your character is thinking. This is why people fall so in love with characters. So knowing who they are and what they want!Right! I invite you to comment and write me, I would love to hear your questions, and more, I would love any writing tips you might have. Best. A J Curtis.