Where the Past Meets the Present: The Last Battle

One more C.S. Lewis book to discuss this month...

The Last Battle.

Certainly has an epic title! There's a solemn ring to it, though - after all, "last" suggests finality, a conclusion to a series and thus a farewell to the characters and the land of Narnia.

For those who haven't read the book, there are a lot of references to the book of Revelation within the pages. We won't discuss the theology behind it, but let's grab onto that idea of a book being inspired by events past, present, or future - or by other important works, stories, etc.

C.S. Lewis "Chronicles of Narnia" series fits within the fantasy genre. In The Last Battle Lewis takes elements of Revelation - people/creatures and events - and looks at them through a fantastical perspective. Narnia is taken over by an ape and a gullible donkey, and the Narnians buy into the fake Aslan these two present because they're desperate for any sign of him. But those who truly know Aslan cannot be fooled by a costume...

And so it begins.

Obviously The Last Battle is not some new form of the book of Revelation. It is simply inspired (not divinely, just to clarify!) by Scripture and presents one man's wrestling with his understanding of it, as well as his attempts to help others think about things in a new way. (At least, that's what I'm assuming. But I'm not C.S. Lewis, so only God knows what he was thinking as he was writing!) And that can be a great impetus for other stories, as well.

Consider historical fiction. Those books are not attempting to replace true history. Rather, they are often representations of authors' passions for certain eras, their struggles with getting into the hearts and minds of people who lived during certain historical events, and their efforts to help readers understand timeless truths in a different light.

How do you feel about historical fiction? Biblical fiction? Fantasy?

How about your own writing? Is there a certain historical event you want to look at from an entirely different perspective? Is there a famous story that you think could be told in a new, thought-provoking way? (Consider the popularity of fairy-tale retellings!)

P.S. If you missed them, here are my posts on Prince Caspian and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

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Where the Past Meets the Present: The Voyage

Who doesn't love an adventure?

What fun The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis was to read! There were so many twists and turns in the plot - so many challenges that the characters had to face, and so many surprises along the way.

Now, stories are all about adventures and journeys. Sometimes it's more internal than external. The characters can stay in one general location but still face challenges that test their faith, their loyalty, etc. But it can also be quite enjoyable to read about a character(s) going on a real journey - battling dragons (or becoming them), facing the storms, meeting new creatures, and traveling to the end of the world.

So what can you imagine? As you're writing your story, where can you take the characters, and what can you throw in their way? One of "the 22 rules of storytelling, according to Pixar" says,

"#12: Discount the 1st thing that comes to mind. And the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th - get the obvious out of the way. Surprise yourself."

No matter where you're setting your story, it might help to consider the journey (in whatever form) your characters are taking - and then have fun letting your imagination take flight. Should your character turn into something? Instead of a dragon, perhaps your hero can turn into the villain for a time, or into the favored one, or into someone he/she had never wanted to be. Consider Kenai's transformation in Brother Bear, or the prince's transformation in The Beauty and the Beast, or Cora's transformation into a wealthy socialite in Glamorous Illusions by Lisa Bergren. Or maybe your heroine needs to save the day, like Lucy Pevensie with the Magician's Book. Or maybe your hero needs to see unexplored lands, new constellations, etc.

It really can be fun to ponder the possibilities, can't it? I'm so grateful God gave us language - the ability to read and write and share stories with one another! So have fun on the writing journey, and have fun taking your characters on their journeys/voyages!

If you need some inspiration, I highly recommend reading "the 22 rules of storytelling, according to Pixar" - and then writing some notes about your own work-in-progress using some of those rules.

(Movie cover image from IMDb.com.)

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Where the Past Meets the Present: Prince Caspian

Well, another week has come and gone (said in a wistful, Charlie-Brown-like voice). Last Monday I stated my desire to give new life to this feature (and my reading habits) by diving into some C.S. Lewis books this month (What I Should Be Reading). But I must confess that my reading goals on my personal blog - catching up on review books during the End of Summer Push - has taken precedence over Prince Caspian...

However, I did at least start Prince Caspian, I'm happy to say! I'm not quite a third of the way through, so I'll focus today's post on novel beginnings.

Prince Caspian is a sequel (technically the fourth in the "Chronicles of Narnia" series, but from what I've heard of the third book, this is really the sequel to the The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe). The first paragraph references The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, and it doesn't quite stand out as a shining example of an exciting hook, although it is interesting in its own right. 

So let's just move on to the opening scenes. While our schooling experiences might not be the same as that of the Pevensie children, most readers can relate to the drag of school starting again. What better time for an adventure to begin than when the main characters are least expecting it, and are, in fact, expecting the future to be rather dull and sad? Then, boom!, they're called away to the land of Narnia where everything is the opposite of what they had been dreading. Now they're concerned about survival, about remembering past glory, and about figuring out the mystery of their return to Narnia.

In our own writing, starting a story out in a place of uncertainty or fear or even boredom and then quickly changing up the pace and the expectations can be a great way of drawing the reader in and creating sympathy for and interest in the characters. It's certainly one option worth exploring! 

I could go on and talk more about sequels... But for the moment it's late Sunday night (or early Monday morning - whichever way you want to look at it) where I am, so I'm going to leave it at this for now. Hopefully I'll have some more reading and preparation under my belt for the next post! Thank you for your patience, and I look forward to exploring Narnia more in my reading and through these posts!

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Where the Past Meets the Present: Guards! Guards!

Let's rewind the clock to 1989.

Any "Discworld"/Terry Pratchett fans out there? That year was the year Guards! Guards! was first published.

Now, I may have lost some (or most) of you already, but even if you've never heard of this series, I hope to share some writing advice from my (so far) limited experience with this rather hilarious fantasy book.

A dear friend of mine introduced me to this book and finally convinced me that I really needed to give it a try. (This just goes to show you how powerful word-of-mouth can be, as I ended up buying it for my Kindle, along with another book in the series!) I'm a little over halfway through right now, and I think I'm hooked!

What is it about Guards! Guards! that can catch the attention of a girl who reads mostly Christian romance books?

The Unexpected

Even when you're expecting the unexpected (it is fantasy, after all), the unexpected can still take you by surprise and make you laugh out loud. I love how this book is all about surprises! Secret-society meetings are normally depicted as serious affairs - but not so in Discworld! Ridiculously long passwords, "brothers" of the guild who just don't get it, and the saving power of takeaway food... Such a riot! Death is personified and given quite a presence; Carrot (named for his shape) is the newbie who might just bring the Night Watch back to its original purpose; and the Librarian is an orangutan who has to engage in a game of charades in order for anyone to understand him. Ah, yes - I'm not even done with the book, but I'm finding Discworld to be a new and intriguing place to visit!

Perhaps you're not writing fantasy - I'm not, either! And yet making the setting and the characters and the events unique, making them new and clever and unexpected, is something that can be applied to any genre. Quirks are endearing! And just looking at the name of this type of book - the novel - suggests that novelty is a good quality for it to have.

The Unrelenting

Oh, the humor in this book - the biting sarcasm and the cruel, but hilarious, commentary on humanity - is unrelenting! This book is rather broad in scope as a sort of satire on society. The tendency of modern society to focus on commerce...the impulse to protect one's own hide rather than be a hero...the instinct to blame others or to avoid the hard work and trouble of doing what's right... This all just goes to show how patient God is in dealing with us! Humans are quite a wishy-washy, self-centered lot...

Now, not all works are going to be satires - and the purpose of satires comes with its own issues and ramifications. But it's not just this style of humor that can be unrelenting. We can write with unrelenting emotion, unrelenting passion, and unrelenting heart. If you're going to write a book, why do it halfway?

That doesn't mean you should forgo comic relief if you're writing a drama, or disregard depth if you're writing a romantic comedy. In fact, Guards! Guards!, while being mostly very, very funny, eventually draws you in to the lives of the characters and makes you want to cheer for the men of the Night Watch - to see them succeed and move beyond their initial bumbling and cowardice. So being unrelenting doesn't mean you can't balance various elements. As I'm referring to it here, I want it to mean that you write with consistency and a deepening investment in the story. Don't go slack halfway through! Keep up the laughs or the thrills or the tears!

Until Next Time...

Well, I still have more to read, so we'll see if Guards! Guards! continues to be all that I like about it so far. And then I have Reaper Man (1991) waiting for me on my Kindle after that!

~ Have you tried a book recently that's from a genre you normally don't read? What made you want to try it - or what made you like/not like the book in the end? ~

Note: For more sensitive readers, Guards! Guards! is kind of crude, and it includes some swearing, violence, and drug/alcohol references. From what I've read so far I personally have not been too bothered by it, but I thought I'd mention it in case you were wondering about the content.

(Book image is from Terry Pratchett's website.)

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Where the Past Meets the Present: Book Reviews

Today let's dive into the not-so-distant past to take a look at some thoughts from C.S. Lewis regarding book reviewers/critics (quotes from An Experiment in Criticism by C.S. Lewis, 1961):

 The Toll on the Reviewer:

"I am thinking...of overworked reviewers, getting through novel after novel as quickly as they can, like a schoolboy doing his 'prep'. For such people reading often becomes mere work. The text before them comes to exist not in its own right but simply as raw material; clay out of which they can complete their tale of bricks.... it destroys appreciation." 

Oh, how I can relate! I've swum toward a whirlpool (of my own volition), and now I've been sent into a spin that leaves me exhausted and rather breathless at times. I love to read. I love getting free books to read. I love sharing my thoughts (generally) about what I read. But reviewing has become more work than enjoyment at times because of the vast amount of books I request. And from what I've seen in other blog posts, I don't think I'm the only book reviewer who has experienced this. (Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong!)

Do you think this "whirlpool syndrome" affects our ability to fully appreciate books and review them in the best way possible?
 
The Value of Reviews: 
 

 "The truth is not that we need the critics in order to enjoy the authors, but that we need the authors in order to enjoy the critics."  

 

"We love to hear how others enjoy what we enjoy ourselves. It is natural and wholly proper that we should especially enjoy hearing how a first-class mind responds to a very great work. That is why we read the great critics with interest (not often with any great measure of agreement). They are very good reading; as a help to the reading of others their value is, I believe, overestimated." 

"I remain, then, sceptical, not about the legitimacy or delightfulness, but about the necessity or utility of evaluative criticism." 

 

Wow! These observations/opinions kind of knock the wind out of me. I enjoy being a book reviewer. I love when readers tell me that my review was enjoyable to read and that it helped them. But how do reviews help? What is the purpose in writing them? Am I keeping others from reading books that I might not "like," but that might have value for other readers? Are my reviews only valuable to those who have read the books I'm referring to? In and of themselves, what is their intrinsic value?

In regards to this topic, I think it's obvious I have a lot more questions than set thoughts. I try to write "honest" reviews in the sense that they contain my honest opinion, while still balancing between what I liked about the books and what I didn't like about the books. I like to include what I thought the overall message/theme was and how that affected me. But is there something I'm missing? What does a "good" review entail and what is its purpose?

Do you enjoy reading book reviews? Do you think book reviews are only really enjoyable to those who have read the books being reviewed? Do you think book reviews can be dangerous in the sense that they might keep someone from reading a book they maybe should read?
 
To Review or Not to Review?
 

"I suggest that a ten or twenty years' abstinence both from the reading and from the writing of evaluative criticism might do us all a great deal of good."

 
C.S. Lewis' suggestion is a controversial one in my mind simply because I spend a lot of time reading books for review purposes. If I stopped reviewing books, I wouldn't have nearly the amount of reading options I now enjoy. (I might be at a higher risk of going broke, too, LOL!) I might miss out on books that I normally wouldn't have picked up or maybe even heard much about. I wouldn't have the pressure put on me to finish a book - which could be a good or bad thing.

But at the same time, would readers miss my book reviews? Do my reviews make a difference? And if they do, is that difference good or bad? If I took a break from reviewing books, I would have more time to catch up on the books I already own that I haven't yet read, and I might get to re-read more books, as well. I might even end up appreciating books more in a way that I have lost in the mad rush of a book reviewer's world.

If you are a book reviewer, what do you think about the suggestion of taking a break from reviewing? If you read book reviews, why do you read them - and do you think they're valuable?

Lots of food for thought and fuel for discussion today, but I think this is a topic that's worth being addressed by book bloggers. I'd love to have you answer some of the questions I ask or just add your two cents' worth wherever it fits! 

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Where the Past Meets the Present: Of Heroes and Humor

Confession: I've only read one book by Jane Austen - Northanger Abbey, which I just finished over spring break for my 17th-19th Century British Literature class.

But here's another, perhaps less shocking, confession: I loved it!

And even less shocking: I love Henry Tilney!

Of course, I think I fell in love with him after seeing the PBS Masterpiece version of Northanger Abbey. JJ Feild does a great job playing the role!

*Happy sigh*

Anyway, for this "Where the Past Meets the Present" feature, let's consider what we as writers can learn from Austen's portrayal of Mr. Tilney:

• Realistic: Henry Tilney is a character with what I perceive to be a rather normal job as the second son in this era (a clergyman), a sense of humor that shows a bit of pride in his own cleverness and wit, and a reason for falling in love that is quite...ordinary ("...I must confess that his affection originated in nothing better than gratitude; or, in other words, that a persuasion of her partiality for him had been the only cause of giving her a serious thought" - Northanger Abbey). In other words, Tilney is remarkable in his own right, but he is realistically down to earth and not overly romanticized (well, perhaps not too much).

• Rare: Despite Tilney's ordinary qualities, he's also unique (in my opinion) as a hero. He enjoys a good story and is not too bad at making up his own. He's not brooding or out of reach - he openly admires the heroine, teases her, and offers advice. Love this line about him from his sister to the heroine: "He is for ever finding fault with me for some incorrectness of language, and now he is taking the same liberty with you." (Hmmm...he might fit in well with my family, LOL!)

When creating our own heroes, I think a good balance between realism and rarity can be a good thing. The hero should have his faults. He should be understandable and recognizable, in a sense. But he should also stand out for some reason or other, particularly in a romance novel, as there are just so many heroes out there (and it's easy to be cliche in some respect when it comes to romantic heroes).

I know, I know... Easier said than done! Hopefully I can take my own advice. ;)

I leave you with one more quote from the book to gratify our readers, followed by a question or two:

"The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel must be intolerably stupid."

(Yep, yep! ;) And yes, dear Henry - our model hero - said that!)

Who is your favorite Jane Austen hero (or any other fictional hero)? What makes that hero your favorite?

(JJ Feild as Henry Tilney - image from the PBS Masterpiece website.)

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Where the Past Meets the Present: Writing is Hard Work!

Anyone else out there participating in Seekerville's Speedbo challenge this month? "Speedbo" runs from March 1st through March 31st, and the purpose/goal is to finish whatever it is you're currently writing - whatever rough draft you've been wanting to finish but just haven't made the time for. I'm an official participant (you can find out more about that on my personal blog), and let me tell you, I'm being reminded that writing really is hard work, especially when you want to write anything longer than a blog post!

For my 17th-19th Century British Literature class, I recently read excerpts of Samuel Johnson's (1709-1784) work. Today I thought I'd share with all you writers out there (whether you're participating in Speedbo or not) some of Johnson's words about, well, words...

• "The chief glory of every people arises from its authors: whether I shall add anything by my own writings to the reputation of English literature must be left to time..." (from A Dictionary of the English Language, "Conclusion")

I think it's safe to say that Johnson certainly did add something! ;) Authors do play an important role in society, and I think this is a great reminder that writing is a worthwhile and meaningful endeavor.

• "...no book was ever spared out of tenderness to the author, and the world is little solicitous to know whence proceeded the faults of that which it condemns..." (from A Dictionary of the English Language, "Conclusion")

Mmmhmmm... As a book reviewer, this is a bit convicting! But as a writer, I think that this is helpful and somehow comforting. Yes, if you're published, you probably won't be spared harsh criticisms - but know that you're not alone, as "no book was ever spared."

• "To a poet nothing can be useless. Whatever is beautiful, and whatever is dreadful, must be familiar to his imagination: he must be conversant with all that is awfully vast or elegantly little." (from The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abyssinia, "Chapter 10")

As novelists, we're like poets in the sense that we paint pictures with our words and use symbolism to convey deeper meanings. And so, I think this quote offers some good advise about drawing from all areas of life to fuel and enrich our writing.

Wherever you are on your writing journey, hope this trip to "where the past meets the present" encouraged you! Anyone have any other Samuel Johnson quotes to share? Or feel free to share any recent writing news so we can celebrate with you or cheer you on!

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Where the Past Meets the Present: How Novel!

Dictionary.com defines the adjective "novel" as -

Of a new kind; different from anything seen or known before.

While novelty is not the only thing that causes a novel or other literary work to resonate with the reader and stand out in the ever-growing crowd of books, it still is something worth considering.

C.S. Lewis' writing certainly draws attention, if my college literature class dedicated entirely to the study of the works of C.S. Lewis is any indication. And he certainly shows quite a bit of novelty in The Screwtape Letters.

Here's the definition of the book from HarperCollins Publishers:

"In this humorous and perceptive exchange between two devils, C. S. Lewis delves into moral questions about good vs. evil, temptation, repentance, and grace. Through this wonderful tale, the reader emerges with a better understanding of what it means to live a faithful life."

What can writers learn from The Screwtape Letters about novelty?

• Presentation: The third-person POV is pretty popular, as is narration shared in first-person. Generally, these are good avenues for telling a story through a novel - and I'll be the first to admit that I'm fond of writing in third-person! But if you really want to shake things up, perhaps a change in presentation/layout can help. If you haven't read The Screwtape Letters, I'm sure you can surmise from the title that the story is told through letters. While the viewpoint is quite biased, this offers a chance for the reader to really get into the mind of a character. (Another interesting example is Dracula by Bram Stoker - the story is told through journal entries, newspaper clippings, and recordings in order to give the feel of a factual account. So different - but it works!)

• Perspective: While this is tied in a way to the previous point, it bears noting that The Screwtape Letters is told from the perspective of a demon. Talk about unique and unusual! If you want a new look at the story you're writing, perhaps you should try telling it (or parts of it) from a different character - maybe someone unexpected, like the villain or a shy, overlooked secondary character. Even if you decide to eliminate those scenes in the editing process, the exercise can help you create secondary characters with depth.

• Pondering: Avoid the superficial! If you want your book to blend in, keep it sweet and non-lasting like candy. This isn't to say that romantic comedies and such aren't valuable and that they won't sell - but no matter what genre you write in, the book that shines is the one that causes the reader to really think and take away something from the story. What would I do in that character's situation? Or, What is this demon actually saying, and how does that apply to my life (avoiding temptation, etc.)? (Another good example of a book series that made me think recently is "The Hunger Games." Lots of different opinions, but books that flat-out challenge you to ponder the messages and implications certainly make you curious, don't they?)

Connecting the past to the present - Is there a classic that stands out as really "novel" to you? What can we learn from past "bestsellers" about keeping our work fresh and unique?

More about C.S. Lewis:

• Visit the C.S. Lewis website!

• Check out the C.S Lewis blog!

• Follow C.S. Lewis (sort of) on Twitter!
  

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Where the Past Meets the Present: It's a Wonderful Life

It's that time of year - so let's take a part of Christmas past and apply it to Christmas present!

I recently watched It's a Wonderful Life with a few friends, and it really touched me. Here is the story of a man who sacrificed for his family and ended up staying at home his whole life, never even getting to go away to college or travel for his honeymoon or serve overseas in World War II. The movie shows parts of George Bailey's past leading up to the moment when everything seems to be falling apart, and then it turns the viewers' perceptions upside down - or is that right-side up?

What makes this movie so enchanting? It tells the tale of a simple hometown life, lacking in grand adventure and exceptional danger. And yet its authenticity and applicability make it a beautiful story.

• Authenticity: This story deals with real issues and feelings - anger, frustration, financial problems, low self-esteem, and familial discord. Seeing all the trials that George goes through creates sympathy for his character, helping the viewer to take a walk in his shoes and see what leads him to the lowest point in his life as well as the surprise that comes when George discovers just how important one life can be. When writing stories, we want readers to be able to relate to our characters, understand their difficulties, and become so involved in their lives that the readers experience emotions right alongside the characters. Stories that bring us to tears or cause us to verbally reprimand characters (or cheer them on) are ones that better stick with us than ones that don't demand any sort of response. And I think most writers want to write unforgettable stories!

• Applicability: It's a Wonderful Life has the message embedded in the title, for it's a story that shows viewers how precious the gift of life really is for a person and all the people that one person's life affects. Simple but profound. While we can't see what the world would be like if we were never born as George did, we can praise God for the glimpses we are given of His amazing weaving of lives and circumstances that ultimately brings Him glory. And as writers, may our stories show God's truth and offer readers a take-away message that can encourage, challenge, and inspire them. The goal isn't to "preach" at readers, but to show them through a well-told story the wonder of God's love.

It's a Wonderful Life is a great example of a story that incorporates authenticity and applicability in order to move and inspire viewers. But while we can learn from the movie regarding the craft of story-telling (whether through movies or books or some other means), we can also learn from the movie regarding the life of a writer (or whatever lifestyle God has called you to embrace).

Perhaps you won't always be able to see the way your work blesses others. Perhaps your work doesn't pay well, or God doesn't lead you in the way you always thought you would go. But no matter what God has in store for us, He is good - and it's a wonderful life!

(Movie cover image from IMDb.com.)

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Where the Past Meets the Present: Setting and The Hound of the Baskervilles

I've been on a bit of a Sherlock Holmes kick lately, and I recently finished The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle. What a story! Definitely thrilling and mysterious. In considering what makes this story so terrifying, the setting stands out almost as a character in its own right. It's a living force that swallows victims whole and cries in the night. It's just downright creepy!

Below is an image from the Crime Scraps Review blog to set the mood:

So what can we learn from this story that will help us master the setting?

• Force - The moor is a force to be reckoned with, especially the Grimpen Mire, where people and creatures can be sucked into the mud and never be seen again. (Oh, how I detest thoughts of quicksand and the like! *shudder*) Watson sees and hears a pony dying in the mire, and it certainly adds to the terror of the story - especially with characters on the hunt (or the run), and just one misstep can be very dangerous indeed... While some of us might not be writing mysteries or suspense, our settings in all our stories play a huge role. What challenges will the setting present to our characters? Think of Wild West stories and how the ruggedness of the land really creates a sense of adventure and/or hardship.
  

• Fear - The moor leads to an emotional reaction in most of the characters, namely fear. The howling of the hound on those dark nights, the thrashing of the trees in the wind by Baskerville Hall, the one pinpoint of light or the silhouette of a man signalling a presence in the wilds of the moor... No matter the setting, if it's a good one it will elicit some emotion. Contentment at a cozy resort. Awe at the grandeur of the Rocky Mountains. Sorrow at the cemetery. Happiness at the beach. You get the idea! And the more senses involved in the descriptions the better!

• Foundation - The moor gives the characters a place to hide, Sherlock a place to play ;) , and a stage for the mystery to unfold. While setting isn't everything, per se, it's important as it can either limit or expand the action of the story. Will your characters move during the course of the story? How does the contrast in settings fit in with the theme? Will your characters travel? Or does the setting serve as a trap for them?

Let's connect the past with the present! Where is your current WIP set? What can you learn from The Hound of the Baskervilles and the scary moor that might help you use setting to deepen your story?

And one last, very important question - anyone else excited to see this story in the second season of the PBS Masterpiece version of Sherlock coming in May 2012???

(Moor picture from Crime Scraps Review. Book picture from Penguin.com.)

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Where the Past Meets the Present: Stepsisters

Saturday night I watched our school's production of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella. I loved it! Everything was wonderful - the sets, the music, the acting, the singing. And while Cinderella and the Prince were quite charming, two of my favorite characters were the evil stepsisters. (Hats off to the actresses - they did a marvelous job!)

Sometimes the secondary characters really can steal the show in our stories, as well. While we still want our hero and heroine to win over our readers, we also want authentic secondary characters. Last week we talked about the villain - this week, let's talk about how to make our secondary characters shine!

What we can learn from the evil stepsisters (at least in the play I saw!):

• Personality - Boy, did these two girls have this in spades! Whether our secondary characters are jokesters, drama queens (or kings), or wise old (or young) men/women, they ought to have a personality that distinguishes them from the other characters. Names can also help with this. In Rodgers and Hammerstein's version of Cinderella the two stepsisters are named Portia and Joy. If you've read Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice, you might see the irony in a rather less intellectually endowed girl being named after the smart Portia who pretends to be a lawyer to save a man's life. And Joy - well, there's certainly irony in a name like that for a sour stepsister like her!
  

• Presence - Over at Seekerville, author Mary Connealy recently wrote a post entitled "Who is that guy?" Her point in the post is that we ought to make sure all our characters are actually necessary. If we take out a secondary character, will it make a difference to the story? The stepsisters in the play added so much humor and contrast that it wouldn't have been nearly as enjoyable without them. In the same way, the secondary characters we create should have such a presence that the story wouldn't have the same impact without them. And if they don't? Well, you might want to consider killing one off... *Gasp!* OK, maybe just make them disappear or something! ;)
  

• Power - Just as we discussed regarding our villains last week, our secondary characters shouldn't be cardboard cutouts. They should have some sort of power - an important role in the story and a voice that will stick with the reader. It's hard to do this with every secondary character, but as much as possible we ought to have stories populated with "real" people whose lives are woven together to present a piece full of meaning. The evil stepsisters have a song that asks, "Why would a fellow want a girl like her?...Why can't a fellow ever once prefer a usual girl like me?" While it's a funny song, it also contributes to the other songs in asking important questions as to why people fall in love and what true love really means.

Here's where the past meets the present! (Let's just say that Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella is a piece of the past that's found its way to the present... After all, the Cinderella story has been around for quite a while!) Could your secondary characters use a makeover? What secondary characters from movies and books have inspired you to give your secondary characters more personality, presence, and power?

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Where the Past Meets the Present: The Villain

Welcome to the place where the past meets the present! This is a new weekly feature (most Mondays) where I'll be comparing classics with Christian fiction, sharing some writing advice from the classics, and/or sharing interesting historical facts that could be catalysts for new story ideas. I'm allowing myself some creative license here. ;)

Today we're talking about the villain.

What's the classic we're discussing? None other than Shakespeare's Othello!

Now, I'm sure most of you writers out there aren't working on tragedies. We're very much a happily-ever-after bunch, I'm thinking - or at least a satisfying, warm-feeling conclusion. Not so keen on the everyone-dies-and-no-one-is-happy ending.

So what does Othello have to offer us aspiring and/or published authors?

Well, while this isn't true of all books, sometimes the villains just aren't complex. They're evil, sure. But sometimes the villains we create are lacking a certain depth. Cue Iago.

Iago is a dastardly villain if ever there was one. So if you're looking for some ways to make your villain more...well...villain-y, look no farther than Iago! He's definitely "bad to the bone." Let's take a look at what makes him so terrible (in a good, villain-y way):

• He's intelligent. Let's face it. We've all read those books with the incompetent villains who are just asking to die. Seriously. Iago is not that guy! In fact, Iago's got all the other characters in the palm of his hand - playing them off of each other, getting into their minds, deceiving them completely, all while still maintaining an innocent facade. Unless we're writing tragedies, we don't necessarily want the bad guy to win...but we do want him (or her) to be a real challenge to the hero/heroine, right? We don't want no cardboard cutouts! (Excuse the double negative...)

• He's intriguing. Iago has his reasons for seeking to bring everyone down around him. Of course, some of those reasons can be debated since we aren't given all the specifics. However, he's a motivated man. And he has a wife, which certainly adds some interesting dynamics! So, when we're creating our villains, we should keep in mind that they have a past, family and/or friends, and a depth to them that leads to their thirst for revenge, etc.

• He's indisputably evil. My first draft of my first manuscript is missing a villain. (My second WIP has one right now, but that's beside the point right now...) A close relation of mine suggested to me that perhaps a villain is in order. While I don't think all books need a villain - sometimes the villain isn't a specific person - I think they can add a lot to a story. It's the classic good vs. evil theme, where readers are cheering on the good guys. In Othello, we still cheer on the good guys, despite the fact that it's a tragedy, and that means there isn't a happy ending... (Although happy endings are not required for meaningful stories!) But I digress... The point is that while we want our villains to be three-dimensional and authentic, my close relation reminded me that having an obviously "evil" figure really involves the reader. When you read Othello, you really, really want Iago to get his comeuppance and to leave all those other poor characters alone!!
  

So let's connect the past to the present! Do you have a villain in your current work-in-progress? Is there anything you can learn from Iago (or other notable classic villains) that might help you create a more believable, dastardly villain?

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