Poise and Pen » Character

Out in the Cold

Rhonda — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 16:21:03 +0000

I’m writing this post on a day when our projected low temperature (after wind chill) is -47 Celcius (that’s -53 Fahrenheit). I despise the cold at the best of times, but on a day like this… I let my daughter stay home from school because I didn’t want her waiting at bus stops and I canceled an important appointment I had so I wouldn’t have to go outside.

I worked out, had my breakfast and then put on my coat and shoes and filled my bird feeders.

That’s right. I wouldn’t go out for an important appointment, I let my daughter miss school and I still went outside when it was so cold the air was physically heavy, to feed chickadees and sparrows.

It helps that filling the feeders only takes a couple minutes, but still, I think it says a little something about me, too.

What about your characters? What would make them go out in the cold? What do they really, truly willing to be be uncomfortable for? Or, if we take the idea a step further, to suffer or die for? What would they run into a burning building for?

Write a story or poem which includes a wickedly cold day or a winter storm. See how your characters react to it, and find out what (if anything) they are willing to open the door for (or to… dun dun dun!).

~Rhonda

Stress!

Amber — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 02:38:58 +0000

Today was stressful at work and I made a conscious decision to NOT have a Coca-Cola Classic. I gave them up just over a week ago. This made me think about how our characters deal with stress. Something to think about as you prepare for NaNoWriMo is the evolution of our characters. How they deal with stress at the beginning of the novel can be quite different from how they deal with it at the end.

Can you think of some behaviors that people (or animals) exhibit when under stress? Feel free to share – you may help someone else build a character!
~Amber

Photo Prompt

Rhonda — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 12:47:09 +0000

Use the following image as the inspiration for a short story or poem:

Photo Prompt

Rhonda — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 14:27:04 +0000

Use one of the following images as inspiration for a short story or poem:

Image Courtesy of IStockPhoto.com

Image Courtesy of Globalxhaiti

~Rhonda

Image Prompt

Rhonda — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 19:09:48 +0000

Use one of the following images to inspire a short story or poem.

Also, don’t forget about the 2011 NaNoLJers Anthology. We’ll be opening up for submissions before you know it, so if these pictures don’t inspire you go through some of our older prompts and see if they spark anything

Monday Writing Exercise

Amber — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 11:34:46 +0000

It’s Federal Tax Day in the United States which means people are filing late or running from the law like Wesley Snipes.

Take a character in a current piece of work and see how the person reacts to the law. Either have them taken into custody or find out they’re wanted by the authorities. You’ll really find out a lot about your character in this stressful situation.

Good luck,
Amber

Image Prompt: Connection

Rhonda — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 10:50:10 +0000

Use the following image as the inspiration for a story or poem:

Image courtesy of Rhonda

Image Prompt: Schoolgirl

Rhonda — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 13:48:14 +0000

Use the image below as the inspiration for a story or poem.

Image courtesy of IStockPhoto.com

~ Rhonda

Image Prompt: Sentiment

Rhonda — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 12:44:24 +0000

Use the image below as inspiration for a short story or poem.

Image courtesy of IStockPhoto.com

~ Rhonda

Character Exploration

Amber — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 02:46:55 +0000

What happens when you put your character into a small, dark, enclosed space? Think closet, coffin, cave, space hatch and so forth. These are the times when your character cracks, finds courage or gets eaten by something.

Set your timer for 30 minutes and go!

~Amber