7 Things You Should Say to Your Writer

Merry day-after-Christmas! If that isn't a thing, it shall be now. I hope all of you have been enjoying a restful time with family and friends, and that you writers have been reaching your word count each day (which I have not been doing, due to spending time with family and such).

Being surrounded by family means said family will, at some point, inquire after my writings. As a writer, there are many things I do not want people to ask or say to me. These things are often funny, but true. But this is and has been covered by others quite often...

|| How College Makes You a Better Writer ||

It's the day after my first semester of college has been completed. I sit in partial darkness, listening to a playlist that fills me with nostalgia for some strange reason, and staring at my computer screen while white Christmas lights reflect the contemplative mood I'm currently in.


That was a strange sentence. Nonetheless, the first semester of college was like a whirlwind. I learned things I never imagined I would, had experiences I never thought would take place, and met people that I never could have possibly dreamed of meeting.

Continuing free-writing was difficult during those months of busy schedule in which my free time consisted of Netflix, taking walks, or sitting on the floor and staring into (seemingly) space. I had goals for myself, and I failed. But that's okay. Because I've learned a lot. My brain has probably expanded since I started back in August. At least it feels larger.

Classes, professors, chapel, friends, not-so-friend(ly)s, strangers, adventures, sickness.
Every single one of these things (and more) have added to my knowledge. I've grown.
And here's what I've learned:

1. People are worth your time. 
There's so much you can learn from just one person. Think about how much you can learn from the whole school. I know it's tempting to sit in your room for hours by yourself, but it's worth stepping out and actually interacting with people--or, at least, watching them from a distance.
PS: Professors make excellent inspiration. You know those quirky professors portrayed in movies? They're real.


2. There's something new to realize every single day.
Even if all you comprehend is a new existential question, that's okay. Questions like that inspire creativity. New plots, characters, and worlds can pop out of the ground from those questions.


3. Experiences make up a writer's portfolio.
I know a portfolio is considered a conglomeration of one's best work, but our brains have portfolios too, don't they? Everything you experience goes into those portfolios to be stored and dug up at a later time when your writing calls for it. That one person who when they laugh it sounds like they're about to die? Yeah, your brain kept that. Use it for a character. You were about to die within the first two months of school? Your brain kept that as well. Use it wisely.


4. Essays stretch you.
Most people hate essay writing. I don't. Writing an essay is a wonderful exercise that can cultivate voice, style, and thinking skills. We have to craft essays in such a way that our professors will give us, at least, a B. This means word choice musn't be bulky. Make it flow. Make it natural. Even if it's formal, put something of yourself in there. Ask questions. Make people think. There are endless treasures to accumulate from the adventures of essay writing.


5. Time is valuable.
It's easy to sit and watch Netflix for hours. It's easy to take naps and sleep in for hours. It's easy to sit and ponder. Good things, of course, but when you have free time...write as much as you can.
But also know it's okay to stop writing, save your work, and go on an adventure. Relationships and experiences are like gold and they will create fodder for your stories. #amwriting is an excuse that many of us use to get out of social interaction, but know when your story can be saved and go on the back burner--even if for only half an hour. If you don't make these life connections, you aren't going to have much to draw from. Live.



Have you been to college? What are some things that have aided you as a writer? Are there any certain moments that stick out to you from college?

Please Be Weird {Creating a Fantastic Villain III}

You meet two people during the course of your day. One is talkative, eyes lighting up as they tell you about their passions, observations, and how they know at least fifteen bird calls by heart.
The other, however, keeps the conversation limited to day-to-day stuff. Weather, shopping, watching TV. Dull.

Which one is more unique? Which one is intriguing? Which one would you want to talk with again?
Uh, probably the first one.

The fact that the person knows at least fifteen bird calls is quirky.
And the most interesting people are usually the quirkiest.

I'm here today to talk about your villain.
To read the first two installments of the post series click here:
Back Story Time {Creating a Fantastic Villain I}
GIVE IT TO ME {Creating a Fantastic Villain II}



Let me just say a few things:
Please, please, please don't make your villain another run of the mill villain who spouts off their entire plan before executing it, or cackles maniacally after revealing said plan, or who's just evil for the sake of being evil. (I know we all know--or should know--these rules by now, but they're rules we need to remember.)
I'm not talking from just a writerly point of view, but a reader's as well. Anything in that list is generally a sign of laziness and/or bad character development.

Those are the boring villains. I don't like boring villains.
I'm interested in the quirky villains. I want them to act like real, interesting humans (or...whatever race they happen to be).

You might not think that well rounded, intriguing villains are important, but they can make or break your story...and your other characters. Think Loki from the Thor movies, or the Winter Soldier...they're so well developed and their actions actually matter.
And (guess what?) they have their quirks.

Maybe they're insecure, maybe they adore red squirrels with such a fiery passion that they sedate them every time they see one and take it back to their secret lair (so they end up with a menagerie of just red squirrels and they have, like 500 of them so that's why the hero needs to stop them so the red squirrels don't go extinct), or maybe they absolutely have to have coffee from their favorite coffee shop before doing anything heinous for the day (think Gru from Despicable Me--no, I am not condoning utilizing freeze rays on people just to get coffee).

It's important to give your villain quirks. If your hero has quirks, your villain should have nothing less.
If you, as the writer, have quirks, your characters should have no less.

I'm not going to type out an ol' long list of random quirks for you to pick and choose from--there's tons of resources around the internet for that. If all else fails, observe the people around you (I know, scary!)--that's the best place to get the best quirks. Real life...it's a gold mine.

Quirks are important. Quirks are human. Quirks make people lovable and rounded.

To make your villain relatable and adored by readers, they need quirks.

I mean, mine is obsessed with donuts.
And not just any donuts.
Cake donuts with pink frosting and candy sprinkles.
And my villain is a guy.
They're just really good, okay?

God Bless!
Rachel Lester

Are there any other topics regarding creating villains that you'd like me to cover?
Please comment! And it doesn't just have to be about villains. It can be about life, or your dog, or red squirrels, or your blog.

For a personal update:
Sorry I've been gone for so long! I've hardly written anything in over a month. I know, it's driving me crazy. Although college is approximately a week.5 away, I'm getting back into writing even though this next week.5 is full of packing, shopping, and VBS, I'm
trying my best to become involved again before school starts. Prayers welcomed. Immensely.

A Paradoxical Personality { Characters Who Aren't Hanging Over a Cliff I }

In the series I'm currently working on (A Different Kind of Legacy), I follow the stories of some...humans. With super abilities. I have a sound manipulator, light manipulators, a mindreader, an invisible girl, a guy with Sherlock Holmes type powers, and a girl whose families are trait borrowers.

Ruby Cacera's family are experts in the realm of borrowing personality traits from people they touch. It's like they have this little extra container space in their brain for 'stolen' personality traits. They can pull out any trait at any time and combine it with others to create a whole personality. This is handy for undercover missions. They can become a completely different person from who they really are. Expert actors...and it doesn't really require any hard work. It kind of just happens.

As you might imagine, this can cause conflict between characters who interact with this family. My main protagonist, Darcy Wood la Van, often wonders if Ruby's being completely real with him. She can be anybody she wants...so who is she really? She can easily hide things.

Tragedy happens.

Ruby hides what she's really feeling. Everybody thinks she's doing great. She's laughing, having fun--being her normal weird self. Okay, so she's over the bad stuff. She's moving on. She has God and she's all good. That's what onlookers think.

False.

She's actually really depressed. She isn't eating much of anything. She doesn't know what to do or how to get over this. She would love to just sleep and eat cotton candy. But she pretends for the sake of others.

While Ruby has the superpower to become anybody she wants, whenever she wants, I think we can take away something from this for everyday normal characters.

A person can be scared but brave at the same time. A person can also be humble while proud. Somebody could be a cold-hearted killer...but...still be a warm-hearted parent or friend. Hmm.

Ruby's a naturally brave person. She is, at times ( a LOT of times), reckless. I mean, she goes off into the woods by herself. And at night, no less. She gets hurt all the time, but she takes it all. She's seen worse. She's always seen worse. But...that doesn't mean she isn't scared. Just because she has like 100% bravery, doesn't mean she isn't deathly afraid.

There's tons of things she's afraid of. Maybe she accidentally borrowed fear as a trait...and she just can't shake it. Maybe she's just afraid and can't help it. Maybe it's false fear and there's no need for it. But it's there, nonetheless.

Paradoxical Personality Traits are important to keep in mind while forming a character. It gives depth. Instead of being way over the edge one way, it can add balance.
It's something to think about. What does it mean to have paradoxical personality traits? How will that affect somebody?

Does this make sense? I don't know if I had a plan on where this post was going. Anyway...

I LOVE comments!
So I have a question--do you have any characters with paradoxical personality traits?
What are the traits and how do they come into play?

Picture courtesy of Pinterest and Pixlr...:D And, yes, that is Ruby! (In case you were wondering...)