Hello Readers,

I hope we are all having a fantastic day!

Topic of the month: Character development (Perfectly flawed).

While perfection does not exist by nature, what could be preserved as imperfection makes us individual and far more interesting or arguably perfect than we would be if everyone were exactly the same.

Yet it’s important to remember that it’s more than our genetics that shapes us into people, but our environment, our individual experiences, mistakes and the choices we make overall that make up who we are.

Our flaws and mistakes make us human, so why should fictional characters be any different?

The human brain is fascinating, and we still know very little about it. Yet we know that humans have been attracted to stories for militias because they cultivate an emotional response within us and a sense of connection while generating this insider perspective into someone else’s head that we would otherwise never get to experience.

Stories make us feel like part of something bigger than ourselves.

Something Personal;

Let’s play ‘frequently asked questions writers are asked.’ An interview-type question-and-answer game designed to give you an insight into the daily life of a writer and hopefully a little inspiration.

Q) How do you create interesting characters? And why is this important? Creating interesting characters can mostly be resolved in the plotting phase of your novel. When you put time into your characters’ lives, they become more relatable and interesting in a reader’s mind, and so we begin more invested in their story and relationships.

But how do we achieve that? It is actually a lot easier than it sounds. Giving your character a backstory, family, wants, beliefs and flaws makes them more human.

Below I have included some of the methods I use to create interesting characters;

1) Create a character ‘Cheat sheet’ What I mean by a cheat sheet is a questionnaire-type document that lays out everything you might need to know about any individual character in your story, (This should be done for even the minor characters in your story to make them more human and believable).

Details could include;

• A detailed description of how they look.
• Personal details such as age or job, address.
• Their background, education and relationships.
• Personal preferences, hobbies and beliefs.
• Personality trials, flaws, motivation, biggest regret.
• How they view themself, how overs view them, and what are some of their wants, needs, goals and conflicts.

2) Create a storyline for each of your characters. An excellent way to do this is by using the snowflake method. Start this with a summary of the character storyline in one sense. Then write one sentence about the character’s motivation and then the character’s conflict and character epiphany (what they learned or what changed). After, take your four sentences and expand this into a paragraph each. Then expand this further and write a 1-page description of each major character.

3) If you’re not writting a character for a specific story, you could always collect some character’s ideas to use later. In my ‘writer’s bible,’ I have several pages dedicated to character development. Pages such as;

• Character roles (sidekick, villain, protagonist, etc.)
• Good Characteristics (affectionate, patient, family-orientated etc.)
• flaws (greedy, judgmental, lazy etc.)
• Fears (heights, claustrophobia, abandonment etc.)
• ‘Funny hats’ (something that makes that character visually unique, like wearing a funny hat).

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• Surviving Scarlett
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Mirror Secret Mirror - Preview - By Jessica Seaques

What is real? What is imaginary?

This is the line Jessica Seaques walks, ever since she won a commission to write erotica for the indulgence of an anonymous patron. Many of her stories are based around the strange working environment the patron provides – a bizarre, mirror-walled office where Jess liaises with his beautiful yet cruel ‘agent’ and the awkward, long-suffering receptionist. All the while, the mirrors watch as the writer gets drawn… deeper and deeper… into this eccentric world of erotic fantasy.

What is real? What is imaginary? What’s the difference? Who’s the man behind the mirror and the mystery? Through the looking glass, Jess will go… and nobody knows if she’ll make it out.

MIRROR SECRET MIRROR is dark, decadent, BDSM erotica. This book is a corrupting force, an evil seduction, a delicious poison… a trap! It’s the story of a young woman being lured, baited, manipulated… hunted, captured, enslaved. The villain is dark-eyed, devilish and dominant. The villainess is sleek, sadistic and sexy. The predators work together to ensnare their prey. This story is offensive, dishonest and depraved. It twists romance, perverts love and mocks morality.

Consider yourself warned!

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Thank you for reading!

Kind regards,

Kitty Dalby