Where Do Characters in Books Come From?

Where Do Characters in Books Come From?

I have been asked by several readers about where I get my inspiration for the characters in my Rachel Christie Mystery Series. One went so far as to say, "I know someone like that. I'm sure you don't know that person. You live nowhere near me."

I have to say that the characters in my books have exaggerated characteristics of people I have known. For example, the sheriff from Newtonville in my second book, "Murder in Emerald Hills," is based on a dear relative who cannot speak five words without two of them being a curse word. I love her dearly, but to me it's like fingers on a chalkboard every time I hear her talk. She is the gentlest of people and fair in every other way. I don't know where she picked up her vocabulary, but she would have been a good sheriff, so I made her into one.

I think that the heroine in my book, Rachel Christie, is obviously some version of me. Whether she is really me or the me I'd like to be or a combination of the two, I'm not sure. She portrays strength, doesn't take any crap and, yet, contains a soft spot for the underprivileged and those in need of saving or those who cannot protect themselves. Maybe, she's the person we'd all like to be: rough and tough when necessary, but tender and caring when needed. Most of us, however, don't have the gumption to be that person.

We all know people like the ones in my books and admire different characteristics in each of them. As one of my friends once said, "You cannot get all of your friends together in one place. All of them have aspects of ourselves that we admire in them and wish we were more like them. But they all have aspects of ourselves we don't like as well. Each one would clash with everyone of our other friends." I'm glad to say that I admire and accept each and every one of my friends for who and what they are. They are, indeed, an inspiration.

For those of you who have seen yourselves or your friends in my characters, send me an email and let me know what you liked and why and what you didn't and why. Also, if you have a good friend who is different from any of my characters, describe them to me in an email and maybe I'll be able to put them into a future book. That's something I like about eBooks. They can be interactive with input from the readers. And I do appreciate each and every one of you, my readers, and thankful for all the comments I have received from you.

First Editorial Review of New Book

First Editorial Review of New Book

Today, I received the first editorial comments for the seventh book in the Rachel Christie Murder Mystery series. Now comes the hard part of re-writing to give the work a more polished presentation. However, this is only the initial phase and it will be the first re-write. I will have more editorial comments and re-writes after this, I'm sure. Writing the book is a hard feat in itself, with the days and nights (yes, sleepless nights) thinking about the plot and letting all the nuances solidify into a believable story with several subplots that work well together. However, I feel that having to do the re-writes is even more difficult.

In writing the book, I only had to worry about getting the ideas on the page. With re-writing, I have to make sure each sentence has all the words it needs and only the words it needs. Each paragraph has to have all the sentences it needs and only the sentences it needs. Pages and chapters are the same. Anything not necessary to the plot or description is weeded out. Descriptions are difficult for me because I want to include enough to give the reader the feeling of being there, but not enough to get boring. Too many books spend too much time describing what we already know. As they say, ''A rose is a rose is a rose." No need to go into great detail or describe the scent. Everyone knows those things.

I have always hated re-work, even as a project engineer. To do the job first, with no revisions, is only a dream I can wish. With writing, I want my characters to be distinct and to be worth reading about. Above all, they have to say and do things that are consistent with the personna that has been created for them. Having a series with the same characters means going back and re-reading the previous novels to be sure that the present novel and characters follow along the lines that the readers expect. It is also important to  give the characters growth. They should all change because of their experiences. My characters see a lot of action and they should change accordingly.

The Next Book

The Next Book

The first draft of the seventh book in the Rachel Christie Murder Mystery series has been completed, finally. It was difficult for me to write because it dealt with a group of characters I felt emotionally attached to, from the suave and sophisticated playboy to the normally cold and hard sheriff. They all showed their soft insides and I had to feel sorry for them all. Normally, rational Rachel lost her cool more than once and faced more dangers than she had before.

Now, the book is with the editor, but thankfully it is being reviewed as I write this blog. Also, the book cover is in the initial stages of being designed. Hopefully, the novel will be released sometime next month. Of course, that depends on how many rewrites I will have to do.

Editing of New Book

Editing of New Book

I just received my latest book in the Rachel Christie series back from my editor today. Now, I will re-read the book to see if I agree with his comments and see if I will either change my book or argue. He usually has good comments and his changes and recommendations are accepted. But, each author has the responsibility to keep their book their own. My name is on the book and it has to be written my way. If the book is bad, I have no right to blame the editor.

The one good thing about my editor is he helps with keeping my characters in character, always checking for inconsistencies.  Rachel Christie is a strong woman, but not too strong. She never curses and she doesn’t take advantage of anyone. She has honor and respectability, mostly. She is also a woman with many different feelings. Since she doesn’t curse, I have to find other ways of showing how upset she is. So that has to be taken into account. Other regular characters in the series have their own characteristics and they must be consistent, too. Each time I write a book in this series it is like getting together with a group of old friends. Comfortable, but challenging to keep each one individual.

If one character, who is normally a calm person, all of a sudden becomes excited or extreme in his thinking, that has to be explained. From experience, readers will pick up on inconsistencies right away and know that something is wrong. I know I do not like inconsistencies in the books I read.

In my last book, “Murder of the Innocent,” my editor intentionally put in several words to make sure that I was reading every single word he had written and not just skipping through. He wanted to make sure I was doing a good job of final editing. He should be paying me. Of course, I picked up on it. I’m not sure if that pleased him or not.

With any luck, my latest book will be available to the public in early November. In the meantime, my other four books are available at Amazon.com or at Barnes and Noble. Those books are: “Murder by the Clock,” “Murder in Emerald Hills,” Murder by Lion” and “Murder of the Innocent.”