Award-winning author of The Chameleon Chronicles, Beth Ciotta, is my guest Over Coffee today.Readers and writers both often wonder where an author gets their ideas. How to build believable characters that ring true and resonate with their readers. Where does a writer get the needed inspiration for realistic characters?
Today, Beth shares with us how she finds her inspiration for believable characters.
There’s a saying: Write what you know. Writing about something you’ve experienced—a job, a tragedy, a thrill, an encounter with certain personality types—lends authenticity to your tale. That’s not to say you shouldn’t research and write about what you don’t know. Why box yourself in? But if you’re ever stuck for an idea or material, consider the value in mining your own buried gems.
Evie Parish, the featured heroine, ALL ABOUT EVIE, EVERYBODY LOVES EVIE, and EVIE EVER AFTER, is a veteran performer—like me. Her struggles and triumphs within the entertainment industry ring true because they’re based on my own experiences and emotions. The same goes with her body-image issues as an over-40 woman living in a youth obsessed society. Because I’m personally keyed into these subjects, I write about them with an honest passion.
No matter your occupation, age, or personality there’s something within you and your history that will strike a chord with readers. I wasn’t always over forty and I couldn’t always support myself on performance gigs. The other day I thought about some of the odd jobs I've picked up over the years to make ends meet. Each one of these inspires an idea for a story or at least a character within a story.
1. Car hop waitress at a hot dog stand (developed an addiction to root beer and chili-cheese dogs)
2. Front desk clerk at a dry cleaner (Man, it's HOT in there! All that steam. Hmm.)
3. Sales-person at a men's clothing store (That employee 40% discount killed me. Spent more than I made. Although I did learn the 'correct' way to fold clothes)
4. Music teacher at a Catholic School, K-8 (Love kids. LOVE 'em. Except for that one out-of-control 5th grade class that made me cry.)
5. Entertainment Coordinator at Resorts Casino (My first taste of being on the supervisory end of entertainers. Whoa.)
6. PR Coordinator at Tropicana Casino (Perks? Learning how to write a press release, and escorting VIPs around the casino. Gary Sinese comes to mind. What a doll!)
7. Secretary/Assistant at two different entertainment-booking agencies (Something I was really good at, but didn't feel it was I was meant to do.)
On the subject of writing what you don’t know, I also have some dream jobs.
1. An ongoing job as a character at Disney World (Snow White's my first choice. Although I'd be happy with Cinderella.)
2. A travel writer (Getting paid to write about exotic foods and locales? Come on!)
Now it’s your turn. Name one real job and one dream job. I’m betting one
or both could inspire a fascinating tale or character. We’re all brimming
with personal gems. Sometimes you just have to dig.
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Storytelling comes naturally to award winning author, Beth Ciotta. Limiting herself to one sub-genre does not. Dubbed “fun and sexy” by Publisher’s Weekly, Beth specializes in writing Romantic Comedy with a Twist of Suspense and is published in contemporary, historical, and paranormal romantic fiction. Beth’s latest release, EVIE EVER AFTER, is the third in a series with HQN Books and is currently earning rave reviews. Into the Wild, a romantic jungle adventure, is set for release in 2010. Look for these connected stories from HQN Books.Beth lives in New Jersey with her husband, a zany dog and one crazy cat. To support literacy, Beth works at her local library where she enjoys hawking books almost as much as writing them. To learn more about her chaotic life visit her website at www.bethciotta.com and her blog at http://bethciotta.blogspot.com/
