tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post7298950787936428438..comments2024-02-16T02:56:00.399-08:00Comments on Between Fact and Fiction: Happy Writers: Using What You LoveNatalie Whipplehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09978251567306345129noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-83468371559864180892011-11-28T06:39:11.230-08:002011-11-28T06:39:11.230-08:00Glad to hear someone else say this. So many times ...Glad to hear someone else say this. So many times I read interviews with writers and they say their characters/ideas/what-have-you essentially spring from the ether. Everything I write springs from something concrete. <br /><br />I don't think there is anything I write that I couldn't trace back to its original source as something I saw, felt, experienced, fantasized, etc. But at the same time, these bits and pieces come together to form something that is (hopefully) original. It's like a collage. The overall picture formed is something I feel like I can say I created, but I know that it is made up of little bits of my life.Fanfreakingtastic Flowerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14363943191354423760noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-53056574784809099052011-11-24T15:38:12.994-08:002011-11-24T15:38:12.994-08:00And as authors, we're naturally going to put e...And as authors, we're naturally going to put elements of ourselves into our characters. It breathes more life into them.William Kendallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00331324250821836822noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-91672141093502578662011-11-24T15:37:05.118-08:002011-11-24T15:37:05.118-08:00Oh, I'm quite familiar with the Mary Sue syndr...Oh, I'm quite familiar with the Mary Sue syndrome... didn't know you were a comics fan back in the day though!William Kendallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00331324250821836822noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-74409438561677497372011-11-20T00:38:56.563-08:002011-11-20T00:38:56.563-08:00This is a truism I'm coming to terms with also...This is a truism I'm coming to terms with also. I think a big part of it is realising you have a life full of things worth sharing. Sometimes we take our everyday things for granted, and we need to remember that what we may accept as mundane can actually be of great interest to others.<br /><br />I love the enthusiasm you describe this with! Thank you!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-64020175407630891062011-11-19T12:36:50.263-08:002011-11-19T12:36:50.263-08:00As a teenager I was addicted to strawberry pop tar...As a teenager I was addicted to strawberry pop tarts, and so is the main character of my novel. great post.Anita Saxenahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12444339735834716979noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-34904058708020488322011-11-18T16:52:58.614-08:002011-11-18T16:52:58.614-08:00There is a ton of myself in every project I work o...There is a ton of myself in every project I work on. It gives stories more depth and and personalizes it for the reader.Veronica and Thomashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18085407071543219089noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-86542725385643275162011-11-18T13:43:45.459-08:002011-11-18T13:43:45.459-08:00I think every writer must put themselves and their...I think every writer must put themselves and their surroundings into their books. If I didn't do that, I wouldn't have anything to write. That being said, I never have a character exactly like me. I prefer to have characters who end up as I want to be.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05746017057593508370noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-66224028128700055582011-11-18T13:05:20.326-08:002011-11-18T13:05:20.326-08:00So true! My books tend to be made up of 50% things...So true! My books tend to be made up of 50% things I love and 50% things that terrify me. :)Sarahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15981159884498574786noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-25869496403916076042011-11-18T12:47:28.386-08:002011-11-18T12:47:28.386-08:00I think sometimes the most vivid scenes and charac...I think sometimes the most vivid scenes and characters are taken from real life... taken and embellished--but grounded in something you know and love.Red Boot Pearlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03015990875361952510noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-80777033183980943092011-11-18T12:40:32.452-08:002011-11-18T12:40:32.452-08:00I think the "Mary-Sue" element comes not...I think the "Mary-Sue" element comes not necessarily from letting your character like the same things you like, but from being unwilling to really make them suffer or lose something important because they're basically a stand-in for yourself and you want to give yourself EVERYTHING GOOD. Who doesn't?<br /><br />There's totally a little piece of me in all of my characters. I'd be lying to say otherwise. None of them ARE ME, but some have my optimism, some my cynicism, some my interest in science, some my sarcasm, some my nurturing side... you get the idea ;)<br /><br />I write what I know. And who do I know better than myself? There's usually a pretty obvious difference to me between people writing for wish fulfillment and people writing about things they happen to like.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17034419617457525778noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-29625523709646854932011-11-18T11:27:41.042-08:002011-11-18T11:27:41.042-08:00I agree with you and JeffO...I am in every part of...I agree with you and JeffO...I am in every part of the books I write. Shades of what I've seen or been through or people that really touched my life go into the mix. Great post!<br /><b><a href="http://nitewriter6.blogspot.com/" rel="nofollow">Edge of Your Seat Romance</a></b>Raquel Byrneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12870113745683162915noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-52825536561557422222011-11-18T11:10:54.609-08:002011-11-18T11:10:54.609-08:00I'm midway in my nano book (42,000 words - yay...I'm midway in my nano book (42,000 words - yay!) and am really having a hard time pushing forward through the dread middle.<br /><br />This post was just what I needed to read right now. Thank you, Natalie. I always enjoy your blog.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-2703418679039845302011-11-18T10:49:50.279-08:002011-11-18T10:49:50.279-08:00I am scattered in a million pieces all over my WiP...I am scattered in a million pieces all over my WiP; I don't think it can be done any other way. At the same time there is no one single character that IS me so completely, or that is so completely what I want to be as to fall into that 'Mary Sue/Gary Stu' category - at least, I don't think there is. It will be interesting to hear what my wife has to say on the subject when I get to speak to her at lenght about it this weekend.JeffOhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07947660745120963286noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-25591083111943030932011-11-18T10:43:28.657-08:002011-11-18T10:43:28.657-08:00This is so true. There are so many elements of my ...This is so true. There are so many elements of my MSs that I love deeply because I know they're a part of me. I wouldn't have it any other way. It's what makes them unique.Chelseyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08279604060499054571noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-16429689816584268022011-11-18T10:43:17.273-08:002011-11-18T10:43:17.273-08:00Natalie, this whole post is SO spot-on, but it wou...Natalie, this whole post is SO spot-on, but it would be silly to copy & paste the whole thing into a comment, so I'll just highlight this part:<br /><br />"Yes, there are many pieces of me in my books—how could it be any other way? How could I make my work stand out without using my unique voice and interests? If I didn't write about what I liked, what I wanted to explore, what I wondered about, what I was most scared of, how could I find passion in my work?"<br /><br />A million times yes.<br /><br />I'm not afraid to say that I am in my work. I never have been. (I also think it lends more credibility when I say, "No, that part is not me.") But it's a different thing to admit it than to EMBRACE it. You're encouraging the latter, and that's so wonderful. That's what will make writers braver, stories better, and readers more connected.Kristanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04771013578685419826noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-31018631056790652152011-11-18T10:41:02.160-08:002011-11-18T10:41:02.160-08:00From a literary theory perspective, I have to say ...From a literary theory perspective, I have to say it would be impossible for a writer NOT to be found in his/her work. We only know what we know and no one is privy to any larger perspective than his/her own. What's nice is when a writer can see this and appreciate how it limits her--what it gives, what it denies. I think that makes for stronger writing than pretending to some universal viewpoint.LilySeahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08812905445813679050noreply@blogger.com