tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post7506644337605714921..comments2024-01-17T22:00:41.839-08:00Comments on Full Throttle and F**k It: Spin It Back and Grandkid DaysSteve Malleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17561234111786788616noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post-66430162784600768312008-08-04T07:57:00.000-07:002008-08-04T07:57:00.000-07:00Something like yours, in a more meek and mild way....Something like yours, in a more meek and mild way.Bernitahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05264585685253812090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post-11409175331014363792008-08-01T14:01:00.001-07:002008-08-01T14:01:00.001-07:00Oh that and the iris is blue-gray.Oh that and the iris is blue-gray.SzélsőFahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11600289147447182465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post-59794861652118277562008-08-01T14:01:00.000-07:002008-08-01T14:01:00.000-07:00Sorry, I'll be off: although I am definitely NOT t...Sorry, I'll be off: although I am definitely NOT the mother of your son :)<BR/> - but I do have that golden ring around the middle blackness in my iris as well. So does my son.<BR/>*coming over from Bernita's*SzélsőFahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11600289147447182465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post-26457623733892605842008-08-01T13:18:00.000-07:002008-08-01T13:18:00.000-07:00Miladysa, thanks. I'm glad you liked it!CS, the te...Miladysa, thanks. I'm glad you liked it!<BR/><BR/>CS, the term Grandkid Days helps keep me 'on mission', preventing such events as Chapter Seven, Conan picks up his dry cleaning.Steve Malleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17561234111786788616noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post-5163735311195512872008-08-01T09:17:00.000-07:002008-08-01T09:17:00.000-07:00I work my major characters this way, too-take what...I work my major characters this way, too-take what I need them to do, then figure out what kind of person would/could do it. More minor characters tend to just show up in all their wondrous glory.<BR/><BR/>Love that expression, Grandkid Days!cs harrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13708705800818667923noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post-29083255504702936692008-08-01T08:42:00.000-07:002008-08-01T08:42:00.000-07:00Another interesting post Steve, thank you.Ditto Ch...Another interesting post Steve, thank you.<BR/><BR/>Ditto Charles - they just appear from the ether :-DMiladysahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08065128196666157541noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post-4909969795508255232008-07-31T22:31:00.000-07:002008-07-31T22:31:00.000-07:00Charles, I had those kinds of 'WTF are you doi...Charles, I had those kinds of 'WTF are you doing here?' moments too. Also, sometimes a character gets on stage and starts chewing the scenery until they've written themselves a much bigger part. <BR/><BR/>Lisa, I'm still figuring it out too. Probably by the time I know what I'm doing, I won't be able to describe it!<BR/><BR/>Angie, I remember Neil Gaiman remarking once that he starts a story with strangers, and by the end, he knows all sorts of odd facts about those characters that never make it into the book. I'm somewhere in between. <BR/><BR/>Lana, I always describe Dungeons & Dragons to the uninitiated as collaborative storytelling. And the best DM's usually do have some sort of plot for the players to blunder into.<BR/><BR/>Elizaw, I do believe John Connolly works about that way. Oh, and that's much the way Brett Battles wrote THE CLEANER. Also, John is big on the rewriting: he figures the story doesn't really happen until the 2nd draft. <BR/><BR/>Wayne, your second post was closer. I have no idea how to handle flashbacks myself. Just talking about developing character (and backstory) from their function in the tale.Steve Malleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17561234111786788616noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post-75488209333479426532008-07-31T22:06:00.000-07:002008-07-31T22:06:00.000-07:00Hmnn. I think I misread the gist of the post (I t...Hmnn. I think I misread the gist of the post (I think). But what I was trying to convey was the fact that I'd create more of the character in flashback than I would in the present.Wayne Allen Salleehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17199261942617339556noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post-39553125865256716112008-07-31T22:04:00.000-07:002008-07-31T22:04:00.000-07:00I rarely do flashbacks, Steve. If I do, its the st...I rarely do flashbacks, Steve. If I do, its the standard cop stuff where some cop recalls a similar situation years before. I have written a few novellas that cut from present day (well, 1996) to various years going back to the early 60s, and when I did that I was mostly riffing on my childhood.Wayne Allen Salleehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17199261942617339556noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post-5676555384525940762008-07-31T12:55:00.000-07:002008-07-31T12:55:00.000-07:00I tend to develop the character first. Then I dev...I tend to develop the character first. Then I develop the setting, then the story. Or at least, I used to.<BR/><BR/>It didn't work out so well. The setting would change, the plot would twist, the character grew inconsistent, though I would have sworn that I knew him up and down.<BR/><BR/>It was the second draft of the story, all these ideas and actions and traits laid out that my hero and heroine really began to shine. Some I kept. Some ideas I threw out. Everything just has to come together.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post-39589809173752757412008-07-31T10:47:00.000-07:002008-07-31T10:47:00.000-07:00Good advice here. Makes me think back to my days a...Good advice here. Makes me think back to my days as a DM, coming up with stories for my friends to play.Lana Gramlichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06975996208260144558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post-24779469034675000612008-07-31T00:32:00.000-07:002008-07-31T00:32:00.000-07:00My character creation is pretty much like yours. ...My character creation is pretty much like yours. I have an idea for a story, or even just a situation, and create the basic skeleton of the sort of character who fits my needs. Everything else just shows up as it's required, often to fit the needs of a specific scene or paragraph or line.<BR/><BR/>I don't think I've <I>ever</I> known a character's shoe size or favorite breakfast cereal, because I've never needed to know. Irrelevant cat is irrelevant. I harbor a strong skepticism about the questionnaire method of character development because most of the info the questionnaires I've seen are designed to draw out seems pretty pointless to me. I don't need to know ahead of time what a character's favorite color is, or what their first album purchase was, or whatever. If I ever <I>do</I> need it, the info will present itself. Until then a long list of random trivia doesn't help me develop my concept of the character or his/her personality.<BR/><BR/>AngieAngiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11920578701763415331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post-76215665314183099142008-07-30T23:57:00.000-07:002008-07-30T23:57:00.000-07:00I'm still figuring it out -- but so far, it seems ...I'm still figuring it out -- but so far, it seems to be very similar to what you've described. Great post!Lisahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00665632105920753931noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8052003455667869062.post-893687084380186892008-07-30T23:36:00.000-07:002008-07-30T23:36:00.000-07:00I sometimes work this way, knowing I need a specif...I sometimes work this way, knowing I need a specific type of character for a specific kind of event, but more often they just seem to appear on the stage for me. I look around, wondering where the hell he or she came from. But then I just let them run until I get a handle on them. I've already had both kinds of characters appear in Wraith of Talera.Charles Gramlichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02052592247572253641noreply@blogger.com