DOWN TIME
In Down Time I look at the need to show how your characters relax. Nobody is “on” all the time and I think fiction should reflect that. Your characters need to eat, drink, sleep etc and I would argue down time in which to relax is crucial for mental and physical well being too. So how do your characters relax? How can you show this in your story (without slowing the plot up)? My thought here is a line or two at appropriate points in the tale to show what your characters are like outside of the “main action” is more than enough. Yet it will be these details, I feel, that will add depth to your characters and, as a result, to your stories.
THIS WORLD AND OTHERS
Remembering What Is Important is vital for us all. After all, it is why we commemorate Remembance Sunday, Veterans’ Day, Holocaust Day and so on. It is so important we don’t forget. So what would your characters want to commemorate? What rituals and customs would they follow? How are birthdays, weddings, births, deaths commemorated?
FACEBOOK PAGE
As it is a short post tonight, I thought I would just copy it across here rather than use the link. What genres do you read? Have you tried new genres?
One of the great things about reading is that, at whatever time you like, you can try a genre new to you. I’m currently reading my first graphic novel and loving it. Hope to review this for Chandler’s Ford Today at a later date as it ties in with other posts I’ve written.
Have happily been catching up with Poetry, Please on Radio 4. Love the real mixture of work on here. Also, the programme shows up beautifully why reading work out loud (whatever you write) is such a good idea. You do pick up on rhythms and how dialogue sounds in a way you can’t do when just reading “internally”.
Whatever the format, you can’t beat a good book. Image via Pixabay.
Allison Symes: Collected Works 