tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post4784207927108364150..comments2024-02-16T15:14:36.719-06:00Comments on Wet Noodle Posse: What Makes A Good Read?MJFredrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881706931355203700noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-64836276960679883172009-04-21T20:51:00.000-05:002009-04-21T20:51:00.000-05:00Terry, I definitely agree with STORYTELLING being ...Terry, I definitely agree with STORYTELLING being important. I will forgive all sorts of writing flaws if the story grabs me and keeps pulling!<br /><br />Kate, a cruel yet sympathetic villain--I don't read many of those. I'll have to give Julie Anne Long a try!Theresa Raganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15815320170046221853noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-68886351801852841832009-04-21T19:00:00.000-05:002009-04-21T19:00:00.000-05:00All about the characters... and if there's a great...All about the characters... and if there's a great villain, so much the better! I think Julie Anne Long writes great villains, because they're often so sympathetic (and yet totally, totally wrong...)Kate Diamondhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00987438202240646062noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-11621398739873410502009-04-21T18:54:00.000-05:002009-04-21T18:54:00.000-05:00When I pick up a book to read, I'm already rooting...When I pick up a book to read, I'm already rooting for the characters and hoping things work out well for them--otherwise, I'm not going to want to spend several hours in their world. So I'm usually easy to please :-).<br /><br />Great characters can definitely make a particular story linger in my mind, but it's the way the story's told--the author's voice, her skill with things like details and dialogue--that will make me pick up another book by that author. Again, I'm easy--I'll forgive the occasional discomfort with a character if the storytelling keeps me turning pages.Terry McLaughlinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08557335434947611768noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-35940865067227333932009-04-21T15:35:00.000-05:002009-04-21T15:35:00.000-05:00Oh, and I guess I don't know how to spell "sergean...Oh, and I guess I don't know how to spell "sergeant" <br /><br />sheeshTheresa Raganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15815320170046221853noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-89455260085654707292009-04-21T15:16:00.000-05:002009-04-21T15:16:00.000-05:00Judy, yes! Here is another example of a detail tha...Judy, yes! Here is another example of a detail that makes me care about a character. Back to the book I'm reading...in Lisa Gardner's <I>HIDE</I>, the main guy used to be a sniper, but he doesn't particularly like guns, especially after he was forced to kill a man who was about to hurt a woman and child. After that, he becomes a detective instead and he's called in to help with a case. Okay, so in the book we're in his POV and he's the only one who's good enough with guns to sit in a tree with a rifle and a scope and protect the sargeant who is supposed to meet with the bad guy alone... <br /><br /><I>He'd never been a gun guy. Hadn't fired his first rifle until he'd attended the police academy. There, he'd made the discovery that he was quite good. With a bit of training, he scored expert. With a bit of nudging, he became a sniper. But it had never been true love. The rifle was not an extension of his arm, a calling of his soul. It was a tool he happened to be extremely skilled at using.</I> <br /><br />This small paragraph makes me sympathize with him. He doesn't like guns. He doesn't want to kill anyone...and yet he wants to protect the female sargeant who is also a good friend.Theresa Raganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15815320170046221853noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-51539304299859249922009-04-21T13:49:00.000-05:002009-04-21T13:49:00.000-05:00Yes, Theresa! It's in the details, and not the par...Yes, Theresa! It's in the details, and not the paragraph after paragraph of details, but the little things like "He snapped to attention" as opposed to "He squared his shoulders, his back straight." Same thing but a very different feel to the character. The first leans toward military, police, etc, whereas the second could be cowboy, businessman, etc.Judyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07843239483061220089noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-49619941976045543792009-04-21T12:53:00.000-05:002009-04-21T12:53:00.000-05:00Pris, thanks! I think I might have answered my own...Pris, thanks! I think I might have answered my own question. Sometimes we/me just need a reminder. My hero needs more detail to make him real...like the people you like to read about. To become real we need to know just enough about their fears and dreams and hopes to make us care.<br /><br />Thanks for chiming in!Theresa Raganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15815320170046221853noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-73781137112741031332009-04-21T12:48:00.000-05:002009-04-21T12:48:00.000-05:00Not to beat a dead horse, but I'm with ya'll on th...Not to beat a dead horse, but I'm with ya'll on the "Characters are most important" bandwagon.<br /><br />I want to meet a man and a woman who intrigues me, or makes me wish I could sit and chat with them over coffee at Starbucks. I guess a character who becomes a real person to me. That's hard to do.<br /><br />Theresa, you asked for suggestions or advice, but I'm still working on this with my writing, so I hesitate to chime in with guidance. :-)Prisakisshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12909271289337919937noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-21859431098219353972009-04-21T12:32:00.000-05:002009-04-21T12:32:00.000-05:00I agree, Christine. The best characters for me are...I agree, Christine. The best characters for me are the one's who know they're damaged/flawed and who want to live a better life, and they do their best to make a difference for themselves and for those around them and at the end of the book they might not have magically changed, but we have hope that they are on the right path...<br /><br />Good characterization for me includes DETAILS. They have a past, don't we all, they have dreams and fears and little daily rituals. And the author gives me just enough to intrigue but not an info dump of character traits...little bread crumbs all the way through. :)Theresa Raganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15815320170046221853noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-5741504664108355882009-04-21T11:50:00.000-05:002009-04-21T11:50:00.000-05:00Characters become more real, to me, when they are ...Characters become more real, to me, when they are not only flawed but vulnerable. If they're too perfect, they're boring. Too flawed is a problem when the character is expected to change in a snap. It's also annoying when a character finally gets a concept, and then they're back in the old habits the very next chapter. The character didn't progress, and then at the end everything neatly fell into place. I don't know about anyone else, but I find life to be progressive changes, not a puzzle that's shaken up and suddenly falls magically into perfect place because there are only two pages left. :-)Judyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07843239483061220089noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-79123791923967693362009-04-21T11:05:00.000-05:002009-04-21T11:05:00.000-05:00Christine, you have to read this book. Lots of twi...Christine, you have to read this book. Lots of twists and turns. I can't wait to find out what's going to happen. All of Lisa Gardner's books so far make me care about the characters. She knows how to make every single scene count. Filled with conflict and surprises.Theresa Raganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15815320170046221853noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-39236239516870055112009-04-21T10:52:00.000-05:002009-04-21T10:52:00.000-05:00The book sounds great! Now I want to read it!!The book sounds great! Now I want to read it!!Christinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05383099148014297450noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-7374314251359153072009-04-21T10:10:00.000-05:002009-04-21T10:10:00.000-05:00Characters, characters, characters. Love series (m...Characters, characters, characters. Love series (mystery mostly) where you get to follow them over many, many books.Terry Odellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11610682530545306687noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-8122424406127920362009-04-21T09:29:00.001-05:002009-04-21T09:29:00.001-05:00It's always about the characters. If the characte...It's always about the characters. If the characters are interesting, I want to know what happened. I think that's why I'm less enthused with some books, and even movies, like Terminator (my family can't wait to see the upcoming release). Those characters didn't interest me, no matter how much action was going on.PatriciaWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04572087157439187319noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-67999692340882875982009-04-21T09:29:00.000-05:002009-04-21T09:29:00.000-05:00Judy, good point! If the characters don't grow or ...Judy, good point! If the characters don't grow or progress by the end, that's frustrating. <br /><br />In the book I am working on now, my heroine was abducted as a young girl and she is now known as the "one who got away." She is a private investigator and she volunteers her time once a week teaching teenagers to defend themselves. But my agent thought she was a little too "damaged" so I'm working on that. I'm also having a hard time making my hero three dimensional. I feel like he's just sort of "there" just "hanging out." I put in a troubled past and that didn't work...took it out...then I gave him a few "real" family problems and he's coming to life...I think. Argghhhh.<br /><br />What do you do to make your characters come to life?<br /><br />Give me and other WNP readers some tips!!!Theresa Raganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15815320170046221853noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-90854552672914998252009-04-21T08:49:00.000-05:002009-04-21T08:49:00.000-05:00Me, too! It's definitely the characters first. If ...Me, too! It's definitely the characters first. If I like the characters well enough, I don't much care if there's a huge bigger plot. I'm quite content to simply see the characters progress. And there is nothing more disappointing than seeing characters I genuinely liked not reach their full potential.Judyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07843239483061220089noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-24060389080855574702009-04-21T08:45:00.000-05:002009-04-21T08:45:00.000-05:00I agree. I need the characters to be either someon...I agree. I need the characters to be either someone I care about or someone with whom I am intrigued - someone who makes me think "What makes them tick?" After that I want to see what happens to them and how they are going to deal with it. <br /><br />One of the most touted books last year was a complete bust for me because I didn't like the heroine and therefore didn't really care what happened to her. I didn't even want to know what made her tick.Louisa Cornellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12971924594129471055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18101458.post-86478856040554657632009-04-21T08:32:00.000-05:002009-04-21T08:32:00.000-05:00Theresa, I agree with you. I have to care about th...Theresa, I agree with you. I have to care about the characters first and foremost. Then I like them to be in an interesting situation so that I turn the pages to find out what happens to them and how it will all work out. <br /><br />Lisa's book sounds wonderful. What a great premise.Diane Gastonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14770373530197339170noreply@blogger.com