I lose the Tag Game

So like forever ago Angela from The Starving Novelist tagged me in a Meme. And I am just now getting around to passing it on. Sigh, I never was good a playing tag :)

Here's the deal - I answer the following questions - then tag other people. Here goes...

1. What is your dream vacation?
Me and my husband completely alone with no contact from the outside world for a week. Also - no chores or cleaning or anything. Just 100% free time to do whatever I want.

2. Are you spontaneous or do you like to plan ahead?
I plan. In fact I have back up plans for my plans - and back up plans for my back up plans.

3. Tell us one thing you want to do but don’t dare to do.
I don't know. There are a lot of things that I fear doing. But most of them I don't want to do anyway. And the ones I do want to do - well I don't let my fear get in the way. I guess the only thing would be to tell some people what I really think.

4. What's your biggest phobia?
Being buried alive. Or drowning.

5. If you were stranded on a desert island – what 3 things would you want with you (not including laptop, or family).
A fishing spear, machete and flint. (And Jeff Probst. Yes I watch Survivor!)

6. Name three blessings in your life.
My husband. My writing. My faith.

7. What was your nickname in High School?
Uh.. I never had a nickname. At least one that people told me to my face :) I was a big nerd and a geek and all other kinds of labels that put me in the 'uncool' group. But no nicknames.

8. If you could meet the President of the United States, what would you say to him?
Hi.

9. If you could be any literary character for a day, who would you be?
Hmm. A character from a Jane Austin novel.

10. What is your favorite quote?
"Oh be wise; what can I say more?" Jacob 6:12

Tagged
I think I am supposed to tag seven people - but since I am a little late in the game - I am only going to tag 3.

Wendy at Scribblings of Wendy Jave
Laura at Laura B Writer
Angie at Notes From the Writing Chair

p.s. My regular prompt tuesday post will be coming later today.

Emotion in Writing, Part 4: Conflict and Connection

In Part 1 of this series I talked about the power of emotions and why they are important in writing. In Part 2 I talked about Pain and Joy. In Part 3 I went over Love and Hate.

Today we will be discussing conflict and connection. I know that these are probably not the first things that come to mind when you think of emotions. But all emotions lead to one or the other - a conflict or a connection. And some emotions, like love, can even lead to both.

Conflict

Conflict is the driving force of a story. Without conflict there is not story. Would you read 200 pages about someone who has a perfect life? No. Why - because it isn't possible. It isn't believable. And it is down right boring.

Lot's of things can cause conflict in our writing. For me the most powerful ones are conflicts born of emotion. Take a moment and think of your favorite book - the one you read over and over again. What is the conflict? Keep digging deeper until you find a conflict tied to emotions.

My favorite book is The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley. The main conflict begins when the hero - driven by an emotional force he does not understand - kidnaps the heroine. The following conflicts ensue because the heroine starts to fall in love with the desert people and of course - with the hero.

Emotional conflicts fall into two major categories. There is a conflict because of opposing emotions. (For example, Bella and Jake from Twilight have different emotions towards Edward - which creates a conflict between them.) Or the emotion a character has is in conflict with what they have to do. (In The Blue Sword the heroine loves the hero but must go against him and risk loosing his love to save the day.)

Connection

I wrote and entire series on Emotional Connections with Characters. What I want to discuss here is emotional connection between characters.

Let's address the obvious first - love. When two characters love each other (on whatever level) they become connected. I laughed in Harry Potter when he broke up with Ginny because he did not want to put her in danger. When will heroes learn that just because the aren't with the person they love the bad guy won't still kidnap them.

Back to Harry and Ginny. He breaks up with her to keep her safe. However he still loves her. And guess what - Voldemort knows that. Gasp. So even if Harry wasn't with Ginny - Voldemort would still come after her to get to him.

Hate can also connect to characters. Take for example Harry and Voldemort. They hate each other and that is a powerful part of what binds their fates together.

Can you think of other connects between characters that are formed because of emotions, such as fear, hope, respect?

In summary, emotions are the tools we use to create conflict and connection in our writing. They give depth and detail to a story.

What do you think? What are some emotional conflicts and connections you have come across in your reading or writing?

Validation and a Quandary

So... my goals have kind of fizzled out a little. When I get back to writing, reading and critiquing - I will update my goals and start fresh.

Validation

I know it is kind of a no-no to blog about rejection. However, I am going to do it.

Tuesday I received a rejection letter from Shadow Mountain publishing. And I was excited. (I know what your thinking and my husband agrees with you. I am completely insane.)

I am excited because I got a response. And I feel a little more validated as a writer. The good news is I am totally motivated to submit to the next publisher. Yeah!

Quandary

I started re-outlining Three of Ivory and I really like where it is going. But I have this other idea floating around in my head that is kind of exciting. I don't like to abandon projects (hello! I hung on to Shadowed Stones for 10 years!). But I also think that I need to be more flexible and not lock myself into one project. Mostly because I think that was one of the reasons why Shadowed Stones took me so long.

My plan is to work on both of them at the same time. I haven't done that before so I am not sure how it will work out. But I want to see if I can do it.

What do you think? Should I work on both projects? Or just go with one of them?

The Mighty Pen #36

The Mighty Pen flash fiction contest is a just for fun writing contest (inspired by my wonderful husband). I post the beginning of a story – and you post an end! I will choose a winner and several honorable mentions. The contest is open until Sunday night and the winner is announce on Monday where I feature them on my blog. Check out past winners on the tab above.

Note: This is a family friendly blog – so please keep it PG rated. Thanks!

The Beginning

The domed archway reach far above their heads, hanging over them like an dark cloud....