is really trying to kill me this week with her inquiring mind J She wants to know what we would say our writing strengths and weaknesses are. Can you believe that??? Oh my, I have to really do some deep thinking after swearing off all deep thinking for a few more weeks. J Just kidding, Mishka, you are wonderful!!! Thank you for pushing me back into the saddle J
I love putting conflicts of all forms in my writing. From internal to external conflict for me is what makes a story. I love giving my characters things to overcome. The more impossible they seem the harder the journey to find fulfillment at the end of the story.
Now this doesn’t mean all my conflicts are between my hero and heroine, such as in The Cheyenne Bride, where I would say 90% of the conflict is between Chris and Nichole. But in Into the Darkness 90% of the conflict is from outside sources and how together two people can overcome almost anything. There is also the inner conflict for Raven learning nothing about herself was as it seemed even to herself. Imagine finding out you are someone completely different than who you thought you were.
When I first began writing I would be in mid dialogue and throw in some eleven page description of the surroundings, then when I went back into dialogue, I would be like, “Where was I?” “What were they talking about?” Yeah, definitely a pet peeve of mine now in my own writing and those I critique.
My new rule of thumb is I can say everything I’ve said in eleven pages (this is NOT an exaggeration I’m afraid to admit) in two paragraphs. However, my long-winded self is the hardest aspect of myself to contain and I always always always find myself editing away a good deal of my descriptions, J
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