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Love Those Secondary Characters

Our first Group Blog of the New Year and it’s a great one. How do you develop secondary characters? Do you even have a favorite secondary character? I thought I’d start with the definition. The secondary character is more than just a minor character and is responsible for progressing the story in some way. He or she is necessary to the story because this character reveals key details, motivates the protagonist, foils the protagonist, or helps define the story’s setting. The secondary character almost always interacts with the protagonist on some level, be it through dialogue or a memory that the protagonist has of this secondary character. They help us show, not tell.I develop mine much like I do my main characters but with less detail. I decide who needs a friend or someone to talk to, someone who helps move the story forward. Then I do a little back story, a description, some personality traits and some good and bad points. I may not write about any of it, but it helps get the feel of the secondary character. As with the main characters, I get to know them better as the story progresses, but as secondary characters I write them a little looser and can have fun with them. I was once warned not to like them too much, or they could take over the story.Hmm, a favorite secondary character… I love Gran in my Hawkins’ Ranch series. She’s the matriarch of the family and a busy body, who...
Caroline Clemmons Latest Release

Through a crazy twist of fate, Caroline Clemmons was notborn on a Texas ranch. To compensate for this illogical error, she writes about handsome cowboys, feisty ranch women, and scheming villains in a small office her family calls her pink cave. She and her Hero live in North Central Texas cowboy country where they ride herd on their rescued cats and dogs. The books she creates there have made her an Amazon bestselling author and won several awards.Beverley: Which genre or genres do you write or prefer to write? And why?Caroline: Most of my books are western historical romances. I love history, especially post Civil War 19th century American history. I love the Southwest. I’ve also written contemporary romance, time travel, a cozy mystery, and a traditional mystery. I love to read all of those and wanted to write what I enjoy reading. The only other things I read are women’s fiction and Regency. I might get around to writing those eventually.Beverley: Who influenced you the most in deciding to become a writer?Caroline: My father was a big influence. He taught me that one could write about anything by using imagination. I had an excellent journalism teacher who inspired me. Strangely enough, it was my mother-in-law who suggested I write novels. I used to write pages and pages in weekly letters to my family members. My mother-in-law said that the vignettes I wrote about our life were like reading a book. She brought me a large grocery bag of romance...
Where Do You Get Your Characters?

Things people ask when they hear I’m a writer and before their eyes glaze over: - Are you published? (at least now they’ve accepted being published on e-readers) - where do you get your ideas? - who are your characters based on? So, who are your characters based on? Mine come from various places. I usually have a plot in mind first, then I start thinking about the main characters. My latest release, The Fourth Victim – Sara’s Story has seven main characters and two supporting characters plus two villains and a few others. (I know, way too many characters but I couldn’t figure out anyway to cut them).My idea was to have women helping women from difficult and often potentially fatal situations. So, I came up with three women who meet in university. They become friends. They come different backgrounds but besides getting their degree they had a few things in common. They have access to money and a strong desire to help women. They volunteer at women’s shelters during college and help set up a few new ones. Then they decide to help women from difficult situations and train to do this. They form The Foundation. I continue to develop and flesh out the characters, maybe there’s a little of my own desire to help women become stronger in there, but the characters aren’t based on any specific person. As they become stronger and more effective, they decide to train other women...
MEET CHRISTINA LYNN LAMBERT AND WOLF'S CHALLENGE

A few years ago, I read my first romance novel and I was hooked, so much so that I decided to give the idea of writing a story a chance. My style is more gritty than sweet and I look forward to writing many more stories with strong heroines and imperfect but determined characters. Love, courage, hope, and second chances are a few of my favorite themes. When I’m not writing, I enjoy spending time outside and finding ways to avoid cooking. I live in beautiful Virginia with my husband, two daughters, and a sweet, hairy monster of a dog.BEVERLEY: Which genre or genres do you write or prefer to write? And why?CHRISTINA: I prefer writing paranormal romance with a major suspense element. I like the paranormal genre because I can bend reality to create a strange, extraordinary version of reality. I add a dose of suspense to everything I write because I have always loved to read stories that keep me wondering what will happen next. BEVERLEY: Who influenced you the most in deciding to become a writer? CHRISTINA: When I was a kid, I loved writing down short stories and poems just for fun. My grandmother Marie and my great aunt Margaret used to give me beautiful blank journals. They would tell me to write whatever I wanted inside and encouraged me to keep filling up my notebooks. It wasn’t until much later in life that I thought about sharing any of the stories and poems I...
The New Year and Goal Setting

The New Year is moving along quickly and I’m slogging along behind, trying to catch up. Everyone is busy doing new year resolutions. Do you make resolutions? Do you keep them? And if you do, for how long? I gave up making resolution years ago because they never worked and then I felt guilty when I broke them, so I switched to making goals. It’s kind of nice when you start a new year to think about where you’ve been in 2018 and evaluate those goals and then focus on things that you’d like to accomplish in 2019. I try to make them realistic and measurable. For example, last year I said I wanted to start sending out newsletters a few times a year. I managed to send one out before the end o the year – so I accomplished that goal.I usually divide my goals up into at least two different categories – my personal goals and my writing goals, which is what I did this year. For my personal goals – do I want to lose weight? Of course I do, but will I? Who knows? Instead my goal is to eat healthy. I’m going to follow the Mediterranean Diet which is the top diet for healthy eating. My main goal is to be healthier, reduce and keep my blood pressure low and feel better. I also want to increase my exercise and aim for 7,000 -10,000 steps daily. And I’d like to work on time management....
Happy New year everyone!Wishing you all a healthy new year where you accomplish your goals! Beverley

Update – FYI

If you’re checking for Dr. Bob Rich (and free books) – scroll downOr check out the permalink at https://beverleybateman.blogspot.com.au/2017/06/heroes-or-protagonists-with-dr-bob-rich.htmlIt will be up until July 1st when he’ll announce the winners of the books. And is you’re interested in the Fringe Festival workshops, you can still access them at http://selfpublishingadvice.org/indie-author-fringe-june-2017-agenda/ ...
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Sylvia Hubbard on Heroes and a New Book

This week we’re going to find out a little about author Sylvia Hubbard. June’s theme is ‘Heroes’ so Sylvia will be talking about heroes. She’ll also tell us a little about herself and her writing, and answer some fun questions.Detroit Author & Founder of Motown Writers Network, Sylvia Hubbard has ...
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Kelli Wilkins on Marketing and her new Book

This week we’re going to find out a little about author Kelli Wilkes. Kelli will be talking about marketing. She’ll also tell us a little about herself and her writing, and answer some fun questions.Kelli A. Wilkins is an award-winning author who has published more than 100 short stories, 19 ...
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Update on the ALLIE Fringe Festival

I’ve been asked to post on the ALLIE Fringe Festival so here’s a few highlights. The second workshop I attended, and for me, the most interesting was Instafreebie Explosion. I had never heard of Instafreebie. It explained how to add thousands of targeted readers to your email list. I’ve learned ...
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Update – FYI

Sylvia Hubbard on Heroes and a New Book

Kelli Wilkins on Marketing and her new Book

Update on the ALLIE Fringe Festival

Check Out My Other Blog Posts

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