character development

Regardless of whether your story is told in first or third person point of view, the reader should be able to see the world of the story through the eyes of the protagonist.  The reader should also be able to hear, taste, smell and feel what the

I have read character descriptions that are very precise and detailed, but that lack the true essence of the character.  This essence is revealed through things like how a character moves through the world; how he eats his food; or how she plays

The characters of a novel need to change throughout the novel.  This change or transformation is called the arc.  This change may be for the better or for the worse, but it must be.  And it must be manifested through the characters’

I’m very careful not to vilify or glorify characters.  Frank, the antagonist of Olive Branches Don’t Grow On Trees, is an abusive alcoholic, and initially, he is revealed only as such.  As the story progresses, however, we learn that Frank’s

Although I knew the general plot through my outline, around midway through the writing of my book, my characters started doing things that I had not planned for them. They surprised me by certain decisions and or actions.  This was when I knew