At a recent Writers’ Group meeting, we went around the table and introduced our work-in-progress, genre, and what we hoped to achieve in the group. There we were chatting about our “stuff” and I overheard one writer make a comment, “I realized my character went through the entire book and never changed clothes.” We all had a good belly laugh at this but then – you know me – I turned that into a discussion about what characters have to have or do to be relatable, for the story to actually live and breathe.

And yes, your character needs to change clothes. More, your characters should do what you do, eat, sleep, go to the bathroom, shower, drive, be ill, burn food, shovel snow, etc. There should be food and dining — sleeping, relaxing, sex (do not have to have scenes but couples do mention it), accidents, arguments — well, the list goes on forever.

The reason for these “life events” is twofold. First, these real events give truth to your characters (even ones on odd, new worlds). Second, they can be the catalysts for moving your story forward.

I am particularly aware of my “scenes” when I write. How do you show and not tell when your character is listening to others? Maybe it is in the food. Does it remind your character of something unpleasant? Maybe the smell of Lysol from the kitchen brings back a hospital stay, so your character cannot eat because the smell drives him/her from the room. Remember you don’t have to outline every nuance for your readers; hopefully the subtle meaning will be enough.

Everyone is good at sights and sounds. What about the way a person speaks? Are characters’ voices clearly understood? Maybe a drawl gives a false perception to your character that causes them to jump to conclusions or say something untoward to the other person. Let those things happen and suddenly you have a much richer moment and your character has character (good or bad). Church bells, car alarms, screaming, laughter — all are important aspects to character but can also move action forward with purpose, too.

Do you use touch in your moments? Perhaps the silk of a flower against a cheek or the rough skein or a woolen scarf in winter reminds a little boy of being wet and cold and scolded by his mother. Or a single finger tracing over a woman’s knuckle by a reticent lover enlarges her pupils. Often these activities tell more than any dialogue could. Use them to advantage and let the action explain the character (he was a romantic man is better understood through the touch of a rose to her lips).

Back to that character who never changed clothes during the entire book. Of course, the writer is going back to fix this, but when the fixing is happening, so much more will result because of the change! Nakedness can have an important voice (mind out of gutter now) for babies, surely, but for adults the bare necessity holds a myriad of possibilities. A dress chosen instead of a pantsuit by a pants-wearing character. A pair of jeans and a Henley instead of Mr. Wall Street’s usual Armani suit. Hmm, casual Friday, weekend getaway or…something more nefarious afoot? Maybe an allergy to silk can lead to murder or laughter. How you need to develop the tale can depend on how your clothes feel to your character. Maybe she changed her hose because it wasn’t her skin color or there was a hole in the sock.

Sometimes, the senses can let your character down, and you should allow it to happen. What about the guard dog that failed to pick up a critical scent, the speeding driver who didn’t hear the fire truck for the loud music in the car with the screaming pregnant woman in the back seat, the little child who holds a first dandelion (stares at it and promptly eats it), the plastic surgery gone awry and the moment a patient gets that first look? The failures can be critical too. Use them but use the sensory part of it to tell your tale. Don’t simply tell us about it. That’s so boring and not nearly as fun.

So, you ask, why didn’t the character change clothes? Did the writer lack the talent to do this? No, the writer spent more time on the surroundings instead of the intimacies of the character. The writer made a lush, active sci-fi world but forgot to let the character live fully within it.

That’s why you need to let your character use all the senses and become a real person. Change the clothes; maybe do the laundry. Notice the stinky socks. Your story will thank you for it and we, the readers, will be begging you for more stories that we can’t forget or stop reading.

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Coming in April, I’m going to do a series on understanding poetry. So be sure to tune in for a perspective that I promise you have not seen!

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I’M RUNNING A BAR/CLUB NAMING CONTEST!  Are you clever? I’m running a contest to find a very cool, not cliché, name of a vampire bar/club in New Orleans. This establishment belongs to my redheaded vampire Drahomira from my urban fantasy novella, Midnight Assassin – A Tale of Lust and Revenge.  There will be permanent name recognition to the winner and signed books too. Contest ends on March 19.  So ENTER HERE!  And Good Luck!  Winners will be announced on March 21.

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LOOK FOR A LIVE CHAT ON FACEBOOK COMING AT THE END OF THE MONTH!

As always, thanks for dropping by. Leave a comment and say hello.

Yours Between the Lines,
Sherry

(The post originally appeared in Kerry Adrienne’s blog as Poetry Can Work Against Social Injustice, but I changed the title here to reflect a positive stance)

Poetry Can Work For Social Justice

I’m delighted to announce the release of my new book, The Book of Now, a volume of nonfiction poetry on subjects ripped from today’s headlines. This book covers social issues and contends that we must be more aware and responsible for these issues in order to find a way to correct or right these problems.

Now before you roll your eyes and groan, “oh not poetry,” wait! This poetry can be a powerful force for good!

Forbes Magazine has long highlighted poetry with responsibility. Take for example an article Jul 9, 2010 about Poetry and Pollution. The newly announced poet laureate (then) W.S. Merwin wrote of ecological disasters.

But Merwin is by far not the first to use his pen and write with a “social responsibility.”

In literature, where we seek social justice, first you have to understand what is meant by social responsibility. The best definition I ever read was, “the awareness of social injustice, from the local to the global, necessitates specific actions to combat those injustices. In other words, social responsibility and social activism are inextricably intertwined; once aware of the injustice, one is morally obliged to act.” (Naomi Benaron, author, 2012).

For fiction writers, there is a long history of literature intertwined with a need to highlight social responsibility and therefore find social justice. From Quixote, Dickens and Jane Austin through more current folks like Parsipur, Merwin, and Lucia Mann. There is a compelling need for writers to seek answers in the darkness and to speak out with authority whenever possible to shine light, right wrongs, and seek betterment.

But what of the poet? What makes the poet separate from the fiction writer? And are they more or less powerful with the pen?

I think it begins with a belief that social responsibility begins with children. What better way to send a message than a poem that one can remember, recite, and then remember forever? Besides understanding that poetry has always been a voice in the dark, finding those lights shows us how much social injustice has been highlighted in poetry.

Once Chinese immigrants were incarcerated at Angel Island, California during the early 1900s. They wrote their poetry on the walls, despite being told not to. Their poetry filled the halls of their prison and became known as the “talking walls.” From these walls, we learned of their belief in a right to freedom. And that they believed no one has the right to restrict their right to protest injustice. Their poetry was a powerful tool. Here is a short quote from one of the Chinese poems:

“For days I have been without freedom on Island.
In reduced circumstances now, I mingle with the prisoners.
Grievances fill my belly; I rely on poetry to express them.”

The beautiful language highlighted the impoverished conditions and sparked a need for a more fair and just society.

Another desirable aspect of poetry is its ability to present ideals and stress a position, to step off neutrality without the ugliness. There is a responsibility in our country to propose freedom and democracy. Political dictators and oppressionists have attacked these sorts of poets because they find social injustice poetry to be dangerously seditious. Which is exactly why I – and so many others — find it powerful.

Those young Chinese poets also did not take their use of poetry lightly. There was nothing common or funny about the literary tool. In their culture, poetry is the preferred method for highlighting social injustice. This is what makes their “talking walls” so important, that they leaned on their culture as they sought to expose social injustice. It also comforted them, giving something familiar.

Most of all, I think the power of poetry exposing social injustice comes in humanizing issues and reaching people on an emotional level. Poetry allows us to gently empathize, find common ground and to make what is scary or heinous more touchable. Again, it starts with children, learning to deal with social isolation, bullying, differences, and finding understanding in diversity. Shel Silverstein and Dr. Seuss did it for children and made it easy to remember. Maya Angelou made it easy for adults to understand and want to do better.

This was exactly my thought when I wrote The Book of Now. Not that it could be for children, because truthfully it is too harsh for little kids. But that I can cover terrorism, bullying, abuse, political bigotry and so many other harsh and divisive issues while pointing out the need for and the power of diversity, understanding and knowledge.

Today’s important poets have shown me the way. From Swiss poet Daniele Pantano, Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes, to U.S. Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera, poetry ignites the issues and sparks a need for change. And these changes may simply be in how we view an issue, more enlightened, more open-minded, more resolved.

I certainly don’t expect to remake the world or create a tsunami of change. However, with my new book of poetry, I want others to see subtleties, discover new emotions, and open dialogues of change. There are controversial issues in The Book of Now. We have to be fearless and open-minded if we are going to make this world a better place. Poetry is my way of highlighting social injustices and directing where our social responsibility might be. I think poets make the unpalatable more digestible, because they do it with compassion inside their honesty.

I content that poets believe in possibilities. Like me, The Book of Now does, too. I hope the message resonates with some of you and that you will take up the banner against the social injustices highlighted in The Book of Now. Join an illustrious population of people striving for a better world, and using poetry to do it!

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The Book of Now is available from my CreateSpace page, or you can order from the links on the book page or directly from online retailers.

OR if you want a signed copy, just fill out the form on the Contact Me page.

Thanks for stopping by!
I remain, yours Between the Lines,
Sherry 

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****The following items will always appear to keep you posted on activities.*****

WIP (Works in Progress):

Writer’s Workbook – Learning to Write Everyday – Beginners Volume  Release AUG 2016

– first novel in the Evening Bower series, about vampires and other supernatural creatures
– fictional memoir – November 2016!
– four-part fairy story (part one complete)

On the Desk: (next reading): TBD

Off the Desk (book just finished): A Toxic Trousseau (#8 in series) by Juliet Blackwell

Coming Soon:  Interview with new folks and more about upcoming projects. Plus meet my assistant (yes, you want details!)

Okay I’ll admit it. I’m excited and psyched. My new book of nonfiction poetry, The Book of Now, is now available for purchase! I’m so thrilled!

This book was a true labor of love, but also, an experience. I could not stem the tide of poetry that came out of me for about six months. If a person can hemorrhage verses, then I did. Morning, noon, middle of the night, it didn’t matter. The issues compelled me to write about them and the headlines drew out the emotions. Terrorist attacks, bigotry in politicians, friends of mine beaten by spouses and boyfriends, other friends batting over HB2NC and wondering if they will be attacked because they chose to pee in the “wrong” bathroom, natural monuments being destroyed out of stupidity. The toll on the people filled my heart and the poetry came unbidden. Much of it could never see the light of day but the rest is my offering in the new book.

Terrorism, Abuse, Politics and Nature — topics that include bigotry, racism, sexism, misogyny, xenophobia and domestic violence, as well as ecological destruction, international slavery, and immigration. A heavy variety of headlines and issues that will leave deep wounds and deeper scars.

I’m very proud of this new book. I hope you will give it a try. For now the print book is available and the ebook will soon follow (in about 2-3 weeks). This is my reflection of today’s world and the issues consuming it. Join me in recognizing them and working to change the future.

You can find the book here and soon there will be a direct link from the front page as well as inside the list of books. You will also be able to order it from B&N and other online retailers. It will be available in overseas distribution too.

Please raise a glass with me as I celebrate my newest creation! And if you do read it, please consider leaving me a review on Amazon and Goodreads. I would be very grateful for your comments and support.

I’LL BE ON THE RADIO! – Tune in to hear me discuss the new book and read a poem or two on Focus on Women Magazine’s blogtalk radio, La Femme de Prose, on July 26 at 7pm.  Here’s a link to listen live and you can call in with questions at 917-889-3894. Looking forward to chatting with you.

I remain yours between the lines,
Sherry

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****The following items will always appear to keep you posted on activities.*****

WIP (Works in Progress): –  Writer’s Workbook – Learning to Write Everyday – Beginners Volume

– first novel in the Evening Bower series, about vampires and other supernatural creatures
– fictional memoir – November 2016!
– four-part fairy story (part one complete)

On the Desk: (next reading): TBD

Off the Desk (book just finished): Flameout by Keri Arthur

Coming Soon:  Interview with new folks and more about upcoming projects. Plus meet my assistant (yes, you want details!)