L. M. Montes

Character Building

Posted on May 12, 2020January 16, 2021 by L. M. Montes

So much goes into the creation of a storybook character. The goal is to make them as unique as possible so that they stand out to the reader, making them memorable. But to do this you must build them from the ground up. Go from simple to complex. The more complex the character, the more real they become. After all, humans are complex creatures aren’t we?

As a writer and a human, we are all different and have different writing styles and ways of doing things. This method I am about to show you is my way, so take it and mold it into YOUR way. What you’ll notice after you compile all of the information about your characters, is that you won’t use all of it in your story. BUT you will have it in case you DO need it later. Maybe you want to write a book series, so information regarding your character that you didn’t use in the first book might come in handy in later books.

Beginning (Simple): Brainstorm a list of characteristics. These items are more on the surface and feel free to add to it. My list, should I put it all here, would be extremely lengthy.

Eye color
Hair color
Height
Weight
Ethnic heritage
Age
Birth date
Religious beliefs
Hobbies
Favorite color
Physical description
Political beliefs
Favorite music
Style of dress
Educational background
Description of home
Contents of wallet (this can say a lot about a person)
Habits

Digging Deeper: Here again, feel free to add your own ideas to this list

Strong character trait
Weak character trait
Best childhood memory
Worst childhood memory
One line summary of their personality
What triggers certain moods
What is their ambition
Sense of humor
What is his/her greatest hope
Character’s paradox
How does he/she see himself or herself
Philosophy of life
Character flaw (This is essential to the story because at one point he/she realizes this flaw and is able to overcome it. That’s integral in creating their character arc and accomplishing the story goal)

I keep this list written down in my binder and on my computer. It serves me well throughout the writing of my book. I add to it along the way too. Have fun with it.

Character Name: I created the details of my character before I came up with a name. By doing this I was better able to find a name that suited the description of my character. Some names elicit certain unspoken character traits. At least they do to me. For one of my male characters I ended up changing his name two times. I wasn’t happy with his character, so I tweaked it and changed some things, like his reaction to certain events and people. Then I found a better name that fit. You will have your own way of plugging away through this process. That’s good. Make it your own and happy creating.

Social

Being Bold

Posted on May 5, 2020 by L. M. Montes

Fear is the Killer. How many times have you told yourself you wanted to do something but never followed through with those ideas? Why did’t you follow through? Was it lack of funds, lack of support from family or friends, was it fear? I understand the lack of funds thing. If you don’t have the money, don’t break the bank because you’ll only get yourself into trouble. However, lack of support or fear are just space takers. They take up space. TOO much. I get it though. The thing is those two factors keep us back. What if you were meant to do something but were too afraid to do it? The excitement is there, the motivation is there. But then the fear creeps in and steals your thunder. DON’T LET IT. Oh, and don’t get me started on lack of support from those around you. They can’t have it themselves, so they have to negate your plans because they don’t want you too be any more successful then themselves. AHA! The old misery loves company routine. Push it away, far far away.

Be Bold. Going against the grain and outside of your comfort zone is hard to do. We think too much and when we do that we end up stopping ourselves. Don’t stop yourself. Be bold. Be very bold, and just do it. Step out and do what you need to do to. I used to teach, and I remember back when I first made that decision, I was scared. I didn’t like getting up in front of people. At all. But I wanted to be a teacher, so I did it anyway. Yes, it was scary, but the more I did it the less scared I was and the more confident I became. There were individuals who didn’t think I could do it. I did it. It’s like walking into a storm. Face it head on, look straight at it, prepare yourself, and move forward keeping the end in sight.

Fiction

Watch The Triunix of Time

Posted on April 12, 2020 by L. M. Montes

Social

Relaxing

Posted on April 3, 2020 by L. M. Montes

What do you do to relax to get away from it all? Some people enjoy outdoor activities such as swimming, exercise, boating, fishing, hiking, traveling, sightseeing, just to name a few. I love doing all of those things, but what I LOVE most of all, what I enjoy most often above all other things to do, is writing. Yes, writing is my passion.

Why do I love it so much? When I was a kid, my teachers always complained to my mom that I was a daydreamer. Hahaha, well, they saw it as a detriment, but it wasn’t and isn’t. Even now I daydream, because that’s what writers do. So, for relaxation I write. As I’m writing, I can open my mind up to anything and everything and make it come to life (inside my head). It releases those endorphins, those feel good chemicals inside your brain that, when released, gives you that peaceful feeling of satisfaction.

There are other writerly activities that are just as fun. I keep a writer’s notebook for every novel I’m working on. If all I do is write in that notebook, that’s fine. It’s still progress. Sometimes I need a boost, so I’ll go for a walk. This is where I do much of my idea generating. Everyone has their idea generating avenues, that’s mine.

So, again I ask, what do you do for relaxation? I would love to hear all about.

Fiction

Book Trailer

Posted on March 11, 2020January 8, 2021 by L. M. Montes

Tora is a headstrong career driven woman who sets out to find the truth about her parents and discovers a family secret going back to the Magi. What is this secret?

Writing

Floating Words

Posted on March 4, 2020March 3, 2020 by L. M. Montes

Sometimes we all feel like we’re floating along. The wind is blowing but your boat is going nowhere. It’s stagnate. You put your oars in the water and stroke, but instead of moving along, you go in circles. Life is funny. At times we think there is nothing out there for us. You want to write a novel, short stories, and/or poetry, but you don’t know how to get started or how to expand on what you already have. I’ve been down that road. Let me tell you, I wanted to be an author, but I had so much to learn. The problem was I wanted it NOW. Well, life doesn’t happen that way. Some things are a process and believe me writing is a process. What I learned though over the years of writing my first book was that it isn’t necessarily the finished product that is the most important. It’s important, yes, but there is another aspect to it that is even more precious. It’s the journey, the writing you do everyday, the process itself, the getting from point A to point B in your manuscript/story that plays a certain kind of music in your insides. THAT is what matters most. The finished product, when you hold it in front of you, speaks volumes. You end up saying to yourself, “It was all worth every time consuming minute.”

Fiction

Writing Struggles

Posted on January 26, 2020January 26, 2020 by L. M. Montes

For fiction writers everywhere:

No matter where we are on our writing journey, there is something we all struggle with. Whether it’s one thing or a compilation of a few things, it’s there sticking up out of nowhere. Recently, one of my followers on Twitter posed this question. What do you struggle with in your writing? I couldn’t honestly answer this question because I don’t usually struggle with any one thing in particular, and what I struggle with varies at different points in my writing. What do you do with it? How do you work with it?

Sometimes the problem has to do with not knowing when you should use dialogue and when you shouldn’t. I don’t think there is any one right answer for this. I use dialogue when the story calls for it. When I am writing I get this ‘itch’. This ‘itch’ is a strong feeling dialogue is needed or description or exposition is called for. For me it’s a feeling of just knowing. This doesn’t mean I am right every time. I do go back and realize later that I need to cut back on something. That’s okay. It really is up to you as the author when you use a device and when you don’t. It’s your story.

Character arc is another big one. How are we going to show our protagonists growth from beginning to end? Yes. Yes. This is huge. To make the story and your character believable there needs to be growth in this character from beginning to end. What in the story itself causes your protagonist’s grow? The story movement depends on how your character acts, reacts, makes choices, etc… Are your characters afraid and unsure of themselves from beginning to end? I hope not. They may be apprehensive at the beginning, but by the end of the story they should be braver or brave enough to bring down the antagonist. Larry Brooks, in his book Story Engineering: Mastering the 6 Core Competencies of Successful Writing devotes a whole part to character. In fact it’s number 2 out of the 6 core competencies. I highly recommend this book.

Writing

The Writing WOW

Posted on January 2, 2020 by L. M. Montes

The summer of 2009 stands out to me because I looked out from the Navy Pier in Chicago, Illinois to see the above clipper ship. The crisp white of the sails and the clear blue sky brought forth that WOW feeling. Prior to that moment there was another WOW that stands out in my mind. It also involves a ship. It was the summer of 2002. We were vacationing in the east. We hit Gettysburg, Pennsylvania; Norfolk, Virginia; Washington D.C.; just to name a few. It was in Norfolk when I saw this aircraft carrier coming into port. The size alone commanded a presence. Sailors stood at attention on the outline of the entire flight deck around the ship. I wanted to be there. I wanted to know that feeling of standing on that deck. I didn’t know at the time that I would get that chance three years later. It was everything I thought it would be.

There are many moments in our lives that give us that feeling of WOW. Do you “collect” them? If you’re a writer you do. Use these moments in your writing. Have fun with them by embellishing them. One thing you can do is center a story around them. You are at the helm. Your mind wants to go on tangents. Let it. Let it run freely among the memories of your imagination.

Writing

Writing Stability

Posted on December 28, 2019 by L. M. Montes

So much goes on during the holidays, and it’s either good, bad, or in between. One year I was rushing around to get all of my Christmas shopping done. It was evening, so it was dark not to mention busy. The traffic standstill gave me a headache, but I had to get things done. I’m sure you can identify. I was in Toys’R’Us, which was crowded to the max, and it was my last stop. Dinner was next, so I was on the homeward stretch. I paid for my purchases, put my things in my car, and went to KFC to pick up my dinner. I was in the drive through waiting to give my order, when I reached for my purse and discovered it wasn’t there. Now, those of you who have discovered your purse or wallet missing while in public, can relate to this. My blood ran cold and my heart stopped. I still had over $400 in it. I got out of line and retraced my “steps”. I went back to Toys’R’Us to the exact parking spot I had just vacated. My cart was there but my purse wasn’t (I burst out into tears). However, there was a car in the spot I had been parked in and the people were still in it (A mom and her teenage daughter). I knocked on their window and inquired about my purse. THEY HAD IT!!!! What luck. They had my purse and were looking at my driver’s license to see whose purse it was. The woman gave me back my purse, and, upon seeing my distress, got out of her car and gave me a big hug.

Sometimes in our writing the story, process, characters and what have you can be just busy with so much “going on”. You can see the story in your head and it’s all coming at you at once. What does one do with such a rush of information that is out of order and disorganized? It almost seems as though you’ll forget this valuable information if you don’t rush to get it down. All I can say is, RELAX. Take the information that is rushing through your head. Do a free write and get it all down on paper or computer screen, then go back and organize it. When you organize it, prioritize it. What piece of information, according to your project, should get more attention? Work from most important to least important.

What do I mean by importance? All of your story elements are important and the importance of each depends on what you are working on each day, so this will change daily. Those of you who like to write by the seat of your pants have your own way of staying organized without planning ahead. Those of you who plan everything out in advance will do just that. Every writer’s process for writing is different, which is why I’m not going into detail here. I will say this though, what I do is keep a binder with dividers. Some sections are identified according what the story is.

In a nutshell don’t let the bombardment of your story fluster you. Take it in. Inhale it. Relax and place the information where you want it.