Blog Chain---This Hurts Me More Than It Hurts You....Okay, Not Really
Well, kiddies, it's another fine day for a Blog Chain and this time the topic belongs to yours truly...hehe...(note to self: find evil laugh) ...and honestly, while the last few chains have been fun, they've been pretty safe. Elana covered what you do to get out of a writing funk, and Terri came after to ask if you've ever stepped back from writing...and what made you step forward again. Good topics. Fun topics. But if you know me at all, you know I like my fun a little more...shall we say, dark?
So come one, come all, step right up! Don't be afraid! Give in to the darkness, reveal your guilty pleasures, the ones you hide in your darkest of hearts. Pay a sixpense, slide behind the curtain and let's discuss....
I found this image over a month ago and I've been hording it to myself ever since, waiting for the glorious blog o' wheel to come 'round back to me. Sometimes, I'd click the link late at night and just burst into giggles. Two reasons for that...A. I'm generally overcaffinated and more than partially insane after midnight and B. I kept imagining the look of complete horror on the faces of some of my fellow blog chainers. These girls are nice...sweet...moms and teachers and doctors! And not only do I love to make them squirm...I'm hoping to make them stretch.
Everyone tortures their characters. One of the easiest ways to show a character's depth is to get them into some kind of trouble. If I've gone through drama with an MC and I know how they're likely to react next time, I begin to see deeper layers to their personality. Do they fight? Stand up for themself? Do they curl up in a ball and pray? Amping up the stakes by throwing in a Big Horrible reveals so much about a person. Plus? Let's face it...long day at work and then Granny in a Volvo cuts you off on the way home and the store is OUT OF HERSHEYS and... Everyone needs to let off a little steam. And not only is it easy to take it out on your characters, but there's the side effect that it usually improves your story. Splitting up the happy couple? Ex-boyfriend shows up JUST as the hero is about to kiss the heroine? ...the HERO'S ex-boyfriend? Conflict is good. Conflict keeps the reader turning pages.
So Blogchain, (and others) show me your dark side...What do you do to amp up the conflict? What pins do you stick in the little voodoo dolls? How do you torture your characters???
Leave your comments below! You can see what Heather has to say here on the 16th and I'll answer the question myself when I post the wrap up when the chain ends.
Picture courtesy of Secret Vespers.