tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post6284680826971646720..comments2024-01-24T05:13:06.164-08:00Comments on Not Your Usual Suspects: Theme BraidingSusanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286314155783213006noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-45761094670226132322012-02-23T06:21:15.128-08:002012-02-23T06:21:15.128-08:00Great post! My lightbulb moments usually come when...Great post! My lightbulb moments usually come when I'm walking with the dogs. <br /><br />I use index cards. Hundreds of them. All colour coded. Needless to say, my office is a mess. :)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05938431508430656253noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-52190619847420103292012-02-22T19:13:56.809-08:002012-02-22T19:13:56.809-08:00I started out with index cards too, Anne Marie and...I started out with index cards too, Anne Marie and Marcelle, but then gravitated to using a sketch pad. I assign a color for each main character and then use purple for plot points. Since I'm a visual person, the colors alone will signal when a character has had too little or too much 'stage' time.Carol Stephensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00321447534996724331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-78785119829260344722012-02-22T19:09:45.086-08:002012-02-22T19:09:45.086-08:00Hmm, note to self. Get both JB and Elise wet erase...Hmm, note to self. Get both JB and Elise wet erase boards for the shower.Carol Stephensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00321447534996724331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-33029936329329383142012-02-22T19:08:34.322-08:002012-02-22T19:08:34.322-08:00A mother's love,nothing more powerful, Toni. T...A mother's love,nothing more powerful, Toni. Talk about built-in emotional stakes.Carol Stephensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00321447534996724331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-8228756467674393752012-02-22T19:01:10.110-08:002012-02-22T19:01:10.110-08:00Rita, you go! It's amazing how music can help ...Rita, you go! It's amazing how music can help with the creative process.Carol Stephensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00321447534996724331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-24371310545710738332012-02-22T18:59:04.924-08:002012-02-22T18:59:04.924-08:00Hmm, JB, may be a wet erase board for the shower
....Hmm, JB, may be a wet erase board for the shower<br />. hehehe. :) CarolCarol Stephensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00321447534996724331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-20959949419076868652012-02-22T18:58:11.918-08:002012-02-22T18:58:11.918-08:00Thanks, Maureen! There's never enuf room for a...Thanks, Maureen! There's never enuf room for all the boxes. :)Carol Stephensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00321447534996724331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-34054452410113152002012-02-22T12:07:25.733-08:002012-02-22T12:07:25.733-08:00Great post, Carol. I really like the idea of braid...Great post, Carol. I really like the idea of braiding. Anne Marie, I use index cards, too! It's a great visual cue for me to see at a glance if I've given enough weight to certain characters. Unfortunately, I never know the theme of my stories until *after* I've written them.Marcelle Dubéhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18164965676254630066noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-89581624725512037292012-02-22T11:51:55.466-08:002012-02-22T11:51:55.466-08:00Love your diagram, Carol. I can't think of an ...Love your diagram, Carol. I can't think of an "ah-ha" moment off the top of my head... (And now, Ah-ha's "Take On Me" is playing in my head LOL)... but I love your braiding idea. I've recently learned to put each scene on an index card, have them laid out by POVs, and I can see how each character progresses throughout the story, and where the gaps are. Hard to explain here, but it works for me! :)<br /><br />And Rita - I can hear the excitement and triumph in your post. Yay on tapping into that emotion. Sounds like it'll be a powerful story!Anne Marie Beckerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17603878676306179018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-41150988263747481892012-02-22T08:14:06.111-08:002012-02-22T08:14:06.111-08:00Terrific post, Carol. I think a lot in the shower-...Terrific post, Carol. I think a lot in the shower-hard to keep a pad and pencil there, but I do have the one by the bed. Sometimes a photo will give me an aha moment that solves a problem.Elise Warnerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12111849185666548945noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-84641629330491986452012-02-22T07:34:03.018-08:002012-02-22T07:34:03.018-08:00Yes! Great post. I've definitely had them and ...Yes! Great post. I've definitely had them and then figured out the theme of the book--even when it might not seem the theme of the book. In SEA OF SUSPICION the theme is very much about a mother's love--how that relationship affects everyone in the story. I love it when those things come together. :)Toni Andersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08348843511453338339noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-84228371083575978562012-02-22T06:25:30.825-08:002012-02-22T06:25:30.825-08:00Oh! And in this story how my H&H react to the ...Oh! And in this story how my H&H react to the death of two people is very important. I am soo excited to be over the emotion hurdle I can’t tell you.Ritahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09054306874904898496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-88873336941825957802012-02-22T06:21:30.601-08:002012-02-22T06:21:30.601-08:00I have one of those big easels in my office to wri...I have one of those big easels in my office to write crazy plots on. Mine isn’t nearly as neat as yours. <br />Certainly know what you are saying about one thing clicking. I have been having a terrible problem delivering the emotion I wanted in my story. This morning I decided I wouldn’t write first thing. I’d listen to music, something I haven’t been doing lately, and get some other stuff done. Choose some stuff I hadn’t listened to in a long time mixed with a new sound track. Six thirty this morning the words of second song gave me the emotion I’d been searching for. The third song was the icing on the cake. Why do I forget how powerful music is to me? Needless to say I’ve been layering in emotion all morning.Ritahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09054306874904898496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-21189310014815945222012-02-22T05:31:14.121-08:002012-02-22T05:31:14.121-08:00Great post, Carol!
I'm a fan of anyone who ca...Great post, Carol!<br /><br />I'm a fan of anyone who can weave those kinds of threads successfully.<br /><br />I tend to have my lightbulb moments when I'm in the shower...which is dangerous since water and electricity don't mix...JB Lynnhttp://jblynn.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7545210782126483136.post-73816537270970840812012-02-22T05:21:33.892-08:002012-02-22T05:21:33.892-08:00I'm not sure I had a light bulb moment, but I ...I'm not sure I had a light bulb moment, but I definitely have papers like yours all over the place. Charts that I keep squeezing extra boxes into. <br /><br />All I know is that after reading this post, I need to read your book, Carol!! :)Maureen A. Millerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16432964748852427405noreply@blogger.com