Is Your Character Two-Dimensional?

My brother, in his own comical way, once commented on how annoying it was when he ran into people he knew at public places. He might see someone from church or school at the store and think, "Why are you here? I thought you didn't have a life. You just go to church or school; you're not supposed to do anything else!" Of course, he was joking. Everyone has a life beyond whatever simple title we may know them by... "classmate", "store clerk", "church attender", etc. Even if we can't see the rest of their life, we know it exists. Why? Because no real human is "two-dimensional"! God has gifted each of us with individual traits, talents, personalities, and life situations that are unique from anyone else. Guess what? Your characters shouldn't be two-dimensional, either - or else your readers will have trouble seeing them as real people.

According to changingminds.org, a two-dimensional character is "simple and unexplained". It goes on to say that two-dimensional characters are sometimes okay if they're minor characters (the waiter at a restaurant, someone we pass in the street), but if major characters are 2D, the story will fall flat. Instead, major characters need to be three-dimensional. The website continues to say that three-dimensional characters are "... believable. They appear as credible people who you might know. Like humans, they have flaws and failings. They are individual and also seek to relate to others."

So, how do you make your characters three-dimensional? My personal suggestion is to ask yourself a series of questions about them; comparing them to real people and seeing how they contrast. Here are some examples:

* What does my character fear?

* What are his hopes?

* Does he have a childhood memory that shapes who he is today?

* Does he have any secret talents?

* What is the most important thing in the world to him?

* Who is he closest to?

* Who is his worst enemy?

Do you have any other useful questions that could be added to this list, or other hints for making three-dimensional characters? Please comment your thoughts!

Tim Hawkins Video: The Government Can

This is the newest from the hilarious Christian comedian, Tim Hawkins.

The Flame Shall Not Scorch You...

If you read the welcome message on my blog's sidebar, (it's rather hard to miss), you may have noticed that I'm in the process of writing a fantasy novel that I plan on publishing when I finish. It will be my first published book, so I'm excited to see how it will go!

I won't release the title yet, (partially because I'm still not entirely certain what it will be), but I will provide updates every so often on my progress. I'll let you know when my book gets closer to being finished. Right now, I'm almost 1/4 of the way to my wordcount goal: 100,000 words. The wordcount is presently 24,058. If you wish, you can watch my progress on the sidebar.

Speaking of progress, I'm almost done with my 50-book reading goal. I only have one more book to read... but it's a whopper (562 pages!), so I'll probably be working on that one for a while!

And finally, a word of encouragement from Isaiah 43:2: "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned. Nor shall the flame scorch you." This is God's promise to us. Thank You, Lord!

Cool Contest!

I'd like to point you in the direction of Christian author Wayne Thomas Batson's blog, www.enterthedoorwithin.blogspot.com, for a new contest about the book he coauthored with Christopher Hopper. Prizes can include autographed copies of their new book, Curse of the Spider King; free books by the authors for the rest of your life; and even meeting the authors face-to-face! Click on this link to read about the contest on Wayne Thomas Batson's blog: http://enterthedoorwithin.blogspot.com/2009/09/biggest-contest-in-history-of-men-and.html

Or, click on this link to read about it on Christopher Hopper's blog: http://www.christopherhopper.com/2009/09/tribe-building-begins/

~*~*~*~

Other books by the authors include... (click on them to see the books on Amazon)
Rise of the Dibor by Christopher Hopper
The Lion Vrie by Christopher Hopper
Athera's Dawn by Christopher Hopper (not on Amazon yet)
The Door Within by Wayne Thomas Batson
The Rise of the Wyrm Lord by Wayne Thomas Batson
The Final Storm by Wayne Thomas Batson
Isle of Swords by Wayne Thomas Batson
Isle of Fire by Wayne Thomas Batson

(Read my review on Wayne Thomas Batson's best-selling trilogy, The Door Within, by clicking HERE.)

Book Review: The Binding of the Blade Series

You may remember that a few months ago, I began writing a series of book reviews on some of my favorite books. I have been distracted for a number of reasons since then, and was unable to continue; but I will now continue the series.

Recently I finished The Binding of the Blade series by L. B. Graham - which today's review will be about - and decided to rank it among my favorites. There were many things about the series that were excellently done, although there were a few things I didn't like, as well. Scroll down for my review...

"After one thousand years, Malek emerges to unleash the full force of his army..."

The Christian fantasy series, Binding of the Blade, is a story full of depth, of prophecies from long ago being fulfilled, and of allegorical themes that brilliantly parallel the Bible. Tolkien fans will love the rich history of the world ofKirthanin, and Christians will enjoy reading good fantasy that is packed with messages of our faith.

I thought the characters were great, and I became very emotionally wrapped up in the characters' stories, backgrounds, and well-developed personalities. The author is talented at creating vivid images, but I found his descriptions rather long. They were quiteelaborate and specific, and that did a lot to slow the action. However, once I got used to them, they were worth reading through.

The series had good adventure, and shocking twists to the story that I would have never expected; friends that become the worst of foes, enemies that become dearest friends, characters with stunning hidden identities, and surprising turns in the plot of events. The last three books were difficult to put down, and I devoured them in a few days each.

However, the first two books were considerably slow-paced (the first one more than all of them). Nonetheless: DO NOT skip the first book!! If you do, you'll hardly appreciate the others half as much. And believe me, they're well-worth getting to. The ending to the series was so good, I nearly cried!

If you like fantasy, adventure, or fiction with strong Biblical themes, pick up The Binding of the Blade series!

www.bindingoftheblade.com

See the series on Amazon: Book 1: Beyond the Summerland, Book 2: Bringer of Storms, Book 3: Shadow in the Deep, Book 4: Father of Dragons, and Book 5: All My Holy Mountain.

www.lbgraham.com/blog/lb.php (author's blog)

Pausing to Remember...

It's been eight years, today, since the Terrorist attacks on 9/11. Flags are at half-mast to remember the three thousand lives lost on that horrific day. Read my thoughts from last year about that day by clicking here: "Recalling 9-11".

"Angry Mob": What the Media's Telling You, and What's Actually True

"Let's be very honest about what this is about. It's not about bashing Democrats, it's not about taxes, they have no idea what the Boston tea party was about, they don't know their history at all. This is about hating a black man in the White House. This is racism straight up. That is nothing but a bunch of tea-bagging rednecks."

Actress Janeane Garofalo said this on MSNBC about those who went to "tea parties" in April. It seems the media has favored labeling these people, who are also becoming known for their appearances at town hall meetings, with all sorts of titles: right-wing extremists, racists, and angry mobs. A DNC commercial says these people are organized by "desperate Republicans and their well funded allies... Their goal? Destroy President Obama and stop the change Americans voted for so overwhelmingly in November." The commercial continues, "This mob activity is straight from the playbook of high-level Republican political operatives. They have no plan for moving our country forward, so they've called out the mob."

CNN correspondent Susan Roesgen also called the tea parties "anti-government" and "not exactly family viewing".

This is what the media is telling you. But what's actually true? First of all, we should hear from some of the people who actually attended the tea parties and town hall meetings. What are their motives? Are they being supported by the Republican party, as the media would have you believe, in order to get back at the Democrats for winning the election? Are they all white racists who hate the president?

One conservative who attended the tea parties, Glenn Beck, said on his talk show on August 5:

"I don't know about you, but I don't have much time in my day to answer a call from the GOP, get up off my couch, leave my family for a day, to stand outside in the summer heat and rain pretending to be angry.

I really am angry!"

Ask any of the protesters and you will find that they are not Republicans at war with the Democrats. Some of them are Democrats. Most of them are Independents. Many think the Republicans are just as bad, if not worse, than the Democrats. It is far from a party vs. party affair. Rather, this is a movement among the American people to stop the change in our government before we become less of a democracy, and more of a socialist nation.

The media often talks about the "violence" in town hall meetings and tea parties, but they don't have a single piece of evidence; a single story, or a second of footage, that shows any violence whatsoever. If they can produce one, (one that happened before I wrote this article would be preferable), I'll gladly stand corrected. But it seems they are only vaguely mentioning these "violent" occasions, in order to turn the public against whoever would disagree with the presently liberal government.

In fact, these peaceful gatherings are perfectly constitutional. The first amendment gives us the right to assemble in protest of the government: "Congress shall make no law... prohibiting... the right of the people peaceable to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

Was there any violence during the tea parties? No. What they did was completely American.

I like what former President Bush once said: "I get protested all the time. The great thing about the country is it's a place that's so free that people can protest. They can protest the president and did."

Others who were on the opposite end of the political spectrum seemed to agree. Hillary Clinton said, "I am sick and tired of people who say that if you debate and you disagree with this administration, somehow you're not patriotic. And we should stand up and say we are America, that we have a right to debate and disagree with any administration." Oh, really? What a double-standard. Now that the administration is liberal, anyone who "debates and disagrees" with it is considered the bad guy. Hillary Clinton was right; we should have the right to debate and disagree with any administration, republican or democrat, right or left. That's what America is all about.

Now, there have also been some claims that the protesters are racists who hate President Obama. All I can say to that argument is I know many people who, although may not have attended any tea parties, do agree with them. I've also seen them talk on TV. In fact, I consider myself one of those people. I haven't come across a single one that was racist. I think that is a very unfair name to call us. Come on, we were all glad to see a black man finally in the White House; even if we disagreed with his values. We only wished the first black president had been one with our believes, so we wouldn't be labeled "racists" just for disagreeing with him.

And besides, black people attended the tea parties too. This has nothing to do with political parties, or with race. This has to do with the government going out of control.

This is a picture of the San Antonio tea party on tax day. Fox News estimated that more than 5,000 protesters flocked to that city alone; thousands more gathered across the country.

Click HERE to see more pictures of the tea parties throughout America, and judge for yourself whether they look like angry mobs to you.

Sources:
"Glenn Beck: Are You Part of the Ring-Wing Extremist Mob?" http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/198/28971/ (accessed 10 September, 2009)
"Glenn Beck: Hillary gaff" http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/198/29237/
(accessed 10 September, 2009)
"Triumphant Tea Parties" http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,516920,00.html (accessed 10 September, 2009)