Interesting Posts

A new blog is coming to town! Hosted by four fabulous writers, MuseTracks is going to cover all sorts of delicious writing tools, tips and probably gossip. LOL They just started so maybe you can pop over and check them out.

Interested in a manuscript critique? Story Sensei is offering a discount on full critiques. Camy Tang is a good author and very knowledgeable about the craft. Her synopsis class was also super helpful.

Then Susan Reinhardt has an interview with Linore Burkard. This author is especially interesting because she self-pubbed her first book and it was so good that a Harvest House editor asked to publish it. At least, that's what I've heard. :-)

Recently, I read a bestseller that, while interesting, contained no character arc for the heroine. NONE. Then I found this excellent post by Amy Deardon and thought you guys might be interested in reading it. She brings up popular characters who are also static. (unchanging)

What do you guys think? Do you agree? Have you read or watched anything lately in which the protagonist has NO character arc? If so, what do you think kept you interested in the story?

Comments

Kristen Painter said…
I'm off to run errands but I'm going to read Amy's post when I get back. Sounds interesting, thanks for sharing!
December 18, 2008 at 8:16 AM
Terri Tiffany said…
I loved what Amy had to say!! Made me really think about my new characters. Thanks! And don't you LOVE our weather now??
December 18, 2008 at 9:55 AM
Jessica Nelson said…
Hey Kristen,
It's nice to have you back from your trip. :-) Hope you're settling in okay. I thought Amy's article was interesting because I'd never thought of that before.
December 18, 2008 at 12:49 PM
Jessica Nelson said…
Terri,
I do love the weather. It's gorgeous!
December 18, 2008 at 12:49 PM
Sarah said…
Amy's post was great. I must say, I'll never be able to look at those three stories the same way again. I guess I never paid that close attention to the main characters.

That's interesting about Linore Burkard. I enjoyed Susan's interview, but I had no idea she self-published her first book before getting an offer from Harvest House. It must be good, because that almost never happens!
December 18, 2008 at 2:03 PM
Julie Dao said…
Hi Jessica! Thanks for your comment on my blog :) I think you make a great point about protagonists not really having a character arc. Sometimes I feel like the author is too focused on pushing the plot forward and they forget that without the character, there is no real story! Thanks so much for sharing the Musetracks blog, I will definitely have to check that out. :)
December 18, 2008 at 2:37 PM
Jessica Nelson said…
Hi Sarah,
Yeah, Amy's post was intriguing. Definitely made me think about stuff.
About Linore, now I really want to read her book. It's just such a cool journey she had, that like you said, the book must be fabulous.
December 18, 2008 at 3:09 PM
Jessica Nelson said…
Hi Julie,
Yeah, I try to remind myself because I think sometimes I leave my characters in the dust too. LOL
I'm really excited about MuseTracks. The people who started it are SO nice and very funny. I think they're going to post some great stuff. :-)
December 18, 2008 at 3:10 PM
Susan Macatee said…
Hi, Jessica! Thanks for visiting my blog. Thought I'd return the favor. You have a really nice and informative blog. I don't recall reading anything where the characters didn't go through changes, but I mostly read romance and it seems to be essential for romance heroes and heroines to grow and change.
December 18, 2008 at 5:38 PM
Jessica Nelson said…
Thank you Susan. :-) Yeah, most of the time authors do well with the arc. I guess that's why it's so weird to see a popular movie/book without one.
December 19, 2008 at 7:18 AM
Karen Hossink said…
I don't even know what character arc is...Can you tell I'm not a novel writer??? *grin*
As for the blog counter, it's super easy. I know there are several "out there" but I use www.statcounter.com. It's free and it's easy. Just go there, register, and it will lead you through the set up.
December 19, 2008 at 1:11 PM
Jessica Nelson said…
Thanks Karen! :-)
The character arc is just how the character grows during the story.
December 20, 2008 at 6:44 AM
Janna Leadbetter said…
Great links! Thanks for sharing them. And I like your blog, too. Mind if I follow you for awhile? ;)
December 20, 2008 at 8:13 AM
Jessica Nelson said…
Hey Janna,
Thanks! I thought they were good too. :-)
LOL
Follow away, though I'm not sure I'll lead very well. Snort.
December 20, 2008 at 12:54 PM
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