Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Quirky Writing

Tip of the Day: last week we posted cover photos, just wanted to briefly mention that I agree with Tina. I like covers that are fun and light, probably since that's the time of books I enjoy. And since the cover should give a good idea of the book type, that's probably why I'm drawn to those covers. Our library had a used books sale last week and all I needed to look for was a pink spine label and I figured I'd like the book!

This week we are talking about writing quirks. You know those weird things we tend to do while writing: use the word smile 50 times in two pages, give all our characters one blue eye and one blown eye, etc.

For me, my writing quirks often aren't deliberate. But there are a few things over the years that I've discovered from book to book, just by coincidence.

1.) I love main character's names that are named after cities. I've had a London, Aberdeen, Alexandria, and even an Allegan, named after a city in Michigan that has several antique stores.

2.) Further more, I like characters who have shortened names: Lon, Deen, Lexi, and Ally (for example).

3.) My characters constantly smile, walk towards things, and argue with others.

4.) My books often take place near water. Though I never grew up near water myself. But the water rarely plays an integral role in the plot.

5.) I LOVE bad boy love interests. (Though this one wasn't a surprise for me).

So what about you, is there any trends you've found from book to book. That you didn't realize you were doing at first.

--Emily

3 comments:

Jennifer Hoffine said...

It's interesting to see the unintentional patterns emerge from book to book...It took me four books to realize that my protags always "play the field" a little(as we called it)...not a love triangle, per say, but there's always a time when she feels the need to explore her options before she figures out who's right for her...not sure if that says more about me or what I want to say to teens.

Jennifer R. Hubbard said...

I usually have bodies of water playing an important part in the plot, too!

Andrea Mack said...

My books always seem to involve issues with parents...not sure if that's just because I write MG (because there were no real issues with my parents when I was a kid).