Writing Workshop—Getting into Character

Character Building Exercise: A monologue of one of the main characters in my upcoming space opera, Where Pirates Go to Die.


Naria: Captain of the Tigerlily

The rumors are true. I have no man to complete me, nor a child to fulfill me. That is probably why I turned to pirating. If you believe that, I also have a moonshare to sell you. No one is going to tell me what kind of life a woman is supposed to lead. I bought the Tigerlily. I restored her and enhanced her. I also handpicked her crew—the best of the best at what they do.

You think I care what anyone thinks about how I live my life? I am the Captain of this ship. My ship, my rules. Don’t like them? There’s the airlock.

My ship is my pride and joy. Yes, it’s old, but she’s modified. What is so special about the Tigerlily? First, it has a hematite alloy bonded to the titanium hull. Gives her that pretty black sheen. Second, it can maneuver out of the Flyers’ laser snare. How? Like I’m going to tell you. Her secrets are my secrets. I’ll take them to my grave.

Why did I become a pirate? Well, it wasn’t because I woke up one day and realized how crappy my life was. I relish in the thrill of the heist. There is a certain satisfaction when your laser hits just the right spot to drop a man. Or woman. Though I do not rely solely on laser weaponry. I have a soft spot for the archaic weapons. Gripping the handle of a sharp piece of cold metal is an art form. When it rubs against warm flesh, veins shake nervously.

You don’t approve? My methods are very effective. Oh, you think I should have a civilized hobby. Perhaps gem setting? I do love the feel of jewels dripping from my fingertips. Maybe you meant something more mundane like robot coding. Where’s the fun in that? Besides, it doesn’t earn anyone an asteroid load of lons.

Lons rule the Galaxy. The more lons the better. Sure, a sextillion of zeros in your bank account won’t keep you warm in the vacuum of space, but it keeps the engines running.

I know that judgmental look. You want to judge me? You can do it with a laser thrust up your final frontier.

Comments

  1. KCMay 31, 2013 at 8:51 AM

    I never thought of writing a monologue to connect with the character. I'm stuck over one character in particular now, so maybe I'll try this. I even wrote him a letter, and that actually helped. Thanks for the advice- you have a lovely site. Look forward to hearing more from you!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. IE CastellanoMay 31, 2013 at 3:47 PM

      Thank you so much. I hope it works for you. Getting into a character's head can really help propel a storyline. It also helps me to keep out any uncharacteristic lines or actions.

      Delete
  2. Robert T.May 31, 2013 at 10:44 AM

    Nice! Is this to an upcoming title? This piece makes me want to read more.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. IE CastellanoMay 31, 2013 at 3:54 PM

      Thank you. Yes, this is related to a current work in progress. I am having a lot of fun with it. With characters like this, how can I not?

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What I Learned from My Debut Novel

My first published novel started with notes about a man learning about a woman who lived a world in-between reality and fantasy. Before I knew it, I had names, places, a plotline and subplots. I never intended to write a series. Yet, I had. My initial draft was penned on unlined printer paper. When I finally sat to type it, I needed to learn how to format a manuscript. Title page, slug lines, double spaced true type font all stuffed into a tidy package. The easy part was over. I had to write query letters to agents who I thought might want to represent my baby. The hook was written and re-written. My author bio drove me crazy. The synopsis haunted me. Still, I wrote them. And out they went. I waited and I waited. Some had the courtesy of sending a reply, even if it was a canned one. Many did not. The noes poured in. The most heart wrenching replies were the ones who said that they enjoyed my work but, it wasn’t a good fit for them. Onwards I pressed. I believed in my wo...
Read more

A Little Bit of Hope with a Side of Griffin

Image
Griffin: Artist's Rendition Epic fantasy has become my sole writing style this year.  My focus: The fifth book of the World In-between Series, Hope .   Beginning ten years after the end of Whispers (Book 4), the story centers around the magical struggles of Berty’s seventeen-year-old niece.  Since she first crossed the portal ten years ago, Hope straddled two worlds—the mundane modern world and the magical world between the portals.  As a Wood Listener, she struggles to find her place in life.  Unbeknownst to her uncle, her parents, and her innocent friend trailing her, Hope stoles into the other side only to find her place fraught with danger. For your reading pleasure: a sneak peek of Chapter 2. Hope climbed the stairs of the quiet outpost.  She figured that not many guards occupied a peacetime outpost, especially one out in the middle of nowhere.  The second door on the left sat open.  She knocked. “Yes?” came from beh...
Read more

Learning from a Book Review

I offer to review books .  Usually, I will post my review here and on Goodreads as well as post links to buy the book that I got to read.  However, every once and a while, I read a book that won’t get a good review.  This is that book. This book is the author’s first book, so I will not mention the title nor the author’s name.  I have emailed the author about my poor review before posting, and actually have agreed to review the sequel.  With that said, let’s talk about the book and its issues. The premise of the book is that the main character, whose name I can’t remember (problem), becomes a masked hero to save her city from a destructive alien.  The concept is great.  The execution has major issues.  I am going to put my editor’s hat on to critique the issues in this book. The first issue is the prologue.  It could have been a chapter on its own.  I personally feel that the book should have opened on its main character.  The openi...
Read more