Writing Matters
by Janice Seagraves
When we write, everything matters. From sentence structure to what our characters are eating and drinking.
It has to happen in the proper order or it won’t make sense. And if it doesn’t make sense then it won’t make sense to your readers.
I was watching Malibu Country with Reba McEntire (I love anything Reba is in). In a scene where she talked to her Mamma, I started watching what Reba was doing. Reba picked up a mug and added a tea bag. I could see that little square that hung over the edge of her mug. She added hot water. Walked around. Took a sip, then another. Talked some more, and drank more tea. Half her cup seemed to be empty, before she walked back to the counter and added sugar.
Do you see what was wrong here? Reba did something out of order. She’s such a pro that this struck me as odd.
One of the things I check for in the final read through of my writing, is what my characters are doing. Is it logical? Does it make sense? Is it in the right order? Are they adding the milk to the cereal, or cereal to the milk?
One of my daughter’s old PBS cartoons she used to watch had been really bad about doing things that defied logic. Characters would talk with a fork still in their mouths. Really? Wouldn’t that break their teeth?
Have you ever noticed something that happened in a book, movie or your child's cartoon that didn't make sense?
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Blurb: The sole survivor of a plane crash, Megan is alone on a deserted island in the Bahamas. Then she finds a nearly-drowned man. Another survivor, this time from a boat wreck. With only meager survival skill between them, will they survive these windswept shores and can they find love?
For the first time available as a trade paperback:
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And for the Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AS9NDNO
Janice Seagraves's website: http://janiceseagraves.org/
