The Selling Point

     I've always known that a book needs a selling point, something about it that grabs a reader's attention, an editor's attention. It's the hook, the infamous hook. Sometimes the idea can be difficult to grasp and hold onto. I get it...write a sentence, a paragraph, a page, that snares the imagination. Sometimes it takes something else to put things in perspective for me. I've been house hunting, which I've come to hate. The market is changing and my price range is highly competitive. A house I like usually already has an accepted offer, but as I trudge through real estate, new homes filter into the market. I've looked at some that were awful, some with potential, one I fell in love with (but someone else made his offer just a hair before I did!). I learned that homes need a selling point. The bedrooms might be a little on the small side, the kitchen might need to be updated, but the neighborhood and the fenced in backyard grabs my attention and I make an offer. What sells me on a home got me thinking about what sells a book. A book might not have the greatest prose, but the story rocks. Or a story is a little slow, but the characters make up for it. Nothing can be perfect to everyone. But there has to be something about the book that sells it. Know your selling point, your strength, and use it.

Character Perception

     We all see the world through different eyes. Each experience made is different for each person. People grow up differently, culture, religion, parental guidance, the sway of peer pressure, nationality, ethnicity, race.... The same is for the characters we create for our books. Perception can affect behavior, make people behave in ways they don't even understand. Perception creates perspective.
     When creating characters I think it's important to know where their perceptions stem from. You don't have to explain it to your reader, but you can show it in their behavior, the way they respond to other characters, to challenges. As a writer if you know a character, who could be a supporting character or a main, grew up with an abusive parent, they might perceive violence differently than someone who grew up in a loving family. Your character's perception can define the way they look at the conflict, how they decide they want to overcome it.
     Perception can create tone in characters, in their voices, their body language. It can manipulate the way they order a meal, a glass of wine.
     This reminds me of a friend of mine. She's always enjoyed wine, but within the last few years I noticed she's been drinking more of it, as if it distinguishes her more than her usual Jack. Anyways, she went through a phase where she drank Lambrusco, a sweet red wine that's about $7 a bottle. She enjoyed it, even ordered it at restaurants. Then a year ago she got a job at a winery. The owner imports all his grapes from France. He makes several different kinds of wine, shares his expensive collection with friends and colleagues. She learned much about wine, it's process, the culture of it. I have to smile at this. A few months ago I made a statement that a nice bottle Lambrusco sounded good. She shot me an almost disgusted look and said, "We've got to teach you about wine."

The Human Condition and All Its' Experience (as we write)

     When I write I try to create characters that feel real. I assume this is every writer's motivation. As writers we want our characters to mirror people, not just empty unrealistic templates. We want to dive deep, sift through our own souls and catch what may feel real to our readers, to ourselves. As humans we feel a multitude of emotion. We often act predictable. We often act unpredictable. We are unique, yet the same. It's a balance of projection, a responsibility to ourselves, to our characters, and to those who enjoy them.