4th in Series
Setting – Colorado
Independently Published (September 13, 2022)
Number of Pages: 310
Digital ASIN : B0B6DDSK75
Hello my readers and followers. I am once again hosting a guest to my blog. This time it is author, Lori Roberts Herbst. She has written and is currently touring her newest book, Photo Finish.
She is here to discuss character development for her books. If you would like to know more about her and/or purchase her books, the links are below this post.
Welcome Lori and take it away.
~Michelle, Reading Authors Network
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A group of journalism students recently interviewed me, one of whom asked me about creating characters. "How do you come up with them? Are they based on people from your life?"
The creative process has always fascinated me, so these were questions I'd considered many times as a reader. Every author is different, I'm sure, but this is how I invent the people who populate my books.
Sometimes, a character fills a need in a story line. It's as if I'm creating a puzzle piece in the shape of a hole in a pre-imagined picture. Mrs. Finney offers a good example. When I was writing Suitable for Framing, the first book in the Callie Cassidy Mystery series, I knew Callie needed a human helper, someone who wasn't what she seemed. A person began taking shape in my imagination—a quirky older woman, always dressed in shades of purple polyester and spouting philosophical axioms. An outsider might see her as benign and unassuming, but her unexpected past left her with...a certain skill set, as they say. When I created Mrs. Finney, I intended her to leave town after book one. Then I fell in love with her, and so did readers. Now, Mrs. Finney is in Rock Creek Village to stay.
Other characters come to life as personifications of certain traits I want to portray: narcissism, arrogance, vengeance, desperation. I build brand new people around these core qualities, always striving to keep the characters from becoming caricatures. Like twins Banner and Braden Ratliff, these people may start as a mere means to an end, but I add layers until they are three-dimensional. At least, that's the goal.
The inspiration for some characters springs from a conglomeration of actual humans I've known, but I'm not usually consciously aware of that. It's as if I'm rummaging around in a big box of acquaintances, past and present, and I snag someone who interests me. I'll pluck that person from the mental box and squeeze out their fascinating elements. Then I'll grab someone else and squeeze, then another person. At the end, I've given birth to a unique character.
Rarely do I base characters on real people in my life. Two exceptions would be Maggie and Butch Cassidy. Callie's mom and dad are patterned after my own parents, both of whom have passed away. Maggie carries my mother's dry wit, her unconditional love, and her sharp intellect. And when Butch rushes outside into the frigid, snowy weather to start his daughter's car for her, it's something my father would have done. These two characters serve as tributes and legacies.
Another question the journalism students asked is whether my protagonist, Callie Cassidy, is a fictionalized version of me. It's a tough question, and the answer isn't yes or no. They say write what you know, and to a degree, that's true of Callie. She has a journalism background, and I was a high-school journalism teacher for many years, including photography. While I never pursued Callie's career, I was familiar with the field. As far as personality, Callie and I share a few attributes. The prospect of exercise or healthy eating does not appeal to either of us, but we force ourselves into it—occasionally. We are both sometimes short on patience. We love a good mystery, though Callie is apt to get physically involved in solving it, while I would rather sit back and pull the strings from afar. Most important, we are both imperfect human beings striving to grow.
Writing mysteries is a multi-faceted endeavor that involves coming up with a believable plot, a satisfying resolution, a visual setting, and so many other elements. But for me, the most enjoyable part is creating characters that I would want to know in real life and some I'd run away from as fast as I could.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Lori Roberts Herbst, who writes the Callie Cassidy Mystery series, spent much of her life writing, editing, and psychoanalyzing. Through thirty years of teaching journalism, advising newspaper and yearbook staff, instructing budding photographers, and counseling teenagers, she still managed to hang on to a modicum of sanity. Her books have earned first-place CIBA awards in the Murder and Mayhem division. She currently serves as secretary of the Sisters in Crime North Dallas chapter and is a member of the Sisters in Crime Guppies and the Mystery Writers of America.
Author Links:
Website: https://www.lorirobertsherbst.com
Purchase Link – Amazon
3 comments:
Thank you for hosting me! Happy to answer any questions!
—Lori
Thank you for hosting me! Happy to answer any questions!—Lori
I learned that this is the 4th book in this series
Carolsue Ezovski
digicats {at} sbcglobal {dot} net
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