Linda
03-19-2008, 08:47 PM
For some time now, Felicia and I have been working on a piece of fiction, an historical play (outdoor drama) set in what is now Mecklenburg and Brunswick counties, VA, from about 1650 till 1730. It starts with two little girls growing up on the islands in the Roanoke near what's now Clarksville, where the Occoneechee Tutelo, Saponi and other allied Siouan tribes lived. It ends several generations later when the son of one of the girls dies at Fort Christanna.
We have been acquainting ourselves with a number of characters who will enliven this story. My schooling in this area taught me that to write good fiction you first must find your characters. If done right, it's something more akin to channelling than contriving. (And all writers, of course, hope to avoid being contrived.) If you know your characters really well, you then just need to sit back and they will write the story for you. If it's going well, that's how it should feel.
It feels good. I will be introducing some of these characters here. The date of these posts will serve as the date of copyright. Please do not reproduce without my permission, and without proper credits. Writing credits belong to Felicia Clary Cegelski, and me, Linda Keres Carter. Artwork by me, Linda Keres Carter.
To start, Fights Like a Bear will introduce himself.
We have been acquainting ourselves with a number of characters who will enliven this story. My schooling in this area taught me that to write good fiction you first must find your characters. If done right, it's something more akin to channelling than contriving. (And all writers, of course, hope to avoid being contrived.) If you know your characters really well, you then just need to sit back and they will write the story for you. If it's going well, that's how it should feel.
It feels good. I will be introducing some of these characters here. The date of these posts will serve as the date of copyright. Please do not reproduce without my permission, and without proper credits. Writing credits belong to Felicia Clary Cegelski, and me, Linda Keres Carter. Artwork by me, Linda Keres Carter.
To start, Fights Like a Bear will introduce himself.