Writer Series: Characters, Emotion and Viewpoint by Nancy Kress

Let’s be honest. We are all striving to improve our writing with varied results.  Unfortunately, our desire and efforts are not always the key that unlocks the door to progress.  The real trick of it is to sift the pearls from the muck, so you aren’t wasting your precious, limited time (and money) on something pretty useless, and this is where I am trying to come in.  I am willing to use my precious and limited time to try and help.  Not only to improve my own writing, because, frankly, I need it, but also to do a little something for my fellow writer and seeker of betterment in the process.  And my first offering is from the Write Great Fiction series by Writer’s Digest; Characters, Emotion and Viewpoint: Techniques and exercises for crafting dynamic characters and effective viewpoints by Nancy Kress.

From the very beginning I knew Characters, Emotions and Viewpoint was well worth my time.  It was the kind of book that made me want to get a highlighter and dust off my old college study habits.  It helped bring me back to the important basics of character creation and their part in fleshing out the plot to build a story, while also introducing some ideas I never gave enough consideration to and some that were completely new.  I am not a classically trained writer.  My highly decorative degree in History, while useful in many respects, did not fully prepare me for my heart’s pursuit and so I am working at filling in the gaps.  Thankfully, books like Nancy Kress’ are helping me out. 

Nancy Kress is obviously well acquainted with the material from a teacher’s point of view, but she also gives the impression of a writer who has been in the trenches and managed to soldier on. This book is broken down into easily digestible bits, but not dumbed down to the point of boredom.  I found it very engaging, which took a lot of pressure off me as a reader.  Because, let’s face it, no matter how much good information a book has, if it can’t keep your attention, you will never get through it or hate every moment you sacrifice to it until the blissful release of finishing the last page. 

Never did I feel adrift during my reading.  Kress was always thorough enough that I left each section feeling like I really understood what she was saying.  The writing is concise; good at not only telling you what is needed and why, but how to apply the principles as well.  Kress gives relatable real-life examples, using well-known books and authors to illustrate her points, adding legitimacy to what she is telling and showing.  The chapter recaps, exercises – which help with skill building and out of the box thinking – and, finally, the checklist bring home her message in different ways forcing even me, which is never a small feat, to really pay attention. 

This is material that deserves to be absorbed and digested, not just motored through.  I took a break after each chapter to think on things, which slowed down my reading considerably, but hopefully to good effect.  So understand before you start that while you could get through it in an afternoon, decide whether or not you should get through it quickly and how you can best receive the full benefit.  Personally, I put it on an easy-to-get-to shelf so I can reread it again in the near future and reinforce the good habits I’m trying to instill in my writing.

Good information from a well-written source is fantastic, but I personally find it even more reassuring when my “authority” has the credentials to back them up.  When reading any material like this, used as an educational tool and not merely opinions, my college training and delightfully vivid Professor Sarasohn taught me a little investigation into the author is a good way to legitimize the work.  A quick peek at Nancy Kess’ author’s page and at her website (http://www.sff.net/people/nankress/) for even more updated information really helped fill in the pieces regarding her fitness to write this book.  Nancy Kress is an international author publishing 22 books, has won two Nebulas and a Hugo and is the WRITER’S DIGEST magazine, “Fiction” columnist.  She also regularly teaches a workshop in Maryland.  I would say she definitely qualifies as an authority.

Published in 2005, Characters, Emotions and Viewpoint is new enough  to be very relevant, but old enough to find at a reasonable price on Amazon.com, Walmart.com or even Powells.com with a variety of new and used editions. I am positively in favor of buying this book and keeping it as part of your personal writing library, but, as always, borrowing it from the library before purchasing it to make sure you are getting what you need is never a bad idea.  

If you are tired of disappointing, lackluster and maybe just so-so characters Characters, Emotion and Viewpoint can help make them a potent force - characters that not only serve their purpose, but also help breathe life into your plot.