Monday, December 15, 2014

Many Foundations by Linda S. Glaz



We all have a foundation around our homes, hopefully a strong one. Without it, the house can’t stand.
And we are given foundations during our childhoods, some good, some lacking in sound principles. The results become evident as we go into the world as adults and interact with one another.
A strong spiritual foundation serves to create leaders on many levels without which our society grows stronger or weaker. Our hearts and action left empty or full.
While we recognize such obvious and necessary building blocks, we often miss the mark when it comes to our writing.
Our writing?!? Absolutely. There is fundamental structure and foundation to each story that is written. How great would a romance novel be without a girl and a guy? Without conflict? Without a kiss? Would we care about the romance if we weren’t given details about the reasoning behind our characters’ personal turmoil? If they had no motivation for their actions?
How about a serial killer who simply woke up one day and decided to kill 20 people? No reason, no provocation, just a switch that goes off from no motive whatsoever. Would he be believable?
Could you get caught up in a whodunit without a body?
So ask yourself with the start of each new novel: is there a strong foundation for your story? Do your characters have motivation for their actions? Is the plot built on solid ground? Will your reader believe what you’ve written?

6 comments:

Davalyn Spencer said...

Sometimes I have to go back and shore up my literary foundations!

Linda Glaz said...

I hear you. After the year we've had with our house and it's foundation, I've had to go back and work on ALL of mine.

Diana Flegal said...

As a reader I definitely have to believe the characters. If not, I quit reading. Many a submission that crosses my desk gets a rejection because of the things you have mentioned here.

Linda Glaz said...

Amen, Diana. So have I. And with writing that could have been stellar.

Karla Akins said...

Great analogy, Linda! Thanks for the visual.

Linda Glaz said...

While fighting with the company that did our foundation work, the idea came easily when I realized how a poor job causes problems, in all foundation areas of our lives. Thanks, Karla.