Building Characters With Red Pandas

A lot of authors write about how their characters have a mind of their own, always choosing their own path and making a mess of the story the writer was trying to write. Most advise allowing the characters to carve out their own way, under the assumption that these characters (aka your subconscious) probably know what they're doing. I think most would also agree, however, that sometimes you need to whip your characters into shape.

I find that my characters, while still in my head, are a lot like red pandas. Adorable, spunky, and not entirely sure what's going on. I also think that red pandas can teach us a lot about building great characters, so here are some of my strategies for building characters with red pandas.

1. If you surprise your characters, sometimes they do funny things.

Red pandas are masters of the art of escape. They are great at climbing and swimming, and are energetic and curious. It's called personality.

Surprising your character can mean anything from introducing or killing off another character, throwing them into an unexpected situation, or telling them something about themselves that they didn't already know (I AM YOUR FATHER). When you do this you give yourself opportunities for more character development, and also learn something about them along the way.

2. Every character needs a challenge.

Red pandas do well in captivity, but in the wild, their survival is threatened by poaching, habitat degradation, and deforestation.

Even minor characters need a challenge, whether it's something as simple as figuring out how to open a door, or something as complicated as being in a relationship. Challenges are what make us who we are as humans, and challenges provide depth for even the most minor characters.

3. Give each character a thing.

Fun fact: red pandas aren't pandas. They actually have their own family, which is part of the superfamily that includes raccoons and weasels. 

Give each character a thing. This thing might be a tic of some sort, a weird piece of clothing that they wear, a turn of phrase that they frequently use, a common hand gesture, an unusual facial feature, or any other thing. This thing will help ground your character, both for you and the reader. Remember, your readers don't know your characters as well as you do, so having a thing can help them keep your characters from blurring together, particularly at the beginning of a piece. It can also give you something to ground yourself as you move forward with developing the character.

4. Where did they come from? Who did they used to be?

Red pandas live at an altitude between 7,200 and 15,700 feet. They like a mix of conifer and deciduous trees, and prefer temperatures between 50 and 75 degrees F. Don't we all. 

I have a history. You have a history. The only people who don't have a history are people in witness protection and/or criminals that have managed to erase their identities. And even then, they still have a history, it's just a secret. History can equal a variety of things: people you've known, things you've done, education, family, friends, old apartments, jobs, etc. Your character has one of these too. Now, you may not need to know every detail of a character's life, but you should have a general idea of who they are and what they've been through. These details come through in dialogue, actions, and decisions, no matter how small.

5. Something in the way you move.........*

Red pandas have shorter front legs. This gives them a waddling gait, which is absolutely adorable.

Every individual has a distinctive style of movement. This is something I am working on incorporating into my characters. Non-verbal communication is as important as dialogue. For example, a person that is defensive might cross their arms and hunch forward. But a person trying to make himself look bigger or more intimidating might also cross his arms, but he would lift his head and push his shoulders back. What unique patterns of movement do your characters have that differentiate them from each other and from characters in other books?

We all know that the characters in our books aren't real... but what if they are? This is one of my favourite thought experiments. What if every book I write, every story, every idea, creates a pocket universe where my characters live and breathe and exist? What if I'm creating a window to a parallel universe? What if the voices in my head are real? 

Then it is my responsibility to treat them as people. Give them voices. Don't sell them short. Give them the best representation of who they are that I can. After all, characters are people, too.

*From the Beatles

All images are from Giphy.

Writing in Winter

It's winter, and at least where I live, it's cooooold. And with the cold comes an onslaught of complaining about snow and cold and ice and dark, and general overall grumpiness. We all do it sometimes.

In fact, I am one of the few people I know that admits to liking winter, even when I'm wearing my gloves and coat at my desk. I love snow, for starters. It's so beautiful and deadly and mysterious. And I love any excuse to not take out the trash (it's snowing) or to stay in bed longer (it's too cold). There's a sort of coziness to being trapped in the house with the wind howling outside and water frozen into peculiar shapes raining down from the sky.

But the most notable thing about winter, is that although cold and dark, it offers something that other seasons do not: time. And as a writer, time is something I often do not make enough of.

This is me, Ariele the writer, grateful for an excuse to not go outside.

What shall I do instead, then? I ask myself.

Get something to drink?

Listen to some music?

Have some dinner?

But, once I've run out of excuses to procrastinate...

...I suddenly realize I have time to write. There is no reason to leave, no reason to go outside, no excuse to ignore the characters yelling at me inside my head.

During other seasons, I would have procrastinated and then run out of time due to the variety of extra activities I generally engage in - going to the beach, walking, gardening, etc. But in the winter (particularly January and February) there is nothing going on. So all I am left with is time to write.

That's not all winter offers though. When I stare out the window at the stark, cold, white and grey landscape, there is an emptiness just begging to be filled. There is a romance hiding among the snowflakes. There is inspiration, waiting to be had.

I guess that's what words are for.

Blog Tour Wrap-Up

Over the last few months I have been engaged in a blog tour to promote the launch of my most recent book, The Wounded World. During this time I have been hosted by a number of wonderful authors, and in return I would like to send a shout-out to each of them. Please check out their work, buy their books, and find them on social media. Buying an author's book might be the best gift you can give them this holiday season!

1. Zoe Cannon hosted the first blog on my tour, an excerpt of The Wounded World. Her YA dystopian Internal Series is interesting, intense, and dark. Check out her books if you like intrigue!
2. The second stop on my blog tour was to H.S. Stone's site, where he hosted a post about what would happen if my main characters had iPhones.  H.S. Stone is a young adult speculative fiction author with 5 novels out and several short stories.
3. Amy Rachiele's blog was my next stop! She hosted a post wherein my main character, Quin, goes on a date. Rachiele's mobster, alpha male romances are exciting, steamy, and fun.
4. Next up: J. Zachary Pike hosted a few fun facts about my universe! If you're looking for a light, humorous, science fiction read - go no further. Zack's Orconomics will have you chuckling all the way through.
5. K.W. Keith is another romance author, and she hosted a post about some of the technology I played with in my novels, including Doors and the eco-friendly house. Steamy and filled with intrigue, her books are sure to delight any romance fan.
6. Urban fantasy and zombies is how I would describe R.T. Donlon, author of Walls. He graciously hosted my post about why my main planet is shaped like a donut.
7. Being in love with words the way I am, my next post was about exactly that. I was hosted by contemporary romance and women's fiction author Susan Ann Wall during NH Writer's week.
8. A post identifying movie actors to play my characters was up next! Thanks to Sarah Dalton, YA speculative fiction author from South Yorkshire. Fun fact: neither of us drinks coffee!
9. Can't have too much back story, and so you'll find some of mine on author Jamie Campbell's blog. Jamie writes across several genres, including ghost stories, teenage love stories, and murder mysteries.
10. Finally, meet Katie French, who hosted my post on building planets. Check out her YA dystopian series The Breeders for a little post-Christmas fun (or not fun).

There you have it: all ten in a row. I am extremely grateful to each of these authors for kindly hosting me on their blog. Check out and buy their books, find them on social media, and tell them I sent you.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday!

How to Apologize for your Series not Being a Trilogy

Today I am proud to host Katie French, author of the series, The Breeders. 

Katie French imagined herself an author when her poem caught the eye of her second grade teacher. It was about birds and frankly, it wasn't very good, but it sparked a love of literature.  In middle school she spent her free time locked in her room, writing her first young adult novel. This thoroughly solidifying her status as a class-A nerd. She currently works as a high school English teacher, a job that she loves even when it exhausts her. In her free time she writes, reads great books, and takes care of her two beautiful and crazy children.  She is represented by Amanda Luedeke of MacGregor Literary. Her young adult best selling series, The Breeders, is available now on Amazon. 

I’ll admit it here before God and everybody: I broke a cardinal rule of the dystopian series. I did not write a trilogy. Now, once the audible gasp of horror settles down, I want to take a moment to defend myself. My series, The Breeders, will not be ending after my latest installment releases. The reasons for this are legion, but I will give you my favorite. I love a long series. The two best series in my book are The Dark Tower by Stephen King and Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling. If you haven’t read them, crawl out of your nuclear bomb shelter and head to your local library. If you have read them, you know what a long series can do to a person. Reading these books changed me, for good or ill, only my husband can be the judge. But a long series give the reader time to form some serious bonds with the characters. I wanted that for my readers.

However, I know that some readers will be disappointed when they get to the end of book three and see there is no neat, red-ribbon ending. So, I’ve compiled a list of things I will say to them to excuse my egregious disdain for modern dystopianism.

Tactic 1 – Denial: “What do you mean the series didn’t end with book three? I can’t believe they’d mess up like that. Well, that’s what you get when you rely on Amazon. You know those money-hungry fools are always trying to gouge the little man.”

Tactic 2 – Distraction: “What? Oh, my series? It didn’t end? Speaking of series, did you hear that on the next season of Orange is the New Black that Crazy Eyes and Piper get married? No, really it’s true. I heard it on Access Hollywood.”

Tactic 3 – The “Justin Beiber”: “Yeah, so my series isn’t a trilogy. Who cares? I’ve got good hair and chicks dig me. If I call you baby with my eyes half-lidded, you’ll forget your last name.”

Tactic 4 – Saying Sorry: “I’m sorry that you’ll have to read more heart-pounding, page-turning books. Imagine all the levels of Candy Crush you’ll miss reading more of my stuff.”

Tactic 5 – Honesty:  “I want to give you more in Riley’s world. Stick around. It’s going to be a hell of a ride.”

All jokes aside, I hope you like book three enough to read book four. And really, if we love books and the characters that inhabit them, don’t we wish for more? What I wouldn’t give for another Harry Potter book or another ride with Roland toward the Dark Tower. I hope that someday someone feels the same way about my books. I hope I don’t let them down. 

Learn more about Katie and The Breeders by visiting any of these links: 

Check out her Blog / Find her on Facebook / Holla at her on Twitter / Find her books on Amazon / Find her on GoodReads

The third book in the award-winning, best-selling dystopian series, The Breeders.

 They’ve escaped the Breeders.

 They’ve  broken out of the Citadel.

Now, after all they’ve been through, Riley, Clay, and Ethan know one thing for sure: nothing tastes sweeter than freedom. And no one can rest easy with Auntie Bell in bondage. The group journeys home to rescue her and liberate Clay’s town from the cruel Warden. But when an ally betrays them, they must face the very enemy they’ve been trying to avoid.

 Captured and separated, Riley is sold to a slave-owner who uses human beings for sport, while Clay and Ethan become the latest in a series of lab rats to be poked and prodded. As a slave, Riley conceals her identity to survive among the other benders, but it’s only a matter of time before a dangerous job takes her life. Clay and Ethan find themselves a war zone between a madwoman and marauders. And the odd don’t look good. 

Reviews: 

"Thrilling, chilling, and creepy in all the right ways, The Benders will more than satiate French's fans!" --S.K. Falls, bestselling dystopian author of World of Shell and Bone

 “A full throttle race to the finish, The Benders is electrifying. The third book in The Breeders Series only made me hungrier for the next.” --Kimberly Shursen, author of thrillers HUSH, Lottery and Itsy Bitsy Spider

 "Once again, the characters you know and love are in peril. Don’t pick up The Benders if you have an appointment to make or a train to catch." --Amy R. Biddle, author of The Atheist's Prayer

National Novel Writing Month Ends

Today it is December (a few days into December, actually), and here I am, a not-quite-winner of National Novel Writing Month. For those of you that don't know, the goal of this event is to write 50,000 words in the same book in 30 days.

I got pretty close -- 42,222 was my ending count. Between Thanksgiving, my parents being in town, and the snowstorm, I couldn't quite make that last 8,000 word jump, but that said, I still consider it a huge success: I have a nearly complete novel!

Here are my stats for the full month, and you can see where I really started to peter during Thanksgiving week, though I did make an attempt (a small one) towards the end: 

If I really stick to my guns and make use of the next few rounds of holiday time off, then I can push through and finish, and my fourth novel will be written. And hopefully, by the end of next year, The Fall of the Flighters will be published!

I'm pretty excited about this book, actually. I think it's interesting, and I'm looking forward to reading what I wrote once it's completely finished. But, for just for you, I will share a brief teaser (unedited, in raw form, copyright Ariele Sieling, 2014) of The Fall of the Flighters. Enjoy!

EDNA poured a glass of Whillery, the drink of madmen, of goddesses, of llamas. At least, that was what the ads said. They tended to lie though. What kind of llama would drink whiskey?

She kicked her feet up on the desk and pondered the walls of her study. Old maps covered every inch; sometimes a scrap of parchment with strange letters or symbols peaked out from between the continents and planets, or a piece of string blocked a letter or word as it reached from one side of the room to the other.

The maps had been found in an old storage locker in downtown Pomegranate City, left behind by the late Edgar Oliphant, historian. Edgars, she had always found, were creepy, stuffy old men. She wasn’t sure why her mother had picked this vocation for her, but she was the first woman in the role: Edna, finder. And she intended to make a name for herself.

Nothing mattered except these maps, which could (or possibly not) hold the secret to everything.

Turning her last find over in her fingers (an old vase from the very first Cordelia Oliphant, potter), she contemplated her next steps. She could scan all of the maps she had into the computer system and let them decipher the text. She could pour over them with a fine-tooth comb and look for clues herself. She could head downstairs and see if the cute boy was working at Joe’s tonight. The last option seemed the most appealing, but the first two seemed more important.

Too bad she didn’t have a three-sided coin. She flipped an imaginary coin in her head: to work or not to work. Heads! Guess that meant it was time to head down to the bar.

She downed the last of her whillery, grabbed her red scarf, and headed down the stairs, making doubly sure the door was locked behind her. She didn’t want anyone just wandering in.

Joe was behind the bar when she arrived, letting the door swing closed behind her with a bang!

“Two double snatches,” she said, plopping herself on a barstool. “On the rocks.”

“Bit early for you to be downstairs,” he said, tossing a glass on the bar in front of her.

Edna looked around the room. It was buzzing with chatter, but only about half full.

“Eh,” she said. “Didn’t feel like working.”

“Know the feeling,” Joe replied, nodding knowingly and wiping his hands on his apron.

“Anyone new in?” she asked.

“Reporter over there,” he gestured to the farthest corner of the room where a woman sat staring intently at her computer. “Says she’s from out of town, looking into some rumors about some new Door that has showed up out of nowhere.”

“Interesting.” Edna squinted towards the shadowy corner. “What’s she drinking?”

“Pop on the rocks,” Joe replied, grinning. “Want one?”

“Put it on my tab,” Edna replied, without looking away from the corner. She grabbed the drinks he set down, and strolled over to the table.

The woman was wide-eyed, as if she had taken way too many caffeine pills, and wore a drab black jacket with an ill-fitting t-shirt underneath. Whatever story she had must be good if she was willing to forego sleep for so long.

“Hey, I’m Edna.” She set the drink on the table. “Thought you could use another drink. You new in town?”

“Hey,” the woman said, looking up from the screen that lit up her face eeriely in the dark booth. “Just got here yesterday.”

“Where you from?” Edna plopped into the seat across from her.

“Small town on the other side of the Elusian Plains.”

“You gotta name?”

“Ide.”

“Nice to meet you Ide.”

Edna stared at the woman for a minute. Dark hair, dark clothes, glasses - this woman was excellent at blending into a crowd. Certain crowds, at any rate.

“So Joe tells me you’re a reporter.”

“Yup,” Ide replied.

“A tight-lipped one apparently.”

The woman just smiled.

“Working on anything interesting?” Edna leaned forward and propped her elbows on the table. “Must be something pretty big if you’re coming all the out to Pomegranate City from a little town near the Elusian Plains.”

Ide didn’t say anything, just watched Edna with mild amusement.

Edna decided to keep going.

“Let’s see… did someone important die? Seems unlikely that you’d be out here for that, unless it was the Administrative Chair. Plus I’dve heard about that one. Maybe someone found a secret treasure under one of the fountains at the Globe. No?” Edna wondered if guessing that it had something to do with the Doors would make it too obvious that Joe had mentioned it. But then again, if Ide had mentioned it to Joe, that meant she probably wanted people to know… Edna started to feel excited. She loved puzzles and secrets. “How about travel - you’re a travel writer and your paper just figured out they could send you here to write about it! I bet I’ll be a main feature because I’m an Oliphant. Me and Joe - front page of your town’s top paper!”

Ide smiled softly. “I’ll tell you what I’m working on on one condition.”

“What’s that?”

“I need a guide.”

“A guide? To do what?”

“To sneak me into the Globe government building.”

Edna’s eyes grew wide. That was a very complex assignment. On one hand, the security at the Globe had always kind of sucked. But now they had a new head of security on staff and he was keeping the place on lockdown since a recent break in. And if they went in on a guided tour, it’s not as if they could just sneak off and disappear into the depths of the greatest scientific institution in the world…

“Okay,” Edna agreed. She was curious after all. The how and the why could wait.