The Silver Pen

Sure love comes with a price tag, but it should come after you meet, right?

Beware gorgeous women who start asking for money, especially if you’re suspicious enough to do a little digging and find out that those exotic-looking women who are calling you ‘dear’ and ‘babe’ and several other affectionate terms are willing to say “I love you” within a week’s time, or less. My advice to any and all of you guys out there that see this on your IG, if you have it, or on your social media, is to walk away and take pride in knowing that you avoided a scam that could end up costing you thousands or more.

Unfortunately, being a man with a weakness for beautiful women, I have been suckered in a couple of times and I’ll admit, I fell for a lot of crap even with being suspicious of the motives and words being used. Hey, it feels good to have someone talk to you and compliment you and make you feel good about yourself, right? The problem there is that you should already feel good enough about yourself to be secure in your own head and not be susceptible to the online charms of women that make a living seducing and promising those that they know they can get just by pursing their lips the right way or spreading their legs for a photo shoot.

If they say “I love you”, then go the other way.

Far be it from me to judge anyone’s life when it comes to what they’ve done, what they do, and how they earn their living. But after speaking to so many ‘women’ (yes, there’s good chance you’re talking to a scammer that’s well-versed in how to type sexy words onto the screen) it’s fair to say that trusting everyone simply because they’re nice to you denotes a lack of self-awareness on your part. You’re not that dumb; just remember that and ask the questions you need to in order to flush out the scammers and possibly, just possibly, find the real person beneath the garbage.

Don’t send money, and I mean EVER.

You’re bound to get some sort of sob story such as the woman can’t leave their current residence since they’re broke, they’re being looked after by someone, they have no money, blah, blah, blah. Seriously, if they have no money then how are they on the internet? Even with the ability to mooch off of others, this service doesn’t come free. And do yourself a favor and take a look at the pictures they’re sending you. Do they look broke? Do they look like they’re starving or put out? How the hell are they surviving if they’re as bad off as they say? Oh sure, there are plenty of extenuating circumstances that could come into play and some women might be telling the truth, but this isn’t a time to #believeallwomen.

My point, guys, is this. I know what it’s like to be lonely and I know that talking to someone online can feel damned good. But if they tell you they love you right away, or start asking for money, move on. There’s nothing there but a steaming pile that you don’t need to deal with.

Be safe guys, know who you’re talking to.

The more detail you use, the more believable your characters become.

Every element of a book is important since all elements that are being used need to come together in a way that makes the audience believe that the story is worth more than just reading, it’s worth believing in. The setting, the tone, the look and feel of the different areas that come together to make the story what it is, all of it makes a difference since all of it has to do with pushing the story forward and creating something that people will want to know more about.

But the characters are what will really drive your story, since the setting and the tone won’t deliver the tale on their own.

So, how do you create a character?

It’s exceedingly simple, but the details that will go into it can make things so much harder than they need to be. Some people try to flesh their characters out too quickly, and in doing so they rush things and their character isn’t given the proper time and space to develop. It sounds a bit silly to some folks, especially since these are fictional characters we’re talking about. But if your character doesn’t sound real enough for the story they belong to, then you won’t find yourself with a clear and detailed individual that people can see, hear, and understand. That last part might not need to come for a while, since twists and turns in your story might change your mind as to the nature of your character. But having a grounding point from which to work is important since as the author, you should know everything there is to know about your character.

The basics of creating a character need to be addressed. Without the basics you have a ghost with a few vague descriptions to go on.

Most authors already know this, but there a few very basic pieces of information that need to go into your characters to get the ball rolling, such as:

1. Appearance: Are they short, tall, medium height? What’s their hair color, their skin color? Do they have a noticeable characteristic that sets them apart? Do they wear one type of clothing or many different types?
2. Personality: Are they serious, snarky, or timid? Do they get along with others, or are they social outcasts? There are a lot of different personality types out there, but assigning or or two to your character is a wise move.
3. Lifestyle/Culture: Are they cisgender, or are they part of the LGBTQ+ community? Are they immigrants? Are they native to their homeland? These are tidbits that go deeper into a character’s past and identity, and might even be called controversial, but it’s worth taking the time to develop.

Oh, don’t worry, there’s much more to come, but for now, think about these things and how you want to apply them.

One way or another, you will miss something when you’re writing.

No one likes having to think about it since the idea is that authors can write and wow their audience with their ability to tell a story. But the truth that a lot of people don’t like to own up to, but will learn if they’re smart, is that they will need to revise or rewrite their story from time to time. Revisions aren’t fun, seriously, they’re not. Rewrites are even worse since essentially you’ll find yourself needing to write entire pages, entire chapters all over again to work on the clarity, the spelling, the grammar, anything that your editor tells you needs to be done. If you don’t, well, then there’s a good chance that a publisher won’t want to work with you, a literary agent won’t give you a second look, and whatever writing career you want will go up in smoke before it ever has a chance to develop.

But that’s why we’re here. That’s why writing sites like this exist, to help you out and give you the hard lessons that you need, or the attention that you might want and need to improve your writing. Personally, I don’t like revisions and rewrites, I’ve had to do this way too often in my career, but I understand the need for it, I get the idea that it’s important to improve your skill set and write in a manner that people can understand and come to enjoy.

I’ll get into rewrites and revision again, believe that. But for now, my parting word is this: it’s going to be needed. You won’t be a perfect writer from the very start, accept that. But sites like this exist to help you, to give you tips and advice, and the lot of us will make sure that you get what you need to improve your writing in ways you might not have thought possible.

We’re here to help, so take advantage of that.