Author Archives: Connie Stevens

Contemporary to Historical ~ A New Slant on Research

Posted on August 3, 2020 by Connie Stevens

I am delighted to welcome Ane Mulligan to my blog today. Ane has a wonderful sense of humor that translates into spunky, sassy characters in her stories. IN HIGH COTTON is definitely her best one yet! I know readers won’t … Continue reading →

Posted in ACFW Author, backdrop for characters, Contemporary to Historical, creating characters, historic details, historical fiction, new release, Research, Research for fiction, setting details | 9 Comments

A TIME FOR HEALING by Ramona K. Cecil

Posted on July 27, 2020 by Connie Stevens

Ginny Red Fawn McLain, a Shawnee medicine woman, is thrust back into the world of her birth family twelve years after her abduction. While she eschews the Christianity preached by her birth uncle who found her, Ginny’s heart refuses to … Continue reading →

Posted in ACFW Author, drawing for free book(s), E-book, Guest Bloggers, historical fiction, new release, Ramona K. Cecil, Research for fiction, Shawnee Indians, Shawnee medicine woman, The Time For Healing | Tagged | 11 Comments

DO YOU HAVE A TWO-FACED CHARACTER?

Posted on July 20, 2020 by Connie Stevens

When you call somebody two-faced, you are not giving them a compliment! But what if you have a character in your story with a “split personality?” That is– the other characters see her one way, but the readers see a … Continue reading →

Posted in backdrop for characters, Brainstorming characters, conflicting emotions, creating characters, fictional characters, point of view, Relatable characters, Two-faced characters | Leave a comment

THE ART OF DESCRIPTION

Posted on June 29, 2020 by Connie Stevens

Authors have debated for years over how much description to insert in a scene. Description is a lot like seasoning in a stew. If the stew lacks seasoning, it’s bland and uninteresting. But if you shake too much seasoning into … Continue reading →

Posted in creating characters, creating setting, Description, historic details, minor characters, settings | Tagged | Leave a comment

SETTING DETAILS — Where am I?

Posted on May 29, 2020 by Connie Stevens

There is an expression used in fiction writing–“talking heads.” It means a character is speaking, his lines of dialogue are there, but the reader has no idea what this character looks like. Is he tall, short, fat, skinny, does he … Continue reading →

Posted in backdrop for characters, conflicting emotions, creating setting, fictional characters, historic details, readers, Relatable characters, secondary characters, setting details, settings | Leave a comment

REGIONAL DIALECTS–yay or nay?

Posted on May 22, 2020 by Connie Stevens

I recently finished–and turned in (YAAAY!!) — a story in which several of my characters speak with a regional dialect. The story is set in 1886 in the mountains of western North Carolina. They have lived their entire fictional lives … Continue reading →

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Making Characters Relatable

Posted on May 11, 2020 by Connie Stevens

The story I am currently working on features a young man and an old man as two of the characters. The young man is searching, seeking for purpose and acceptance. Having grown up in the shadow of an older brother … Continue reading →

Posted in Brainstorming characters, character photos, creating characters, fictional characters, readers, Relatable characters, seeking, Why I write | Tagged | Leave a comment

WHEN GOD CHANGES YOUR PLANS

Posted on May 10, 2020 by Connie Stevens

“A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.” Proverbs 16:9 We are generally pretty good at deciding what we want. Our selfish nature tends to run ahead of the Lord, and we devise all sorts of … Continue reading →

Posted in change plans, plans, purpose, seeking, Why I write | Leave a comment

How Do You REALLY Feel?

Posted on February 6, 2019 by Connie Stevens

We’ve all heard–and used–the expressions: Down deep in your heart…, my gut feeling…, her secret desire…, his hidden thoughts…, and one of my favorites: If I was to be truly honest… I’ve recently been working on some materials for a … Continue reading →

Posted in conflicting emotions, creating characters, family history, fictional characters, point of view, readers, Writing Deep POV | Leave a comment

WHEN RESEARCH GETS IN THE WAY

Posted on June 12, 2018 by Connie Stevens

Have you ever read a book and found a glaring error? I’m not talking about a misspelled word or a grammar mistake. How does it make you feel as a reader if the author has obviously not done her research … Continue reading →

Posted in backdrop for characters, cemeteries, creating setting, fictional characters, historic details, historical fiction, readers, Research, Research for fiction, settings, unexpected plot twists | Leave a comment