The Unexpected Character
by Shelley Freydont
Writers go to great lengths to “know” their characters. Some make collages, some interview the prospective character, or make lists of hair color, height, favorite food, etc. An author lives with her characters. Your protagonist rides shotgun while you drive to the store. The sidekick climbs into the shower with you, the villain knocks at your subconscious while you’re watching your favorite television show.
You pretty much have a full house twenty four/seven while you’re writing a book, and if you write a series…well talk about your extended family.
Knowing and loving your character will make writing the story that much more organic.
But what if a character crashes your story, like that uninvited guest who shows up at the door when the party is already in full swing? It happens. It can be fun or annoying, sometimes both.
This happened to me on my latest series the Celebration Bay Mysteries. My heroine, Liv, is an Manhattan event planner hired by a small upstate destination town to be its event coordinator.
She has a dog, two retired schoolteacher landladies, an assistant, friends and colleagues, even a nemesis. But she didn’t have a love interest. A lot of amateur sleuths take up with policeman because…well they’re cool and they know how to investigate and also can take care of those pesky things like getting DNA samples and ballistic reports that the amateur doesn’t have access to.
I started the first book, Foul Play at the Fair, with no boyfriend for Liv, fingers crossed and hoping for the best. Around chapter three, she has to visit the local newspaper office to complain about her festival ad being dumped for a Boy Scout article.
The Celebration Bay Clarion is a family paper, owned for generations by the Bristow family, and a one man operation. Liv has heard old man Bristow, the current editor, is more interested in fishing than reporting the news. And that’s just not acceptable. She goes to talk to the editor in person. She knocks on the door and when no one answers, she walks in. The place is dark and a mess, and someone is snoring in the back room.
Liv stumbles through the dusky rooms to a back room filled with printers and laptops. The editor is asleep on the couch, snoring away and ruffling the newspaper that’s covering his face. I should have seen it coming, but I wasn’t thinking ahead. She clears her throat; when he doesn’t wake up, she jostles his shoe. There’s much grumbling and slapping at papers and he finally sits up.
I knew by then what was going to happen.
Old man Bristow isn’t an old man at all. But thirty-ish, with a shock of dirty-blond hair. A surfer dude wearing jeans and a flannel shirt with a hole in the elbow. Handsome and out of place–And cranky…And the beginning of a ridiculous relationship.
Charles “Chaz” Bristow was an investigative reporter for the L.A. Times until he quit suddenly and came home to fish and run his family’s local paper. As far as Liv can tell, he’s lazy and uncouth and totally apathetic. He also has a really dry sense of humor and doesn’t mind throwing sarcasm around a bit.
He’s not what I expected, not consciously anyway. I didn’t construct him, didn’t think about what color eyes he would have, or if he’d be a hunk or a sensitive Beta guy. I didn’t know anything about him until he pulled off that newspaper and sat up, scratching. At that moment, Chaz popped full blown onto the page and trying to finagle his way into Liv’s heart.
Sometimes characters are just lying in ambush waiting for you to discover them. Maybe they’ve been sitting on the back burner of your imagination waiting for a lapse in concentration. I feel like that about Chaz. Really, he’s so annoying. Sometimes Liv just wants to smack him, and actually so do I.
But we’re stuck with him. And he’s turning out pretty okay. Both Liv and I have great hopes for him in the future.
About the Author:
Shelley Freydont is the author of the Liv Montgomery, Celebration Bay Festival Mysteries (Berkeley Prime Crime). She also writes the Katie McDonald Sudoku murder series and Lindy Haggerty Dance Company mystery series. She has written several romance novels under the pseudonym Gemma Bruce. Her books have been translated into seven languages.
Her first women’s fiction novel, Beach Colors, written as Shelley Noble, was published by William Morrow June 2012. Stargazey Point will be available July 2013.
A former professional dancer and choreographer, she most recently worked on the films, Mona Lisa Smile and The Game Plan. Shelley is a member of Sisters-in-Crime, Mystery Writers of America, Romance Writers of America, and Liberty States Fiction Writers.
For more about Shelley, please visit her website www.shelleyfreydont.com.
On the Fourth of July, Old Glory is flying high in Celebration Bay—until someone raises a red flag…
With Independence Day fast approaching, Liv Montgomery is swamped coordinating one of the town’s biggest festivals. In addition to the traditional July fourth events, the town stages a spooky Revolutionary War reenactment that can’t be missed. Every year, the ghost of local war hero Henry Gallantine—played by his eccentric descendant of the same name—appears at the top of the family mansion, kicking off the night’s revelries.
But Henry’s annual cameo goes awry after the ghost signals SOS instead of his traditional cue. When Liv rushes to the rescue, she finds Henry missing and a real dead body instead of a fake haunt. Now she will have to hunt down both a murderer and a missing person quickly before unwanted political fireworks ignite and someone else winds up as local history…
Amazon/B&N
Jennifer’s Review of Independence Slay
Review (4.5 Stars): This is the third book in the Celebration Bay mystery series and I’m really enjoying this series. Everyone is preparing for the Fourth of July events where the town stages a Revolutionary War reenactment and tempers are running high. Things start to go haywire when a dead body is found among the activities and Liz has to help investigate another murder before the killer takes another victim.
I think that Liv is a great character and I love the little town of Celebration Bay. The characters are entertaining and this is definitely a series that you will want to visit over and over again. The mystery was well-written with quite a few twists and I’m happy to say I didn’t figure it out until the very end. Independence Slay was a fun, entertaining mystery that will have you wanting to visit the town of Celebration Bay for many years to come.
Giveaway
I’m excited to give away a copy of Independence Slay. This giveaway is for US Residents only. To be entered in the drawing by June 10th, answer me this question in the comments:
What is your favorite holiday?
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