Greetings! I hope all is well with you. Me, I'm STEADY.
According to the recent calculations, Meridia Publishers + LIKE number 75 = Share some information about writing for Snooze. Please keep in mind that this will make more sense after you read the book.
Snooze is one of the supporting characters in my book, Wrinkles Wallace: Knights of Night School. He's a 5th grader that is always sleeping during class. So, when I initially created and started writing for Snooze, I had to figure out how to write for a character that is in the classroom in a limited manner. I mean, when most of us sleep, all we really do is snore, drool, talk, and sleepwalk. In figuring out how to allow him to express himself through those four actions, I began to really enjoy writing for Snooze.
Why?
Well, Snooze allowed me to write random things and connect his words to what was going on in the book. Also, Snooze's sleeping presented numerous problems that needed to be solved in order to help keep the story going.
The biggest factor in writing for Snooze was to use his limited communication to allow him to say things that sounded correct, but would be slightly off. See, as a guy that is known for drifting off to sleep while holding the remote and watching television, I am often asked by my wonderful wife, "Are you sleeping?"
My answer is to try to quote everything I remember hearing on the television while I was resting my eyes, but somehow the snoring I do before she asks gives me away every time. And so, my wife is undefeated at knowing (before I do) when I'm asleep.
So, when writing for a sleeping Snooze, I always try to make him be able to say a few relevant words, but not enough to make you think he is faking sleep. In doing so, his random outbursts and jack-in-the-box characteristics (combined with comments from other characters) showcase just enough Snooze to keep him involved in story.
Thanks for reading!
STEADY!
I found your blog via Teachers Write and your response to my question. I have been reflecting about my writing during Teachers Write and have links to WIP. It's very segmented but will, I hope, eventually find a form that makes sense.
ReplyDeleteI loved reading about Snooze; I've had several in my classes over the years and have, on occasion, allowed a couple to sleep past the bell and into the next class.
Glenda,
DeleteI am so glad you stopped by to take a look. I think you are on your path to finding your way to finish. Sometimes we need to examine what others do to find our own lane for writing.
I tend to write until I hit a roadblock. My first book gave me a six week roadblock that the students were not very happy with. Since I started mapping the books out, I can create plenty of segments and connect them when the time is right. That also helps me to write based on my mood.
For me, it's like putting together a puzzle. In fact, if you take a look at my inital posts on this blog, you will see the 25 day process for how I wrote my 4th book in the series. I needed to create a blueprint in order to see how I could repeat the process in the future.
Let me know if there is anything I can do to help. Where are the links?
Steady,
Marquin