Mystery Books News is thrilled to welcome Del Staecker as our guest blogger. Del is the author of a trilogy of mysteries featuring Ledge Trabue — Gulf War veteran, unpaid sleuth and part-time adventurer — who, in Chocolate Soup (Cable Publishing, April 2010, 978-1-934980-57-6), finds himself in New Orleans, a city reeling under an onslaught of greed and deceit greater than any storm it has ever weathered.
Today, Del writes about what he's asked most when he meets with readers. And he's also providing our readers with an opportunity to win a signed copy of each book in the trilogy. Visit Mystery Book Contests, click on the "Del Staecker: Ledge Trabue Trilogy" contest link, enter your name, e-mail address, and this code (2987) for a chance to win! (One entry per person; contest ends June 24, 2010.)
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Photo courtesy of Del Staecker
As an author I am asked more about my characters than any other component of the writing process.
Yes — more than plot twists, riveting action, and sex — readers want to know about the people that populate my stories.
At readings, signings, and other appearances, I encounter questions such as: “Where do your characters come from?” “Do you create profiles?” “What makes a character a good one?” and, “How do you make them so real?”
Let me share as best I can what I know about creating, developing, and (upon occasion) killing off characters by answering those questions.
First, I am not a “trained” writer. By that I mean I have not received training through an MFA program, or writer’s seminars — formal or informal. For me, writing came out of a life of reading and personal experiences. Although I attended college and received an excellent education I am a self-taught writer.
Second, I see myself as more storyteller than writer — and that leads to my discussion of characters. What my characters do is the story — so much so that in the acknowledgement to my latest novel, Chocolate Soup, I thanked the characters of the Ledge Trabue Trilogy for allowing me to tell their story.
So — let’s examine some characteristics of writing through characters.
Where do my characters come from?
I’m a daydreamer by nature. I allow my imagination to work and then ask questions. For example, The Muted Mermaid (and the trilogy) began when I imagined the experience of finding a corpse tangled in a pleasure boat’s anchor line. Who found it? What did he/she do? And what type of person is found in that situation? At that point the characters emerged.
Do I construct and use character profiles?
No, for me the characters are grown through their actions and their participation in the situations in which they are embroiled. They are not designed by me. In fact, I believe that they take off based upon their own energy and become real personalities. More than once, I’ve been wakened from a sound sleep to overhear their conversations.
What is the secret to a good character?
That’s simple — they are engaged in great dialogue. If their conversations sound authentic then the characters are real.
How do you attain reality?
I don’t — the characters do it all. I’m serious about my being a storyteller. I’m an observer — in a sense I’m a reporter in their world. My job is to get the description right.
Getting back to profiles — what if a character “goes rogue?”
If they are real, then characters can be contradictory. In fact, at times they must be. Also, people (and characters) do develop. Over time, we all change. Sometimes we grow, and sometimes we regress. To me, strict adherence to a profile would stifle the “real-ness” of a character. Too much consistency can be boring. Granted, my characters do have recurring traits. Trabue’s quirky stomach and The Professor’s love of food are elements that are timeless and solid. Over the course of three books you’ll find both elements of stability and recklessness in my characters.
And a final question — How do you “kill off” a character?
I don’t. Again, I simply let the characters “do their thing.”
I hope I’ve been helpful in shedding some light on characters — as I am involved with them. If you are interested in experiencing the birth, development, and end of some great characters I encourage you to dip into the Ledge Trabue trilogy.
My best to you!
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“As addictive as M&Ms” and “[A] deftly written masterpiece” is how Del Staecker’s Ledge Trabue trilogy has been described in reviews.
Beginning with The Muted Mermaid, and progressing through Shaved Ice Ledge Trabue encounters and fights timeless evil wearing a modern face. The fight and adventure comes to a stunning conclusion in Chocolate Soup.
Del is also the author of the multiple-award-winning World War II naval classic, The Lady Gangster: A Sailor’s Memoir. Visit his website at DelStaecker.com.
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About Chocolate Soup: Ledge Trabue, Gulf War veteran, unpaid sleuth and part-time adventurer, is finally at home — comfortably ensconced at the Colonnade Hotel — enjoying his peculiarly unique lifestyle and the company of an eclectic group of friends.
All is well, or so he thinks, when his finicky stomach begins its disturbing habit of flip-flopping. Trabue’s early warning system for an approaching disaster is right-on and soon New Orleans is reeling under an onslaught of greed and deceit greater than any storm it has ever weathered. Under an avalanche of evil the hoped for chocolate city is reduced to an unsavory Chocolate Soup.
For a chance to win a signed copy of each book in the trilogy, courtesy of the author, visit Mystery Book Contests, click on the "Del Staecker: Ledge Trabue Trilogy" contest link, and enter your name, e-mail address, and this code (2987) in the entry form. (One entry per person; contest ends June 24, 2010.)
