Author DiDi LeMay has been touring blogs since November 18th and discussing her recently published children’s book, A Winter Solstice Celebration. In her blog for Open Book, she writes about finding creative inspiration and developing characters. Her blog tour ends on December 18th. For full details click here.
Shakespeare said, “The entire world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.”
I see life only slightly differently than Shakespeare did — as a large book with lots and lots of pages and chapters to fill with experiences. All our friends and family members are characters that help fill up the novel. And, of course, we are the heroes of it all. We write our destinies.
As a writer, my philosophy of life is that it is one great big adventure after another. The adventures can be uplifting, sad, dangerous or just plain enjoyable. I take them in stride. They are what make up the chapters of my book — my life. With all the excitement of living life, there is an adventure to write about in every nook and cranny. Looking around, I feel that I want to share my journey with everyone around; not only my own encounters, but also those adventures of my friends and the characters that are born of my imagination.
Sometimes, an idea for a storyline just pops up into my mind, and it starts to develop on its own. I start writing and developing the story. There is a flow to it and it needs to be written down fast. Other times, it all starts with a vague idea and needs to percolate and be kneaded into a comprehensive and entertaining journey for the characters as well as for my readers.
There are times when my thoughts flow and I’m right there alongside my characters living their escapades. But there are times when to just write one comprehensible sentence is a chore.
And then there are times where a character is born, and I need to learn about the character before I can even develop a story around him. My characters come to life. Their personalities become genuine and I get to know them as they become my friends — my allies in adventure.
While in school, I noticed something that I felt needed to be told. I had to pass over a bridge with a small river flowing under it. That river was always filthy with chemical runoff from a factory nearby. It bothered me, so I started to learn about the environment and what we could do to keep it all clean. I thought about the animals that lived under that bridge, and I wondered what they would say about the toxic threat if they could talk. I put myself in their shoes and decided to tell the world their story. That is how the story of A Winter Solstice Celebration was created.
While developing the characters, I envisioned the animals and learned about their characteristics and quirks. One by one, they started to develop their own personalities, and the story started to flow, and it was almost as if the characters were telling me their story. I am pleased to be able to show us humans in the world what the consequences of our actions are — seen through the eyes of the animals.
To read their story, go to my website, www.didilemay.com. You will find an excerpt of A Winter Solstice Celebration; if you are intrigued to hear more, you can purchase my book there as well. A Winter Solstice Celebration is an excellent book for adults who want to teach their children the importance of caring for animals and the environment they live in. My book makes great Christmas Reading.
Watch the trailer for A Winter Solstice Celebration.
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