Photoshop

Today I discovered the fun of photo manipulation on photoshop. I've used it a lot for photo editing, (fix lighting, remove trees sticking out of peoples heads, stuff like that), but never actually drastically changed an image. Tonight I scratched the surface of the manipulate things in can do with just my photoshop elements. I did these dogs tonight. Originally they were in a grassy field. This wasn't too complex, I only used about ten layers, and it took me only about two hours, but I really like how it turned out.

I've really want to take up digital painting, but that's impossible at the moment with my touch pad on my laptop. Now I've found something to entertain me while I save up for my graphics tablet.
I'm planning on eventually taking one of my pictures of my pony and somehow turning her into a ninja pony. How awesome would that be?

The great enigma

Since I posted about my dog last time, why not do my horse this time?
So, you probably don't know this, but my horse is very confident in herself. Almost nothing in life actually scares her (with the exception of cows and chicken wire), though that doesn't prevent her from spooking at stuff for the heck of it. I like to describe her as a conniving feminist diplomat. This pony has got an agenda. She mess everything, up play with all the other horse's minds, and worm her way to the top, all while staying friends with everybody. She makes herd dynamics very interesting with the things she does to the other horses. For example, sometimes if she's bored she'll play "chicken" by running straight towards another horse that's laying down to make them get up. Now, she'd never actually run them over but they don't know that.
        I'm telling this to make a point that my pony is very sure of herself, and a bit of a "lone wolf" around the other horses. She rather independant. She likes people, attention, and working (though she doesn't think she does) but she's not like those insecure horses that won't take a step if they aren't sure your sure. She can take care of herself, thank you very much.
Here's the enigma: My horse gets upset when she thinks people are angry at her. It doesn't help that I kid you not, my horse is a perfectionist. She gets mad at herself when she doesn't do things right.
      My trainer just sold one of her horses, and took another one on trial. She was working with the new horse, who had absolutely no ground manners. This new horse also was kind of dull. She wasn't listening, and my trainer had to wallop her with whip to get her to pay attention. (I want to point out right now that she was not beating this horse, and the whip she was using was a dressage whip. She had given the horse a chance to listen without being smacked, and the horse was totally fine). She also was saying "WHOA" very intensely.
Poor Jazmyne got so upset. She was so confused she thought my trainer was mad at HER. The whole time I was warming up she was very stressed, and got all "worrisome" every time the new horse was reprimanded. The new horse finally was stopping when asked, so she got put away. I had my trainer come and tell Jazmyne that she was a good girl, because my horse got so upset. As soon as my trainer "approved" her, she relaxed and was all normal again. I thought it was really wierd how much that reprimanding bothered her, even though it wasn't directed at her.
My horse wouldn't do that for everyone, but she really respects my trainer, and I couldn't believe how upset she got because she thought my trainer was mad at her.
I know it seems like I'm anthropomorphizing a bit, but if you were there you would understand. It's crazy how multifaceted and diffrent each animal's personality is.

Awesome Sauce Animals: Meet Ellie

Since today is my dog's birthday, I think it is appropriate to do my blog post on her. I've owned my cockapoo Ellie since she was ten months, and today she turns six years old. I got her in 2006 about a month after my 13 year old cocker spaniel, Keyosha (don't ask, she came with the name), had died. Our friends had gotten Ellie, but their other dog and her just did not get along, so to make a long story short, I got Ellie.  Ellie was abused as a puppy, so she was scared of men. In fact, she wouldn't even approach my dad for two years, but know she can often be found next to him on the couch mooching some pets. 

Ellie and me are best buds. I'm definitely her "person." She sleeps with me, and I'm pretty much they only one she'll listen to for obedience commands. She always wants to be where ever the people are, and loves to go on trips to grandma's and grandpa's at the lake.

I compete with Ellie in obedience (Graduate Novice), agility (Novice), rally (excellent (highest) level), showmanship, and team obedience. We've won lots of trophies in agility and rally, and we've been on the cover of the winner's circle. We've done pretty well in obedience and have won several classes, but right now, Ellie keeps breaking her out of sight stays at competition, so we've yet to qualify in Grad novice. She's very energetic about working as long as she's having fun. She loves agility in particular, and often likes to go run the course by herself. She especially loves the teeter totter and the chute (tunnel with a collapsed fabric chute on the exit end), and the a-frame. The only thing she doesn't like is showmanship, she tries to take a nap because she thinks its boring, but if she's actually awake we do quite well in showmanship as well.

Very much the social butterfly, you can find Ellie trying to make friends with every dog she meets, and trying to get pets from any kids and women she meets, and most men after she warms up to them, though she's terrified of cats.

She loves snow, water, and seagulls, and just wants to be part of the action whether you're sitting around the camp fire or playing a round of ninja. She'll let little kids hug her, tug on her ears or whatever. If they're annoying her, she'll just get up and move, she doesn't have an aggressive bone in her body. I've taken her to lots of 4-H functions, and she loves all the attention she gets from the little kids, and they love it when she does all her tricks.

She's the best dog ever, she's my dog in a million and I love her to pieces.

 

Ellie in resignation after I wrapped her leg with my horse wraps

 

Romping at the dog park

Waiting to run in agility. I wish I had a picture of an agility run on my computer. Ellie competes at 8", though normally when she jumps, she majorly over clears it and normally jumps over where the 20" bar would go.

The fish with legs and his friends

My argument is that the following story makes absolutely no sense,

The Fish with Legs and His Friends

by The Furry Fairy Alfonso the long haired

The fish that  had five legs jumped out of the motor boat and pulled his sandwich out of his metal lunch box. "What a fine day", he said with a twitch of his fin. All of a sudden a vat of sulfuric acid fell from the sky and onto the seven legged fish. He lost three of his legs and was in a lot of pain so he had to go to the hospital. The surgeon came and put stuff on his legs and he ended up dying because he wasn't in water and I don't know why he had legs or was walking anyways.
His friend Mildred the stuffed animate penguin organized his funeral service. She turned it into a tropical themed luau party, and they ended up frying him up in a dish of fish and chips after the doctors deemed him safe to eat. The served him with a side dish of a garlic and dill dipping sauce, but Mildred the stuffed animate penguin ended up choking on one of his bones for her inconsideration of her friends deceased body.  She died too, so they ended up chucking her body into the ocean because the didn't want to pay for a coffin and a proper burial in a cemetary.
The five/seven legged fish that died from the acid bath had a really crummy group of friends. THey ended up being arrested for distrubing the peace when the public heard about their disrespectful actions. There was a trail and they were all convicted of reallly sucking at the skill of being even a decent friend because they ate him after he suffered a violent death. They were thrown into prison and forced to work on the kitchen staff for the rest of their lives.

THE END

Blogging is the pits

Frankly, I find this blogging thing very annoying, and here are my reasons

1.) I do not believe the process of blogging will make you a better writer, just because you have an "audience" (see point two). When you blog, you are more apt to write in a casual, conversational tone. Since this is not graded. I could. write in incomplete. sentences that. were not. capitalized and culd. by mispeled. If I write a blog like I was talking to someone, I'm not working on writing skills, I'm working on figuring out a speech, and simply writing it down (which is not a good thing anyways, you should be able to give speeches without reading off a written script by now). I doubt anyone in this class puts more then a couple minutes or a few passing thoughts into what they will blog about and quality is not top priority.

2.) Just because you have a supposed "audience" does not mean it will motivate you to write. So maybe 20 other people at most might look at your blog. You don't really care, and you're doing this for English class, not because you actually want to do this, so it simply becomes a plug and chug to complete it without much regard for what your audience thinks, because they honestly don't really care all that much.

3.) The time you spend blogging, and looking at other blogs just so you can write something down to get your weekly comment in can be better spent elsewhere. The time I've spent blogging today, I could of used to study for my up coming biology laboratory practical, or I could have gone to bed early, or worked on something else important with a deadline. Instead I'm wasting my time doing something I care zilch about, which for the most part reflects the feelings of others.

My proposal is to remove this blogging requirement from this Composition I class. It really is a bother, and I don't think it makes much of a difference in a person's writing ability so it purpose is not fulfilled. My writing has not improved this semester because I blogged, in fact some of my worst writing is manifested on this blog.
Let's end this inane insanity.

Car ride fun

Of course there are dozens of games to pass time during a long car ride. Maybe you've played the alphabet or license plate game, twenty questions, I spy, or the vacation game. If you've been on a bus or fifteen passenger you might have even played mafia in the car. All these games are well and good for having a bit of fun,and they do help to pass the time, but they normally only affect you and the people playing them. Everyone else in the car can just tune you out if the want to. Now where's the fun in that?

To have a real fun time in the car, you don't just play games for entertainment, you play games with the other passengers minds. Now this is not the game to break out in the very start of the ride. No, you must be subtle in the approach, or at least the time.

I am sure you are all familiar with the song "ninety nine bottles of coke (beer) on the wall." For those of you that are not, here are the lyrics

There are ninety nine bottles of coke on the wall

there are ninety nine bottles of coke

you take one down and pass it around

there are ninety eight bottles of coke on the wall

The song goes on, inserting each preceding number until you get to zero. There are two things you need to know about this song. One, that you may begin to loose you voice after 100 straight verses,and two, this song really has a way of getting on people's nerves. This my friends is where the mind games part comes in.

At some point in your car ride, when everything is pretty settled, and getting kind of mundane and boring, break out into song and begin the first verse. My guess is you'll get .4-3 verses in during the first try. If you have some one tolerant in the car, you may be able to get to "There are 89 bottles..." At some point however it is almost guaranteed one of your fellow passengers will ask you to stop politely, or threaten you with death. Look dejected and sulk for a moment, but then get on with your life as if your random bottles of coke singing desires have been sated.

Once you have them thinking you are no longer going to be singing, and everything is all boring again, start up right were you left off. This might be at eighty two bottles of coke, or half way through the first verse depending on how volatile your fellow passengers are. Again some one will threaten you with bodily harm. Stop again, and wait. By this point they will probably think that it was just a passing phase and you are truly done. However, your little mind game has just begun.

At some point, again restart from where you left off very quietly. "there are eighty one bottles of coke  on the wall (pause) eighty one bottles of coke (pause) you take one down (long pause)..." in fact pretend your done. Wait about a minute and then finish "You take one down and pass it around etc.etc." You will now start to see the paranoia set in. To continue your game, just start off where you left off at random times, never letting them know when, where,or how. Do it right and you will have them all jumpy about when you are about to begin again. You have officially paranoid them, good job. If you can get all the way to zero, even better job.

Now you may also have a very tolerant driver who actually hates the song and is annoyed, but will let you sing anyways. If this is the case, just let 'er rip for all one hundred verses. It will take you ten minutes minimum, and your voice will need a rest afterwards,so it's a good way to pass some time.

Have fun terrorizing your family and friends

Do you speak...Parlez-vous Francais?

I don't know about but you but Il bogues vraiment me lorsque la langue change juste at random. You are fine just going vous affaires et  the language suddenly becomes french. Dernièrement, cela s'est passé à ma famille on Netflix, even when the show does not have french as a Langue de choix de draft de, or even as a subtitle option for that language.
Sometimes it will start out in English but à mi-chemin, grâce à cela changera, and then all the other episodes of that show will suddenly be french too. Otherwise, it will Démarrez comme français, and that particular episode will only be in french while all the other episodes remain in English.
So I'm sure you are thinking,just put on the subtitles, but the subtitles won't work, even when it has them as an option. I've been wanting to watch this one thing for over a month, and every time I try, the darn thing is in French! It is really getting frustrating. My mom is pretty much fluent in French, so she'll translate a bit here and there, but she's not going to act as an interpreter for an entire episode.

I will close with this:

Salut

Si vous êtes assez ambitieux pour mettre dans une forme quelconque de traducteur, bon pour vous ! Enfin bref, je déteste vraiment avoir à apprendre les langues étrangères, vous essayez, mais ils ne collera pas, donc je suppose que je suis bloqué avec jamais vu cet épisode particulier.

Prenez une minute pour vraiment réfléchir à langague, combien leur sont, comment chacun est unique, elle vraiment est l'esprit et rend juste que vous souhaitez arrêter de penser parce que c'est tellement écrasante.

Cordialement vôtre,

La fée Furry

Come on and Get your NaNo on

Did you know that November is National Novel Writing Month (otherwise known as NaNo). The goal is to write 50,000 words in 30 days. Now I know it's pretty late to be starting now (you'd need to write more than two thousand words a day), but why not aim to write 10,000, 5,000, or 1,000 words in your own mini "novel" this month? 1,000 words is only a page and a half to two pages single spaced depending on dialogue/how often you indent. Don't worry about the quality of it right off the bat. Strive for the quantity first, and brign the quality later. That what those of us going all the way out for fifty thousand have to do, so why not pretend you're writing a novel?
Here's some tips for getting your word count:

1. Just write
The word goal will never come if the paper stays blank or you keep deleting. Let it all out, then go back and fix your whirl wind.

2. Set time line goals
Since I started three days late, I'm aiming for 2,000 word per day. At some points, it can be really hard to get that next hundred words, but then another 300 hundred will just fly off your fingers out of no where. If you want to get 10,000 by the end of this month you'd only have to write 450 words a day, 5,000 you'd need 210 per day, and 1000 you'd need a measly 50 words per day.
The paragraph above is eighty words and took me less than two minutes to write, you can definitely have time to write a 1,000 word story this month.

3. Hold your story with an open hand
Have a general idea for the plot, but don't hold yourself rigidly to your preconceived notions and let the story lead you where it will. You may surprised, and may very be pleased with the results.

4. Stretch your word count
This will apply more to 10,000+ stories, but there are little things you can do to extend your word counts. Write out contractions (not so much in dialogue), instead of saying "them" or "they" say "Sara and Tom" or "my brothers", write out numbers. 147 counts as one word, but one hundred (and) forty seven is 4 (or 5) words.

5. Show don't tell!
"I was nervous" is three words, but "I chewed on my nails, and tried to act relaxed, but I felt ready to spring at a moments notice" is eighteen.

Try your hand at some creative writing this month, and good lock with your artistic endeavors!

What I want for Christmas.

To whom it may concern,
My desire for Christmas would be a unicorn. I don't mean a stuffed one, or any inanimate form of one. Also, I will not just "glue an ice cream cine to my horse's head" as has been suggested by some people. I want a REAL LIVING unicorn.
My unicorn most first and foremost be a legitimate, magical one. No rip off imports. Secondly, it must sparkle. It need not by "glitterly" but it's gotta have that signiture unicorn shimmer. I'm not fond of matte unicorns (though I suppose it would be better than no unicorn). It needs to have a long mane and tail, that remains free of tangles by unicorn magic, and the horn must by visible from 500 feet. It should look pretty, and let me ride it so I can train to run people through with it's horn for our mutual defense.
Ideally, this unicorn would be purple. I understand the birth rate of purple sparkly unicorns has dropped considerably in the past five years, so a blue, white, green, orange, yellow, gold, silver, or rainbow one will do. I don't like red or black unicorns, but again I'll take any unicorn over nothing.
Another detail that would be nice but not necessary would be for it to NOT be a stallion. I can't show a stallion for two more years, and I would like to show my unicorn, most likely in show jumping or dressage, depending on it's talents, and I'd like to rope off it too.
I understand that unicorns are relatively scarce, but rest assured I take very good care of equines, both mine and others, and the unicorn would be provided for in all it's housing, feed, exercise, vet, and farrier needs. It would have frequent, almost daily attention from me, and would be monitored by other trustworthy persons when I am not on sight.


Thank you for your kind consideration.

The Creepiest Show Ever

     Have you ever heard of or seen H.R. PuffnStuff? Well I hadn't either until my mom found it on netflix and decided to show it to me just for kicks, so I could see how bizarre it was. She was wrong. It's not just bizarre, it's downright CREEPY.
     For those of you not familiar with this freak show, let me give you a rundown. Jimmy is a boy that's skipping in the meadow with his flute, when a boat, yes a boat mind you comes by the shore and calls "come and play with me Jimmy." Talk about creepy.
     Now Jimmy is a total dodo brain and gets in the boat! I'd be really unnerved if a boat just pulled up in front of me and told me to get in it. I would have grabbed my magic flute and bashed it, then high tailed it out of there. I thought your parents told you never to go anywhere with a stranger? Apparently Jimmy didn't get the memo, or thought it didn't apply if the stranger was a mode of transportation.
    Big surprise when he finds out the boat was a trick from the witch "Witchipoo" (I kid you not), who wants Freddy (the magical talking flute) so he/it can play her music. Jimmy is almost in her clutches when he is rescued by "H.R. PuffnStuff" the mayor of "Living Island" where everything can talk and/or move. Unfortunately Jimmy is stuck there until they can find a way to get him off, though I don't understand why he can't get home. The premise of the series is Witchipoo, and her henchman (A giant yellow vulture (looks like a nightmare version of big bird) and some crazy looking orange thing that's fuzzy and has four arms)  trying to get Freddy, only to be foiled by Jimmy and PuffnStuff.
      You thought that was bad? That's only the theme song! Puffintuff is supposed to be a dragon, though he looked like a giant green, yellow, and red demented salamander. Living island is full of eye scorching clashing colors and patterns, and trees that can follow you and talk with Russian and Jamaican accents. In the episode I saw, Witchipoo and company dressed up in orange garbage bags and sunglasses, and sang about oranges in an attempted Freddy napping. Yeah. I think I am seriously scarred for life.
     I'm sure it's crossed your mind "PuffnStuff? Talking boats, idiot children with talking flutes? Man these guys must be on crack or something." Well here are the words to the last bit of the theme song
     H.R. Puffin Stuff
    Who's your friend when things get rough?
    H.R. Puffin Stuff
    You can't get a little 'cause you can't get enough
Need I say more?
                                                    
                                                      PuffnStuff, Jimmy and Witchipoo

 

                                                The el-creepo talking trees



P.S. The show was canceled after one season (surprise, surprise) and Jimmy never gets off the island. Poor kid, he'll live the rest of his life as a perpetual drug trip.

Awesome Sauce Composers: Alan Menken

       Who doesn't love Disney? And what's the best part about Disney? The songs of course!  Have you ever considered the genius behind these songs? Though there are many composers that have graced the Disney scene, it's most certainly arguable that Alan Menken has got to be the most influential and popular.
      Alan Menken has composed the scores for Beauty and the Best, The Little Mermaid, Hercules, Tangled, Enchanted, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Pochantas, Aladdin and The Newsies. He has also done scores for other lesser known Disney movies such as Home on the Range.
     He is also the composer for the additional songs found in the live musical versions of Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, and The Newsies. In addition he composed the score for Little Shop of Horrors.
      It surprises me how very few people actually know his name.This guy has the most Oscars of any living person, but a majority of people will go "Alan Menken who?"
     Alan Menken has got to one of my favorite composers. He's right up there with Bach. I know he's no where near the utter musical genius Bach is, but who is? His songs are memorable, fun, and moving and are in a variety of styles. You got the touching, moving and/or sad songs like Santa Fe, God Help the Outcasts, Home and Part of Your World, The Inspirational, feel good songs (though you've got to question the validity of the logic/theories of the lyrics sometimes) like Go the Distance, A Whole New World, I See the Light, Someday, and Seize the Day, and then the totally fun ones like Under the Sea, I Won't Say I'm in Love. Friend Like Me, That's How You Know, and Be Our Guest.
   He most often collabrated with the (late) Howard Ashman, Tim Rice, and Stephen Schwartz.
It's time this guy gets the attention he deserves. Now go pop in a Disney movie and belt out some Disney tunes in appreciation for this truly amazing composer. If you don't have time for a movie, why not sing along with one of these?

 

 

Awesome Sauce Composers: David Lanz

     David Lanz has got to be one of the greatest modern composers of piano music. I discovered him earlier this year by accident. Here's a sample of his awesome music

     He composes in the "New Age" genre. He says his pieces are supposed to make people enlightened, but I hate to it break it to him that I don't feel enlightened, though I do enjoy playing and listening to his music.
I love his style, I'd call it "Ornately Simple." The pieces are complex, yet there not. They also are very attainable in playability. The sound absolutely fabulous and impressive, and are rather simple for a player of modern attainments. I recommend every pianist to have "Dark Horse" in their repertoire. It knocks peoples socks off, and flows very nicely, easy to learn and memorize, I had it pretty much perfect in a little over a week. As long as you can play comfortably in octaves, it's easy.
      The simplicity aspect of his pieces is lovely. It gets the point across, and emotions are protrayed clearly. It touches the soul and impresses the listener, but in a subtle way, unlike some pieces that try to knock you over the head and say "look at me! I'm trying to be impressive and emotional."
He composes in a variety of styles, from more "classical" sounding to jazz and blues. His pieces are very creative, and many of them are a type of tone poem. I'm blown away by the fact that he composed an entire album (Skyline Firedance), and almost every song was entirely triplets, but they all sounded completely different! Now that's skill.
     I strongly encourage you to check him out, and as a pianist to learn some of his pieces (if any one is interested, I have the sheets for the songs above,and many more that I could make a copy of). He truly is a great composer, though he really needs to do something about his hair.

Writing Good Fiction Characters part 2

Non-human Characters

            When writing non-human characters, consistency is the key. Don’t go flip flopping around about rules, limitations, and species specfics, or change the rules half way through (important in any story).

There are three types of non-human characters. Each requires a different approach

Basically a human: These characters possess the same anatomy as humans. They may have slight visual differences (really short, really tall, really hairy, pointy ears), but they physically function like a human. They often have a different way of life, traditions, beliefs, and reactions than there “regular” human counterparts, but otherwise are very similar. They may also have special abilities or qualities in the race such as an ability to perform a specific form of magic, or a skill, primarily unique to those people. A good example would be Santa’s elves. They are visually different (short, pointy ears), live at the north pole, have crazy work ethics, are annoyingly cheerful, and wear funky outfits. They also are particularly good at making toys (unless of course you’re Hermie and wish to be a dentist). Though they are not human, they function very much like humans.

Humanoid: These characters appear outwardly to be human, though their bodies function different and may require different things to support life, visual differences are minor. They may or may not share human feelings and reactions, and often have “special powers.” They most certainly have a culture of there own, and probably don’t live and interact with “regular” humans on a daily basis. Consider Spock from Startrek. He looks very much like a human (aside from the creepy ears), but as he himself says, his anatomy and physiological function are different from “regular” humans. He lives on planet Vulcan where they have all sorts of bizarre traditions and a culture completely unique from humans. He does not feel emotions like humans. He also possesses the ability to perform the Vulcan “mind meld” to read other people’s thoughts. They important difference from the essentially human character is that the reader, once past the initial impression, will find it very clear that this character is NOT a human, even if visually similar. The basically humans characters are more of a human “sub culture.”

Totally Non Human: This is where it gets fun! The totally non-human character does not appear to be a human outwardly. They could be green with five nostrils and feathers, have fins, or be covered in fur. They are almost completely different from humans in beliefs and life styles. Their living requirements may or may not be compatible with humans. Examples include nyads, dryads, satyrs, trolls, shape shifters, sphinxes, werewolves, sprites, and any of the alien species in Star Wars. This also includes any animals that may be capable of “higher thought” and/or communication in your story such as dragons, griffons, unicorns, or other creatures of your imagination.

            Successful portrayal of the non human character requires careful planning. You must not break your own parameters about the character. The best and most memorable characters will not be the girl-with-antennae-who-is-in-no-way-different-from-normal-humans-besides-the-antennae, but the character who develops into a unique, engaging character that views life differently from “regular” humans. (a prime example would be Henny the Hoola from the Avalon series)

Description

            A good rule of thumb here is to never have more than a short paragraph of straight description for your character. Rather than mentioning their height, eye color, hair etc, all at once, sprinkle it through out the passage so your story doesn’t become stilted.

            Billy was a kid that was pretty tall. He had brown curly hair, and glasses with wire rims that magnified his hazel eyes. He wore a red polo, with a pair of khaki slacks. His shoes were a worn pair of black converse. He was of medium build, and seemed unsure of himself.

            Vs.

            A brown, curly, head peeking above the masses caught Jim’s eye. That must be the new kid, he thought. He managed to jostle his way across the room and sat down next to him.

            “I’m Jim,” he said, “what’s your name?”

            “Uh, I’m Billy,” the new kid said staring intently at the scuffed toes of his converse.

            The first example is just plain boring, not to mention poorly written. The second example has more action, and we find out almost all the details mentioned in example one with out being hammered over the head with Billy was et al. Jim and Billy should then proceed to interact some more, and eventually we’ll find out that Billy has glasses and hazel eyes, as it best fits in the story.

             I honestly don’t think the fact that Billy has a medium build, or is wearing a polo and khakis is worth even mentioning. Now, if Billy was lanky, fat, or wore unusual clothes, then it would make sense, but adding such mundane unnecessary details is a sure way to lose your reader’s interest fast.

            Also be careful of the descriptive terms you use. If you are writing an intense battle scene and I start giggling because you chose to describe Sir Lancelot in the terms “His ebony tresses were fraught with perspiration,” that is not a good thing. Also try not to make your metaphor’s super ridiculous (unless of course, you are intentionally trying to make your readers laugh, and it is done well). There is no place for metaphor’s or similes such as “her eye’s glinted like the scales of a rainbow trout in the sun,” or “the mug was the shade of blue of a Siamese cat’s eyes.” Over the top description and flowery terms are not necessary. Use the best words to communicate your meaning and characters, but please, don’t stick in random words from the thesaurus just because, especially if you don’t know what it means. Synonyms do not always mean the exact same thing! Most important of all, let the story shape the character, and drop your load of excessive descriptive nonsense.

Owning your character

The bookworm, the dreamer, the thief, the small town girl, the unlikely hero, they’ve all been done before. That doesn’t mean that your character is a nothing special done to death persona. Just like the love story, the life and death chase, and grand adventure stories have all been done before, it’s the way YOU portray the story and the characters. The way you build them into believable characters that your reader can come to know intimately, the way you shape their thoughts and reactions, the unique quirks you give them, and the subtle twists you add to the normal perception of that character type. “Stock” characters are not boring, shallow, and useless. You can effectively utilize them be developing them into deep, wonderful characters that are solely yours.

           

Writing Good Fiction Characters part 1

Note: The Following pertains particularly to dynamic characters. Sometimes you may wish to create a static character that breaks all these rules just to drive you readers crazy, or annoy your others characters.

What makes a good fiction character? Many things go into creating a multi-faceted character that captures your readers interest, but without believability or "relatability"  your character will fail.

Believability and "Relatability"

Skills and abilities

Billy is really smart and has good grades. (believable)
Billy is really smart, has good grades, and is a very good singer in the school choir. (believable)
Billy is really smart, has good grades, is a very good singer in the school choir and is on the varsity soccer team. (still pretty believable)
Billy is really smart, has good grades, a very good singer in the school choir, on the varsity soccer team, plays ten instruments at a virtuosic capacity, a gourmet chef, eagle scout, speaks five languages, runs the local animal shelter, baby sits for free every night, and works three jobs. Oh, he's also never stressed or tired, and he's NEVER EVER crabby, mean, selfish, or reactive (NOT believable)

No one is perfect, and no one can do everything well. Just because your character is fictional, doesn't mean he has to seem fake. Your reader will quickly loose interest if there is nothing Billy cannot do. Does that mean your character can't do a lot of things? No, "jack-of-all-trades" characters that dabble in many things, and may be fairly good at quite a few, are believable. Just as long as while they are bouncing from hobby to hobby, they aren't crazy good at all of them. Most likely, they will specialize in a few certain areas (for example, Jim enjoys sailing, woodworking, hunting, fishing and basketball. He is particularly good at fishing and sailing.) 
Your character, if in some sort of fantasy or sci-fi, might possess some ability(s) that allow him or her to do things other people can't. The may even have a power to enable then to do many things (For example, how the wizards in Harry Potter can use magic to apparate, transfigure, modify objects, and a million other things). Again it's important that your character still remains beleivable through your protrayal and limiting the amount of powers he possesses. It's also important that your character isn't infallible, which brings us to...


Character Flaws and Weaknesses


The man of steel becomes naught but a helpless babe at the sight of Krypotonite. Harry Potter and friends can't do diddly squat (magically) without their wands. Even though these character are powerful, they still have weaknesses. Because your character can become vulnerable, your readers won't just set down the book knowing the main character will beat the villain since he's invincible. Rather you will have your reader so enthralled and questioning whether or not they really can do it. HP Spoiler Warning Speaking of Harry Potter he even has to die before good can triumph. I personally prefer keeping characters special abilities at a minimum, but whatever you do, be sure they can be beat.


If your character is perfect in skills, you can still pull off believability under one condition, your character is can be related to through character flaws. Real people have feelings and react to situations. Real people are selfish. Real people, no matter how nice they are will have times where they are angry, mean, prideful, or jealous. You will not ruin your character because they snap at people for no reason, or can act selfish, on the contrary, your character will be enriched because your readers feel the can RELATE to the character and how the feel.
Your readers will also feel a disconnect if your character never struggles to do things, or those struggles are minor. If your character was illiterate, and suddenly is reading fluently in by three days, you've lost believability AND "relatability". Stories are so much more engaging if nothing ever seems to go right for the character. Your readers will understand what it is like to grapple with a difficult task or new skill, and thus through relating, you get believability.


Dealing with Trauma and Tragedy

One of my biggest pet peeves are characters that despite a horrendous past, or a terrible tragedy, are completely normal and un-scarred. If your character was abused as a child, orphaned, had all their siblings die, lost their dog, and became crippled in the left foot due to a terrible accident (which it so happens also killed the character's one and only friend), Are they going to just stand up, smile, and bounce off happily like nothing happened? Heck no! They are going to be intrinsically changed, because of the trauma.


The first half of this is the initial reaction. For example, if your character sees someone die that is close to them (or just witnesses someone's death), they will react in some way. The may cry, go numb, act like nothing has happened, blame somebody, or lash out. The tragedy/trauma will effect them. It's understandable if the character is in the middle of a battle and sees his friend die, he may not have much time to process if he's preoccupied fighting, but you can be sure it will hit him eventually.
The second (and very often overlooked) part of the trauma reaction is the long term ramifications. Ever heard of Post Traumatic Stress (PSTD)? If not, look it up. People are permanently affected by trauma. Even if the event may only be traumatic to your character, or be not so "traumatic" as to cause something such as PSTD, it still can affect and change your character. If your character has more of a long term tragic life, that was hard and/or abusive, and they haven't known any other way, they still will find ways to cope. They may become withdrawn, stifle their feelings, have anxiety or anger problems, depression etc. For example, I have a character who's reaction to trauma and tragedy was to go intermittently mute.
Another important part of good writing and character development is portrayal of the grieving process. Your character will react (Hannah cries and cries when her dog gets hit by a car), go through a mourning and grieving period (Hannah has trouble sleeping because she misses her dog, she cries a lot, and doesn't want to be around other dogs, she may get angry and lash out at others), and reconciliation (Hannah begins to talk about her dog to others, she begins to interact with dogs again,and may eventually get another dog.). Even when your character comes to the point where they are at terms with their grief, they still will be affected (Hannah still misses her dog, and sometimes becomes very sad). 


Characters that can be related to and are believable are the first step in creating a good story.