Characters and Chapters without a name...
So a few weeks ago I put on a little stint to test the waters in my follower pool. The idea, as it's always been, has been to get people talking and get people active. To do this I really wanted to provide the right venues and opportunities. At first I wasn't sure of what exactly I wanted to do in order to achieve this. There were many ideas that came popping into my head but none of them felt very appealing. That was until one of my followers had an amazing idea to start letting some of my most devoted followers help write the book. The idea seemed novel at first but in truth has been done in other books with some success. So I decided to start with my latest completion, Pedirol.
Pedirol is definitely, for lack of a better word, a total mind freak. The idea for the book came from a series of dreams that then turned into a standalone book. The book itself was a blast to write as it truly was wide open. It was due to this wide open feel that I decided to put out the search for avid readers willing to tackle naming some chapters. These readers would be given a chapter of the book to read and dissect by themselves. Then, without any knowledge of the rest of the book, they would put out a name for that chapter. Just describing it has me excited. This allows the reader to really place a name that could potential be the name on my published book. It also allows me to see how the chapter truly feels apart from the rest, a unique opportunity to let people dive in deeper.
Then came the names. Names are usually something I spend a considerable amount of time on as I feel like they can reflect so much. The goal, as always, is to make the memorable. A name should really feel like it belongs to the character in the story. This requires some research and a spark of creativity. But for my latest book, a work in progress, I decided to let some of my followers help me choose. A post was put out. A request was given. Names then showered in. I was excited to see so much feedback in so little time. And to be honest, a little overwhelmed, which was a good thing. After going over a list of names a few times I decided on the ones that best suited my future needs. These are all now sitting in limbo waiting for the right character. What was exciting about this little contest I put on was seeing the diversity of names that came in. I never would have come up with such a wide variety in names had I not tried this method. I was ecstatic to announce the winners of the contest whom I shall credit here again.
Veronica Fruia, Erika Logan, Kara Carter, Debbie Barton Lund-Gonzales, Shane Marquis, and Bryan Weber!
No one says it like Leo, Thank you!
The names they came up with were awesome. I can't wait to find the right spot for them at which point credit will be due for the contributing followers. As I press on into future books I'm going to continue this sense of community. I want my creativity to grow through the creativity of others helping it grow. It never ceases to amaze me just what people have dwelling in their minds. As I always say my goal has been to unlock the handcuffs of reality. And I truly believe that by helping creative minds interact, including my own, that I will.
A BIG shout out to all my awesome followers!
If you have any friends who would love to get in on the action please bring them in. The more the merry and I can only benefit from further amazing ideas.
I live and die by my followers and fans so thank you again! I will have a lot more coming soon as well as my latest ready for publishing book, Fathom. I'll definitely be holding some contests and perks there when the time comes.
If you’re reading this and haven’t subscribed DO IT! You’ll be a part of this amazing process.
