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Monday, March 10, 2014

Virtual Book Tour & Giveaway for A Canter of the Heart by E. E. West



Welcome to my stop on author E.E. West's Virtual Book Tour for A Canter of the Heart, presented by Reading Addiction Book Tours, from February 14 - March 14, 2014.  Please leave a comment or question for E.E. to let her know you stopped by.  You can enter her tour wide giveaway by filling out the Rafflecopter form below.  You can also follow the rest of the tour here.  



Online Dating and the Art of Character Development by E. E. West

“Getting to know you, getting to know all about you...” Go ahead, sing along, you know you want to, after all, who can resist a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical. If you can't remember the tune then schedule a date – just you and your main characters – for a night out to see 'The King and I.' After all, you'll probably learn more about them that way than by sitting there and staring at that blank piece of paper.

The truth is, compelling characters make compelling novels, and until you truly get to know your main characters, you may find your novels... for lack of a better word... lacking. But don't fret, creating unforgettable characters is as easy as online dating – at least they're a lot alike. Actually, this is where character development, and online dating, can both become quite fun! Shall we begin?

I start by setting up a free email account for each of my main characters, and then do the same with a free online dating service. Keep in mind that this is, no doubt, frowned upon by service providers, so, as far as you know, I'm only using this as an example of a unique way to build great thee-dimensional characters for your book, and, if you ever were to do this, make sure you delete the account when you're done, otherwise, when your book takes off, these accounts will probably get more email and winks than Brad Pitt on steroids.

Now for the fun part, simply fill in the blanks: relationship, height, body type and so on until you've finished.  Don't forget to add a headline, and he or she should write a few paragraphs on who they're looking for. It's also interesting to fill out the details on who they're looking for. Of course, if your main character is married than you will need to improvise, but I'm sure you get the idea.

While this is a great mental exercise to help humanize your characters, it is by no means a complete set of attributes to round them out. Here is an additional list of questions to help you interview your characters, and to help get you, and your character, headed in the right direction: Where were you born? Where did you grow up? Where are you living now? Married or single? Any children? What do you do for a living? Any military service? Have you been arrested or convicted? Do you have an accent, tattoos, scars? Do you use slang? Any handicaps? Character defects? Pet peeves? Motivations and ambitions? Traumas that haunt or drive you forward? How do you dress? Who do you idolize? What are your favorite sights, sound, smells or favorite foods, do you mind being touched? Do you like or love animals? What climates do you prefer? And the list goes on and on, but one last thing you might ask yourself is: Do you like them, and will your readers root for them?  If your characters are not likeable, and your readers can't bring themselves to care for them then you may have a problem, but keep in mind that there is a completely different science for making the morally bankrupt or otherwise reprehensible character likeable in the eyes of your readers.

Have fun, and keep on writing.


E. E. West.

A Canter of the Heart
By E.E. West

Publisher: D. A. Robinson
Release Date: December 15, 2013
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Length: 315 Pages
ASIN: B00GW39FA0

Buy Links: Amazon Barnes & NobleSmashwords


About the book: 


A beautiful Australian para-equestrian, Eleanor, is rudely awakened the morning after her twentieth birthday to face two pressing problems: the first, though she refuses to accept it, is that she's been told by many acquaintances and relations that she'll never find true love, and the second being, though she doesn't know it yet, that she can't even get up the steps to visit the blasted night-club with her mates! What no one knows is that one random act of chivalry, at the hands of a handsome American naval flight officer, is about to turn her world upside down. The heartfelt and sometimes harrowing journey that follows is as humorous as it is inspirational.

A Canter of the Heart is the romance of a new millennium, a story that you've never heard before, and one that should take its place amongst the iconic romances of our time. But most importantly, it is a romance that will speak, most unapologetically, to your heart. A Canter of the Heart is the first book in ‘The Equestrian and the Aviator’ trilogy that sets our intrepid heroine on the journey of a lifetime. The first thing that you will no doubt discover is that Eleanor, fickle girl that she is, has already found the love of her life – her inspiring love of horses.

This trilogy is based on a true story, and is a testament to the therapeutic riding programs offered by the Riding for the Disabled Association of Australia. It is dedicated to the many remarkable, selfless people who made and continue to make those programs possible. 




About E.E. West

I've been a resident of the Pacific Northwest for the better part of two decades, and blithely accept life in the shadows of the nesting grounds of bald eagles while ensconced amidst the company of wild, damp and understandably nervous bunnies. I prefer to write at the dining room table, where the light is better and I can work next to Simon, the sweetest one hundred and twenty pound Rottweiler that you're ever likely to meet -- except when he's in the mood to editorialize, which he is only on rare occasions. I much prefer to write love stories that take place in warm, sunny and exotic locales as I admire and rate the latest downpour direct from the Pacific Northwest's over-active convergence zone, but in my heart I will forever be drawn back to the lucky country... Australia... and maybe one more lovely canter along an endless beach.  

Website: EEWest.com




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