by Deanna Wadsworth
Can weather be a character in your book?
As I sat on the porch enjoying a glass of
pinot grigio with my husband, watching a spring thunderstorm play out, I asked
myself this question. Can the weather be a significant character in your book?
Well, I suppose the answer is yes and no.
If your character is sad or depressed perhaps a sunny day can be used to
illustrate the juxtaposition of their emotions. Would a rainy day be cliché to
illustrate sadness and/or loneliness? Perhaps, but I suppose it all depends on
how you write it. Maybe a sunny day would be a better way to illustrate their
emotion. The biggest thing about making the weather not just a part of the
setting, but a character in your novel, is that no one should know that it is significant.
How do you do that, you may ask?
Well, just as we put thought into what
our character wears, what they look like, and how they feel, we have to
remember that the weather changes how people think and behave. If it is gloomy
and dark, do we and/or our characters feel affected by that? Do they get
excited when the sun is shining? Are we angry or happy about rain? Honestly,
when I was sitting with the hubby having wine and watching the storm roll in,
it conjured wonderful memories of watching thunderstorms from my grandparents’
porch, where we all would read and watch the rain. Situations like this should
and will influence our characters and their behaviors. We are writing romance
after all, and emotion is at the heart of it all.
So the next time you begin your edits—really,
don’t worry about the weather in your rough draft LOL—think about what it is
doing outside. How will your characters emotions be affected by what is
happening outside? Do you need to lay it all out, describing the storm? Perhaps
like this:
They sat
in a silence neither seemed ready to fill. The rain came down heavier now,
periodic gusts causing the sound to shift as the building was pelted in
irregular waves. Occasional bursts of lightening reflected the charged energy
in the room. The real tempest brewed inside, swirling around them in a gale of
risk and reward, danger and desire.
You can be obvious like this, but you can
also be subtle. Only using the weather as a way that YOU as the author realize
might affect the scene. You don’t have to explain how it changed the scene, but
you will know and the reader will
feel it with you without ever being told.
This little tip might be just enough to
add a layer of emotion and intrigue to your book without even trying. J
~D
Deanna
Wadsworth might be a bestselling erotica author, but she leads a pretty vanilla
life in Ohio with her wonderful husband and a couple adorable cocker spaniels.
She has been spinning tales and penning stories since childhood, and her first
erotic novella was published in 2010. When she isn’t writing books or
brainstorming with friends, you can find her making people gorgeous in a beauty
salon. She loves music and dancing, and can often be seen hanging out on the
sandbar in the muddy Maumee River or chilling with her hubby and a cocktail in
their basement bar. In between all that fun, Deanna cherishes the quiet times
when she can let her wildly active imagination have the full run of her mind.
Her fascination with people and the interworkings of their relationships have
always inspired her to write romance with spice and love without boundaries.
Buy Deanna’s books at Decadent
Publishing or at any reputable eBook seller
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