Writing a twisted antagonist was difficult and a little exciting. His take on the world is twisted to say the least. He finds beauty and joy in things that a normal person would find disturbing. His rationalization for killing has a corrupted logic but still follows a clear line of thinking.


When I was writing my first murder scene, I was lucky to have the support of other writer's reviewing my work. I fogged over the details of his thoughts and actions, but my support group pushed me to go deeper. Darker. Oddly enough, I knew I'd found success with Roger when my dog would become nervous whenever I wrote his scenes. She'd whine and shake and claw at my leg like she was saying, "What's wrong? I don't like this!" I'd realize my body was rigid, my mouth turned down in a scowl. I was feeling the emotions of the character.


Novelists are a lot like actors - only a writer's stage is the pages of his book.

               

                                                      . .                           -C.B. Gardner


 


Writing and music. When I first starting writing Angels And Misfits, i never listened to country music. I mean, never. But when I wrote Scott's scenes, I imagined country music as the soundtrack. He's transparent when it comes to his feelings about Alison, like the lyrics in a country song. No hidden agenda. Heart on his sleeve. I never would've guessed that a character would have opened my appreciation to a new genre of music. 

-C.B.Gardner


Novelist

  Thoughts On Writing

I had almost forgotten how lost I become when embarking on a new creative endeavor. The process of creating - whether it be a character, a scene, a painting, or sculpture - is consuming. No matter how many times I start a new project, I am astonished when I look at the clock and realize that hours have passed and I've thought of nothing else but that project. There's nothing more alluring than when hyper-focus hits when all outside stimuli is quieted to a whisper. 

C.B Gardner


December 5,

Post-it Notes, A Writer's Best Friend


When writing a complicated story, like Angels & Misfits, with multiple characters whose actions must weave together to create the climax, Post-It notes are a writer's best friend. 


These sticky squares of script (gotta love alliteration) became my flexible outline. I knew what each character needed to accomplish to apply the capstone to the story, but I wasn't certain of the hows or whens. Characters tend to take on a life of their own outside of the authors control. I wanted to give them room to roam and Post-it notes became my device. 


Imagine a 3' x'4' bulletin board covered with columns of multiple colored papers. Each column was a chapter. Each color represented a different main character. Each paper represented a character's action. I could be easily replace, add or delete an action  without reworking the entire story outline. 


Why didn't I just use One Note or an equivalent program? There's something about taking pen to paper to bring life to an idea. Or crumpling up a paper and tossing it in a trash can. Good riddance!


Give me a stack of cotton candy pink or electric blue and I'm ready to write. ​

                                                                                           

                                                                                                   - C.B. Gardner