Act It Out!
by Tonja Taylor

Writers want their readers to have an excellent vicarious experience from their work. One way to infuse your writing with realistic effects, especially in fiction, is to act out what your characters are thinking, speaking, and doing.

This can involve facial expressions, other body language, and even volume and tone of voice as you speak out loud what your characters are or will or might say.

You are truly "becoming" your character(s), and acting out their lives.

To do this effectively, we must know our characters, and how they would respond in certain situations--even during trauma or very unusual circumstances. So another tip is to write out character descriptions for each character, making them unique from one another so there is no confusion in your mind, nor the reader's.

For instance, my main character, Princess Pearl, has been raised in a loving, stable Christian home since she was created by God in her mother's womb.  But she meets a young teen that has had the opposite life, and the teen cannot usually understand where Pearl is coming from.

I created these characters a few years ago, and know them well. So when Pearl starts talking about God, and looking up a verse in Exodus, Xi--who has never read the Bible--can only think of Exodus as a great name for a rock group. As Pearl is telling Xi about Genesis 50:20, where the LORD works all the junk of the enemy for good, Xi wonders about that, because of her very rough life, and an extremely traumatic experience with her mom--and no dad in the picture.

However, as Christian writers, above all, we must know the character of God, and convey this to our readers as much as possible--no matter what's going on in our characters' lives. That is our mission as writers for Him on this planet.

So it is very important that, while Pearl (who is younger than Xi) is doing all she knows to be the best witness to Xi and share the truth with her, she also be open to correction by her loving mother and other believing adults, and most of all, to the Spirit of God living in her heart.

The main thing, of course, is to ask the LORD--Elohim, the Creator and Author of all good things--to write through you, and guide your mind and hands, so that what He wants flows through you. He knows exactly what your readers need and want to read, to be drawn closer to Him.

I've been amazed sometimes at some scenes He's written through me. Some have been emotional experiences for me as He's writing them--including while acting them out--and I've had to ask Him to make sure it was Him, and not just my emotions or memories or other soulish things!

God is a faithful Father, and the Prince of Peace. His Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth Who leads us in right paths, always, and John 16:13 (AMPC) states: But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.

So if you write something and it just doesn't seem to fit in your current work, keep it and ask the LORD where else it may fit; possibly it is an article on its own.

He is faithful, and He will help you!

All Your commandments are faithful and  sure....Psalm 119:86a, AMPC



Tonja and her husband live to exalt God. They lift Him up in books (P.O.W.E.R. Girl!; LEGACY; Visions of the King; Your Holy Health; more); presentations; service in church, community, and the world; and via the "River Rain Creative" (309 videos) and "POWERLight Learning" You Tube channels.

Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com







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