S.A. Welsh's Blog

Characters Are People Too.
Characters are people too. I don’t mean that characters appear behind you, looming over the back of your chair to peak at your kindle or book, because that would be creepy (yes, I just looked behind me to make sure there's no one there), but rather that the best characters and certainly my favorite characters are those who appear to have a story and journey of their own. It is all very well to have a dream man with a killer body and cocky smile but does that really compensate for having no background, no likes or dislikes? In my opinion, no.
That’s not to say that I am opposed to a good bit of eye candy, I love a good looking man with a plan as much as the next person and sometimes you just need a bit of easy lovin'. However, when I want to get my teeth into something juicy, a book that I have to stay up all night to finish reading, I look for a little more. For a character to really grab me they need a back story. For me, a character should have a whole history and just like in crime shows where the cops go undercover as a completely new person, they have a new character. That character may hate coffee (perish the thought) or may be addicted to those tasty little caramel chocolates that circulate the stores at Christmas or they may even like to dress up as a purple unicorn caller Bert. Hmmm, I digress.
Anyway, back to characters. Characters have to be individuals, you can take a bad boy turned good, an anti-hero, a geek, a jock, a good guy, the boy next door or even an ex that comes back but that model means nothing if there isn’t any substance. My favorite authors can take a model like one of these and make a character so life-like, so fleshy and tangible that the FBI and the CIA would have trouble proving they weren't real. These characters have flaws, they have dreams and aspirations and they make mistakes. Andrew, in my book Out of CTRL, has body issues just like a lot of other people, he has misjudged people, he has been hurt and struggled but he's also incredibly protective of the people he loves, has a tendency to plant spam pop-up bombs on peoples' computers and he will agree to almost anything to stop his feet being tickled.
There is no magic formula to do this but the author and reader imagination is a wonderful thing, so wonderful in fact that the suspension of disbelief is a very real thing. A reader can believe the unbelievable and the author can create a character that seduces, annoys, irritates and charms reader. Despite the fact there are just as many people to say nay as yay for the Twilight series, the polarization of the two male leads is relevant here as the characters carry a certain weight, there is a history with Carlisle's shared experiences and a future with Alice's vision and even insight into the private spaces of other characters in the brief episode of Edward's perspective. Putting the story and plot aside, the characters themselves offer something unique in the mix of flaws and qualities that resonate. Every character is unique and not every reader is going to picture the character in exactly the same way, just like people in the non-book world (reality) perceive 'real' people.
I can walk down the street and see a man in a trench coat and platinum blond hair and have a fan girl moment of thinking "oh, my god, it's Spike!" but my friend could walk with me and think "I wish it was Angel". Again, the key thing is that the characters have…well, character. Simply put they have a beginning, middle and end, just like a story.
 This article is also available to read on BTSe Mag - http://btsemag.com/characters-are-people-too-by-sa-welsh/
 
 
 
 

I have totally revamped this blog. Hopefully you like it. To celebrate, I'm running a giveaway for a $10 Amazon gift certificate. All you have to do is comment below. :)

Thank you for all the birthday wishes. To mark the ocassions I am offering up a print copy of Painted Paths. Plus an audio copy of Jaguar Mate. If you would like to be entered into the draw please leave a comment (either here or on my facebook page) telling what type of shifter you would like to be... I will announce winner on Sunday/Monday. Thanks All!

Take a look :~)

All the names of those who entered (including those who mailed me) and the two winners are  . . .

Drum roll please . . . . . . . . . . Immortal Pyro and Nicole, could you please email me at sa_welsh@yahoo.com so I can send you Heart of Ice in ebook form please? Thanks.

Thank you again to everyone who entered
SA

Hello all. As usual I am holding a competition for a copy of my new release Heart of Ice - Demon Souls #1 ( out 12th May from Silver Publishing ) So all you have to do is leave a comment on my Facebook Page or my Blog and I'll do the good old fashioned names is a hat thing and pick two winners. Both of the names I pick out on the 12th will get an ebook copy of Heart of Ice.  So again, just leave a comment on my page saying you want to enter the competition.SA

Hey guys.
A few people have been asking for an update on this one so here it is. Heart of Ice (Demon Souls #01) is now up for Pre-order from silver publishing. Pre-order LINK
My new website www.sawelsh.webs.com will be updated every few days as well as my facebook page (Where I will hold the competition on the day of release for a free ebook copy). The excerpt for it will also be up tomorrow on my website so please take a look.
Love SA

http://sawelsh.webs.com/

Please check it out :)

Hey everyone.
Its that time of year again and I have decided to hold another competition after the success of the previous ones. So here it is-


First we have the prize of ebook copies of both Painted Paths and Jaguar Mate as well as the winner also getting to name a character in the next Pack Valley book. Winner picked at random.


All you have to do to enter is either leave a comment on my Facebook Page letting me know you wish to enter. Best of luck and I hope everyone is having a great holiday season.


SA

Okay everybody- I'm sorry but I am a bit behind where I thought I'd be a few months ago but here is a small snipit of the half way done Lynx In Shadow (working title)  to see what you think-



Run, Run!        He had to keep moving. Protect his mate. Run!Winter dried leaves and branches broke and crunched underfoot as he ran, his back legs burning with adrenaline and lungs strained with urgent fear. If the hunters caught him then he couldn't protect his mate.Protect mate, must protect. Must run!            Claws digging into the frozen he gave one last push before leaping into the air and flying towards freedom – BANG! Scolding paint shot through his shoulder.BANG! His breath escaped him in a painful rush as his chest felt as if it were caving on itself from the bullets, but he couldn't stop. His thick rusty fur was now blotched with red, the stain growing, he could feel it spreading like a damning sentence but if he fell then it would cost him everything. His mate, his pack and there would be nothing left to live for. He couldn't. Must protect mate.He couldn't let himself be caught or run to his pack or mate for shelter, if he led his hunters to his mate then there would be nothing left for him. He couldn't cause his mates death, no matter his own suffering instead.He couldn't stop, couldn't rest, had to lead them away. Away from his mate, his pack... his home. One last howl and he left everything behind. The hunters would follow. They always did. He couldn't feel his mate as the bond grew thinner and thinner until the darkness drowned it. The bond had silenced. There was nothing. Nothing but darkness. And pain.

"JAY- Mate! Wake up! It's just a dream, you're safe. I promise. I won't let anyone hurt you again," his mate's voice drifted to him but it didn't break through the fog. It was the same dream every night for a week. But this was different. Before he'd just gotten images or feelings but this was the whole surround sound, smell and touch 4D experience.            "Again," he sobbed. Would this happen every time he closed his eyes?Jay had to get away though, had to get the dirty terror off of his skin. Trying to escape that helpless feeling that kept dragging him back into hysterics he ran in to bathroom, fighting the tears that ran down his face. Turing the cold tap on and filling the large His & His sink, Jay dunked his head under the freezing water.He refused to come up until Ky gently smoothed his bare back followed by a wet wash cloth, cooling his fevered skin."Its okay, Jay."After a few long minutes strong arms wrapped around him and though he should feel panicked the scent of his mate reassured him and made him feel safe. His mate lifted him with ease and carried him, clutched to his chest like precious cargo, back to the huge bed.His heart was still beating so fast it felt like it would burst "mate, you need to calm down, focus on your breath. In… and out. In and out, good now try to match your heart beat to mine, concentrate my love." Ky emphasised the gentle order by taking his hand and placing their entwined hands over his heart.Ba-boom. Ba-boom. Ba-boom. The steady beat slowly brought Jay's down back to calmness, the adrenaline that had been rushing through him now gone, leaving him shaky and his skin damp with sweat."Are you ready to tell me what happened baby?""Hunters," he forced out as his heart skipped a beat.

I'm glad to be back and up and running with shiny new Internet.

In the spirit of the upcoming holiday - what is everyones favourite scary- or sexy/naughty Halloween being you would hate or love to come across on the night freedom where our imaginations come out to play ?
mmmmm werewolf- yipeee! (Except I always wondered if werewolves get flees?) Perhaps I can ask if I ever meet one who wont.... you know kill me.......