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Chautona Havig

Chautona Havig

Using story to connect YOU to the Master Storyteller

Torturing My Characters: One Inspiration at a Time

by Chautona Havig · 2 Comments

The sun has gone down.”

My friend’s disappointment shrouded the restaurant table.

Now I can’t give you the koliva.”

How do you respond to that? I don’t know. I just asked the obvious question. “Why?”

The veil of dismay lifted. Her eyes lit up. And she began to explain.

Torturing My Characters One Inspiration at a Time

Note: Links in this post may be affiliate links and may provide me with a small commission at no cost to you.

My friend… I love her.

You know, her Greek accent never makes it difficult to understand what she says Strange, how that is. Occasionally, she pauses, searching for the English equivalent to a word for which there is none. But otherwise, our conversations flow.

She’s told me about her son’s baptism, the traditions for naming children, the delightful idioms that make as little sense in English as some of their English equivalents. Don’t believe me? What do we say when it’s just pouring outside?

It’s raining cats and dogs.”

Tell me that makes sense. I mean, really. The Greeks aren’t any more logical. They say:

It’s raining chair legs.”

Or, rather, that’s the literal translation, anyway.

We say a race is “neck and neck.” I suspect because of horse racing, but I can’t prove that. The Greeks say, “Breast to breast”—like runners in a marathon. And then there’s the bit about eating someone’s cabbage. I never do get the saying right, but the gist is that you’ll get ahead of them somehow.

And she says My Big Fat Greek Wedding is pretty close to how it really is!  Hollywood got it right, for once!

Can you imagine how fascinating our conversations are?

Greek Birthday
This looked almost like a Greek Birthday cake to me!

It’s her birthday. We go out to lunch. She gets to pay for it. Why? Because she’s Greek. And in Greece, if you go out for your birthday, you pay for everyone. It’s rude to invite people out and expect them to treat you. (I still haven’t gotten it into her head that if I invite her, then it’s not RUDE. Hmph). So, I let her win that one. After all, my birthday is coming in a couple of months.

My birthday arrives.

She insists on paying for lunch. Why? Because I am not Greek. I am American. And in America, you treat the birthday person.

Look, I’ve got mad skills of persuasion. I almost always win these arguments—or at least have the quickest draw on the check. Seriously, I’m good.

She’s better.

And I shamelessly use her for inspiration. This time, to torture characters.

Picture it: An American police officer—I’m thinking Chicago. She and her partner pull over a man matching the description of a wanted suspect. They take him in for questioning and identification. He’s Greek. He’s not their guy. And he’s amused.

So where’s the torture, you ask? I’ll tell you. But first, just remember. Like I explained back in THIS POST, it is an author’s duty to torture her characters. It’s what we do! Without it, you get a conflict-less, yawnable book!

Torturing my characters one inspiration at a time.

I’m going to make her fall in love with this guy. Lest you think this book is just another romance, well it is. But not the kind you think it is. Sure, she’s going to find herself head-over-heels for a Greek dude. And yeah, he’ll help her work through some of the demons in her past. Sure, he’ll have to move back to Greece to help his father and make her choose between him and her family life in America.

Wait, what?

Yeah. That. I’m going there. I’m sending this non-Greek, linguistically-challenged, American cop to live in a little Greek village on an olive farm. Yes, I am.

And that’s not all. She can’t work in Greece. Nope, she can’t. She can’t help with the family business, either. When you don’t speak the language, it doesn’t work. So, while the family fights to keep the farm up and going, she’ll be getting to know everyone better—and making lots of cultural mistakes.

Like serving koliva for dessert one night because she knew how much her husband loved it at that 40-day memorial dinner they just attended.

Don’t know why that’s a big deal? Yeah, well she doesn’t either. But trust me. It is. And you’ll just have to wait to find out why.

Meanwhile, she falls in love all right–with Greece.

Greek FlagSummer 2018. I’m going to Greece. It’s called research. And guess what? The joke’s on me because I’m the one being tortured until then.

Meanwhile, I can’t wait for our next lunch meeting. I won’t be able to grab the check. It’s her birthday. But hey, if she has to pay for her own birthday lunch, maybe she can spin me a few more stories for her supper. I need more inspiration. Greek friends are cool… and they’re great at helping me torture my characters.

I’ve got one question for YOU.

What do I name this book?  I want to call it “Eat Their Cabbage” but my friend tells me it’s no good.

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Comments

  1. Andrea Rossignol says

    April 20, 2017 at 1:15 pm

    Ooh! I can’t wait to read it! (but I suppose I’ll have to!) And what a great way to research!

    Reply
    • Chautona Havig says

      April 20, 2017 at 10:57 pm

      It’s going to be awesome. Even if the book stinks. 😉

      Reply

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The Because Fiction Podcast

The Because Fiction Podcast
The Because Fiction Podcast

Taking the pulse of Christian fiction

Episode 265: A Chat with Karen Witemeyer
byChautona Havig

Nothing says fairy tale like a sweet western romance by an author like Karen Witemeyer… unless it’s a fairytale retelling set in Texas in the late 19th century, right?  Fairest of Heart takes the familiar “Snow White” and turns it on its head with retired cowboys, a self-absorbed actress, a Texas Ranger, and a sweet girl who knows the true Source of her beauty.  Listen in to see all the genius Easter eggs Witemeyer planted in this book.

Note: links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you.

Sometimes All a Girl Needs Is a True Change of Heart

I fell in love with the cover of Karen Witemeyer’s Head Over Heels a few years back (only to learn it’s much older than that, even), and meant to read that book.  I didn’t.  #BecauseIdiot. Well, that’ll be rectified just as soon as I’m done listening to her first book in a trilogy of fairytale retellings. I loaded it up on my Audible app tonight and wheeeeeeee. Here I go! So much for no new books until October. HA! 

Karen talks about her heart for young women today and how they’re taught by every bit of media blasting at them that they need to use their bodies to get what they need or want when the Lord has a better plan. And I can’t guarantee it, but I strongly suspect she does it without preaching. SQUEE!

Fairest of Heart by Karen Witemeyer

Once upon a time in Texas . . .

Beauty has been nothing but a curse to Penelope Snow. When she becomes a personal maid for a famous actress whose troupe is leaving Chicago to tour the West, she hides her figure beneath shapeless dresses and keeps her head down. But she still manages to attract the wrong attention, leaving her prospects in tatters–and her jealous mistress plotting her demise.

After his brother lost his life over a woman, Texas Ranger Titus Kingsley has learned to expect the worst from women and is rarely disappointed. So when a young lady found in suspicious circumstances takes up residence with the seven old drovers living at his grandfather’s ranch, Titus is determined to keep a close eye on her.

With a promotion hanging in the balance, Titus is assigned to investigate a robbery case tied to Penelope’s acting troupe, and all evidence points to Penelope’s guilt. But Titus might just be convinced that the fairest woman of all has a heart as pure as her last name . . . if only he can prove it.

You can learn more about Karen Witemeyer and her books on her WEBSITE. Don’t forget the book is 30% off on BakerBookHouse.com.  

Follow Karen on BookBub and GoodReads.

And don’t forget her Posse Group on Facebook.

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Episode 265: A Chat with Karen Witemeyer
Episode 265: A Chat with Karen Witemeyer
September 29, 2023
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