I think the most important thing Robert Dugoni taught us was to find the magic.

Over dinner and in his workshop he talked about finding a quiet place where we could be still and “find the magic.”

The time when your characters come alive in your mind and the story flows out of your fingers. Most writers know what he’s talking about. Many, however, stress that writing is a job. You must sit at that computer and produce.

So it was refreshing to hear a successful writer say, “find the magic. That’s what makes writing special.” After all, isn’t that why we do it?

“Fall in love with your characters,” he says. But only keep them in your story if there’s a reason.

“Every person on the page should have a reason to be there. You don’t have to spend a page introducing a waiter who has a single line.”

That doesn’t mean he doesn’t work at his craft. He does. If I was to boil down his message it would be find the magic and do the research. He points out the writer of The Martian had no space experience whatsoever. He did a lot of research and he let the character come alive in his head,

Decide what the story is.

The more specific you can be, the better your book will be.

Motivation has to be powerful and believable so that a reader identifies with the character.

So, there you have it. There was a lot more to his workshop but that was my take away. Find the Magic.

Pat Amsden’s latest book, Soul Mates is available on Amazon.

With mystery, romance and chocolate woven together Maxine, chocolatier and caterer is back, catering a friend’s opening of her new business, Soul Mates. And so is Detective Shannon of the Vic PD. When he says dating services, “are a con man’s dream,” Maxine hotly defends Tanya and her new business. But will he be proven right? And things are heating up between Maxine and the good detective. Will they find their own HEA?

To connect with her go to her web page at http://www.patamsden.com, follow her on Twitter at @PatAmsden or FB https://www.facebook.com/Pat-Amsden-625861690758718/