Steeped in Character: Using Narrative Elements for Character Development

Point of View isn’t only what characters say and do, but how they see the world based on their past experience, their current situation, and their emotional state. In this interactive workshop, Tina and Jenn will discuss ways to infuse even the quiet spaces of your manuscript with character using word choice, sentence structure, and rhythm. There will be a few short, fun exercises as well.

This presentation will be led by Tina Connolly and Jenn Reese.

Jenn Reese writes speculative fiction for readers of all ages. Above World (Candlewick), a Norton Award Finalist, is the first book in her trilogy about bioengineered mermaids in a post-collapse future. Her next book, A Game of Fox & Squirrels, is coming from Henry Holt BYR in 2020. Her short fiction has appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Analog, Strange Horizons, the World Fantasy Award-winning anthology Paper Cities, and Fireside Magazine, among others. Jenn lives in Portland, OR, where she drinks coffee, plays video games, and talks to birds.

Tina Connolly’s books include the Ironskin trilogy from Tor, and the Seriously Wicked series from Tor Teen. Her stories have appeared in F&SF, Tor.com, Uncanny, and more, and are collected in On the Eyeball Floor from Fairwood Press. Her stories and books have been finalists for the Nebula, Norton, and World Fantasy awards. She co-hosts Escape Pod, runs the flash fiction podcast Toasted Cake, and is at tinaconnolly.com.