Colorful Characters Come Alive

Woodcarvings play a colorful role in my Santa Keeper Mystery series. I write magical realism mysteries in which woodcarvings come to life. Magical realism is to accept magic in the rational world. Also, each unique piece is hand carved and next to impossible to duplicate. This is the magic of the unique figure.

Since I specialize in Santa Claus carvings, July is the time to prepare for my busy season. In August, I put all my other projects down and carve Santas and other Christmas holiday figures. I need to have a large inventory to fulfill the fall and winter markets. I use the summertime to design and create new pieces. By autumn I will have a good selection for the customers. This is much like finding time to start a new story.

Wood carving is an art, much like the art of writing stories. Let’s analyze to see if this is true.

Designing New Pieces

I create new designs to keep my inventory fresh, like brainstorming a new story. I can get ideas for new designs by observing other artist’s mediums such as their paintings, illustrations and photos. Observing other artist’s perspective makes the new design fresh and exciting. I look for color trends, decorative embellishments, repeated patterns and new techniques. I have other inspirations that come from many sources like: nature, wall paper, catalogs and others. Interesting, I also use so many points of observations to hone in a new character.

For example, I have a coffee mug sitting on my paint table right now so I can look at the pattern. The decorative border that runs around the mug also has an interesting pattern. I want to imitate the color and design on a Santa’s coat trim. It won’t be an exact imitation but more of an inspiration. Last year I purchased an old ugly sweater at a garage sale for two dollars. I examined a row of snowmen dancing across the chest. The sweater is ugly but the snowmen pattern is cute.

Once I have a design in mind I sketch it out with pencil and paper. I keep in mind the nature of wood to create a superb design. Once I have a design I create a pattern and cut it out to apply to the wood.

Wood

For most of my carvings I use basswood, also known as American linden. The wood is pale tan with fine close grain. A wood carver can cut into basswood with ease with hand tools and chisels. My basswood comes from northern Minnesota. The best time to harvest basswood is in February when it is cold and the sap is not running. The cut pieces are air-dried or kiln dried.

For my Santa carvings, I will find a piece suitable in size and carve-ability. Most of my Santa carvings are between 8 to 12 inches in height.

I attached the paper pattern with glue or tape and trace the outline of the pattern on to the wood. I then go to the band saw and cut out the rough shape. This would be like the drafting process. I know where the completed work needs to go from here.

Tools

Like a writer who has many tools to complete her story, I also use hand tools to carve such as knives, chisels, gouges and pencils. Some carvers use power rotary tools. I use power tools only when I want to carve harder woods like walnut, cherry, oak, maple, or ash. Keeping the tools sharp is important for the ease of carving and to make clean cuts. Tools must also be sharp for safety. I use a pencil to establish the center lines and mark the wood where I plan to cut. The center line shows the carver direction to make cut. If I ignore the center line the carving may come out lopsided.

There are many rules and guidelines to follow when carving faces. I want to keep the wood carved face anatomical correct to insure a balanced face. I observe the width of the eyes, how to place and shape the ear and the width of the mouth as a few points of measurements. There are many levels of reality when carving faces. Some faces are caricatures, realistic or distorted to achieve humor or fright. With Santa carvings, the expression is important. A carving with a Santa expression of a ‘jolly old elf’ is the most desirable. As in writing, describing the right expression will add realism to your character.

Painting and Finishing

Before I paint I clean the finished carving and give it a protective finish before I paint. Next, I use acrylic paints to color and enhance the wood carving. I have taken several painting classes to learn techniques to gain confidence. Some of my carving colleagues fear the painting process. They have storage bins of unfinished and unpainted woodcarvings. Painting a piece is a challenge and a pleasure, like creating colorful characters when I write. I can’t wait to try new color combinations and designs. Like a character for my stories, there are many layers to his personality and helps make the story have more depth.

Once the paint is dry I spray on another protective coat. Then I apply a stain or colored wax to achieve an antique look. I buff the carving when I’m finished. All that’s left is to enter the carving into inventory, price the carving and place that carving in the box ready for sale. I have a sense of accomplishment finishing a carving like finishing a story. I’m eager to see what the beholder thinks.

Time

Many times, people ask me how long it takes to carve a Santa. This question is difficult because there are so many steps involved to finish the carving. The answer depends on size, level of difficulty and my daily interruptions. And in my case whether the carvings speak to me or not – they can be so distracting.

Carving Santa characters is much like creating a story and the characters involved. With both, I start with nothing and create something alive and have meaning. Both should, and I hope give joy to those who possess my work. Well, back to carving the next.

The Writing Thief: Using Mentor Texts to Teach the Craft of Writing

 

A book in itself is unlikely to make or break you, but it is a powerful extension of your business or blog. More…

Tell everyone about your stories. More…

Need more help brainstorm the character traits in your story? More…

Don’t forget to edit your colorful character’s story. Do you use too many adverbs? Are you using the right words to describe them? More …

Start Writing Now – This book is for the dreamers who say one day they will write their stories and become a writer. Then they forget their dreams of writing. But they can write now – write those stories now. I mean right now.

How Not To Write A One Star Novel – Do you want to create a five star novel? Learn from other writers’ mistakes and prevent yourself from receiving any one star reviews for you hard work. Here is your free e-book.

R. M. Scott Author Site

Julia Must Retrieve Magical Items

As an agent for M-3, a top secret non-government organization, Julia Halvorsen has completed numerous missions to secure dangerous magical items. But from the start her personal, secret mission was to find and punish Oluf. He is the man who used a magical item to kill her husband and father. However, an unexpected encounter with her estranged daughter, Christina, changes her mission’s obsession.

Will she reconnect with those she loved and abandoned years ago? Is it too late? Will Oluf take advantage of her lapse of vigilance to finish the job he started? Will he kill her and destroy the magic her family is honor-bound to protect?

This is the second installment of the Santa Keeper Mysteries.

New characters, new story. Julia must reevaluate her past relationship with her current partner Thomas Colson. Despite his hansom Native American features Julia finds their relationship impossible because of Thomas’ past. Will his friends and colleagues from M-3 help or hinder Julia’s path with Thomas and Oluf?

And let’s not forget Nicholas and Astrid’s meddlesome nature that will put one of them in danger. And what will Agar say about all this? Will Julia finally catch Oluf? Will her abandonment from Christina be worth it? Julia’s live will be turned up-side-down.

How To Write Magical Words: A Writer’s Companion

Julia’s Secret Mission

 

A book in itself is unlikely to make or break you, but it is a powerful extension of your business or blog. More…

Tell everyone about your stories. More…

Need more help brainstorm the character traits in your story? More…

Don’t forget to edit your colorful character’s story. Do you use too many adverbs? Are you using the right words to describe them? More …

Start Writing Now – This book is for the dreamers who say one day they will write their stories and become a writer. Then they forget their dreams of writing. But they can write now – write those stories now. I mean right now.

How Not To Write A One Star Novel – Do you want to create a five star novel? Learn from other writers’ mistakes and prevent yourself from receiving any one star reviews for you hard work. Here is your free e-book.

R. M. Scott Author Site

What an Imagination Does for a Creator

Do you find it difficult to come up with realistic characters to jump off your page? I wonder that all the time. I hope my journey to capture characters with depth will help you. The best part, I had fun discovering who these people are. They came out to tell their story.

I wrote three mystery novel series based on the premise of woodcarvings that come to life.

The first two in a series is The Santa Keepers Mysteries, set in the present day. The stories are about balancing family life with work or other outside responsibilities. My second series is The Cora Chronicles set in 1926.  Cora yearns for adventure, meets interesting people and sometimes gets into trouble. Maybe it could have something to do with mystical, mythical magical creatures that walk across her path.

Writing a series based on living woodcarvings has been a challenge and a joy. The woodcarvings in my stories form a village. They all have names, occupations, relationships, and lots of secrets.  The villagers, what I call them, are fun and funny.  They are village elders and village troublemakers; adults and children.  I have written descriptions and backgrounds for each of the characters. You can read a short description of how they came to be here on The Santa Keepers blog site www.santakeepers.com.

I’ve Been a Woodcarver For Over 15 Years

I carve most human figures.  You can see my work at www.scottcarvings.com.

For me, to get to know my characters I carved each of them in basswood.  So, not only do they have an imaginary presence they also have a physical presence in my house.  Do I believe they are real and that they come to life?  No, I’m not that crazy – yet.

But having them on my bookshelf, looking back at me has been a source of inspiration. Their stories are easier to write. I can look over to remember the color of their hair, eyes, clothing, shoes, etc.  I arrange the families’ groupings so I can remember their relations.  They are portable so I can move them around and arrange them in different order or put them in odd places.  I can take them along with me any time I want. I’ve taken them to the Minnesota State Fair – as part of the woodcarving competition – they earned a red ribbon.

Sometimes I feel like a child playing with dolls as I make up stories about them. However, my behavior is no worse than authors who use Pinterest to create fictional worlds.  I’ve even read about writers who built dollhouse-type models to create fictional worlds. They have gone to great lengths to decorate, paint and carpet to generate their visions for a story.

One of my woodcarvings, Lars, is a herder who manages a group of eight tiny reindeer that play vital roles in the stories. However, time has not allowed me to carve the reindeer yet. But I will before Christmas Eve Night, maybe. It all depends how full my summer will be. One villager is Astrid who often mettles in and hopes to bring humans together for romance.  The beauty of creating fictional characters is that I can add more of them to the line up any time. But then, I will also have to carve them.

Isn’t writing and creating fiction a blast?  As authors, we get to create anything we want from our imaginations.  But in my case, I’ve also created them in real life.

More on Creating Characters in my Imagination and in Real Life

Creating Character Arcs: The Masterful Author’s Guide to Uniting Story Structure, Plot, and Character Development

 

Tell everyone about your stories. Show them where they can buy your novel. Lure them in. More…

Need more help brainstorm the character traits in your story? More…

Don’t forget to edit your colorful character’s story. Do you use too many adverbs? Are you using the right words to describe them? More …

Start Writing Now – This book is for the dreamers who say one day they will write their stories and become a writer. Then they forget their dreams of writing. But they can write now – write those stories now. I mean right now.

How Not To Write A One Star Novel – Do you want to create a five star novel? Learn from other writers’ mistakes and prevent yourself from receiving any one star reviews for you hard work. Here is your free e-book.

R. M. Scott Author Site

Having Other Arts and Crafts Help You to Become a Better Writer

My woodcarvings play a major role in my Santa Keeper Mystery series. Because of my artistic creativity in wood carving I decided to become a writer. I write magical realism mysteries in which woodcarvings come to life. The genre of magical realism is to accept magic in the rational world.

As a woodcarver who specializes in Santa Claus carvings, July is the time to prepare for my busy season. In August, I put all my other projects down and carve Santas and other holiday figures. I need to have a large inventory to fulfill the fall and winter markets. I use the summertime to design and create new pieces. By autumn I will have a good selection for the customers. This is much like finding time to start a new story.

Designing New Pieces

I create new designs to keep my inventory fresh, like brainstorming a new story. I can get ideas for new designs by observing other artist’s mediums such as paintings, illustrations, glasswork and photos. Observing other artist’s perspective makes the new design fresh and exciting. I look for color trends, decorative embellishments, repeated patterns and new techniques. Inspiration comes from many sources: nature, wall paper, clothing, catalogs, rugs, architecture, and others.

I have a coffee mug sitting on my paint table right now so I can look at the pattern and color of the decorative border around the bottom. I want to imitate the color and design on a Santa’s coat trim. It won’t be an exact imitation but more of an inspiration. Last year I purchased an old ugly sweater at a garage sale for $2 to examine a row of snowmen dancing across the chest. It is ugly but the snowmen pattern is great.

Once I have a design in mind, I sketch it out with pencil and paper. I keep in mind the nature of the wood and how I will convert the two-dimensional design to a three-dimensional woodcarving. Once I have a design, I create a pattern and cut it out to apply to the wood.

Wood

For most of my carvings I use basswood, also known as American linden. The wood is pale tan with fine close grain. A wood carver can cut into basswood with ease with hand tools and chisels. My basswood comes from northern Minnesota. The best time to harvest basswood is in February when it is cold and the sap hides deep in the roots. The cut pieces are air-dried or kiln dried.

For my Santa carvings, I will find a piece suitable in size and carve-ability. Most of my Santa carvings are between 8 to 12 inches in height.

I attached the paper pattern with glue or tape and trace the outline of the pattern on to the wood. I then use a band saw and cut out the rough shape. This would be like the drafting process. I know where the completed work needs to go from here.

Tools

I use hand tools to carve such as knives, chisels, gouges. And don’t forget the pencils, a writer’s tool. Some carvers use power rotary tools. I use power tools only when I want to carve harder woods like walnut, cherry, oak, maple, or ash. Keeping the tools sharp is important for the ease of carving and to make clean cuts. Tools must be sharp for safety. I use a pencil to establish the center lines and mark the wood where I plan to cut. The center line shows the carver direction to make cut. If I ignore the center line, the carving may come out lopsided.

There are many rules and guidelines to follow when carving faces. I want to keep the wood carved face anatomically correct to insure a balanced face. I observe the width of the eyes where the ear is placed and the width of the mouth as a few points of measurements. There are many levels of reality when carving faces. Some faces are caricatures, realistic or distorted to achieve humor or fright. With Santa carvings, the expression is important. Remember Santa is a ‘jolly old elf’ so a happy expression is the most desirable. As in writing, describing the right expression will add realism to your characters.

Painting and Finishing

The finished carving is cleaned and given a protective finish before I paint. I use acrylic paints to color and enhance the wood carving. I have taken several painting classes to learn techniques to gain confidence. Some of my carving colleagues fear the painting process. They have storage bins of unfinished and unpainted woodcarvings. Painting a piece is a challenge and a pleasure. I can’t wait to try new color combinations and designs. Like a character for my stories, there are many layers to his personality that give the story more depth.

Once the paint is dry, I spray on another protective coat. Then I apply a stain or colored wax to achieve an antique look.  When that is dry I buff the piece and initial my name at the bottom. The carving is now finished, priced, labeled and added to inventory and marketed. I have a sense of accomplishment. Finishing a carving is like finishing a story. I’m eager to see what the beholder thinks.

Time

People ask me how long it takes to carve a Santa. This question is difficult because there are so many steps involved to finish the carving. The answer depends on size, level of difficulty and my daily interruptions. And in my case whether the carvings speak to me or not – they can be so distracting at times.

Carving Santa characters is much like creating a story and the characters involved. With both, I start with nothing and create something alive and meaningful. I hope both give joy to those who possess my work. Well, on to carving the next.

Tell everyone about your stories. Show them where they can buy your novel. Lure them in. More…

Need more help brainstorm the character traits in your story? More…

Don’t forget to edit your colorful character’s story. Do you use too many adverbs? Are you using the right words to describe them? More …

Start Writing Now – This book is for the dreamers who say one day they will write their stories and become a writer. Then they forget their dreams of writing. But they can write now – write those stories now. I mean right now.

How Not To Write A One Star Novel – Do you want to create a five star novel? Learn from other writers’ mistakes and prevent yourself from receiving any one star reviews for you hard work. Here is your free e-book.

R. M. Scott Author Site