Happy Mother’s Day! While Auntie M is visiting her Minnesota Grands, please welcome author James Callan, talking about sidekicks with a brief excerpt of his new release, OVER MY DEAD BODY:
The Sidekick Is Not an Afterthought
All writers know the importance of a good sidekick to the protagonist. The protagonist is the leading character, the one on a mission, the person charged with the task of changing the course of things. As such, the main character is somewhat limited.
The sidekick, on the other hand, is not encumbered by such. Oh, yes, she (or he) is going to help the protagonist. But she is not the main driving force. As a result, she has a much wider range of what she can do. She can be funnier, crazier, can engage in things far afield from the main quest the protagonist must follow. The sidekick has a great opportunity to be more interesting.
In Over My Dead Body, a Father Frank Mystery released the first week of May, the sidekick is Georgia Peitz. Here’s an example of her free spirit: (Mike is the detective delivering the information that Syd committed suicide.)
Georgia jerked her hand up and stabbed a finger toward the detective. “Right. Angry. Not depressed. Not suicidal. Angry. He was planning to fight it.” She tilted her head and gave Mike an angelic smile. “He did not commit suicide.”
“Maybe he finally saw he couldn’t win.”
“I suppose some people might end it all if they couldn’t win something that was important to them,” Georgia said. The frown lines on Mike’s forehead began to disappear. “But,” she continued, “that was not Syd. Did you know him, Mike?”
“No.”
“Then, you’re not qualified to say what he would do in such a circumstance.” Again, the angelic smile. “I am.”
Don’t overlook the power of the sidekick to enliven your book and keep your reader engaged.
James R. Callan
After a successful career in mathematics and computer science, receiving grants from the National Science Foundation and NASA, and being listed in Who’s Who in Computer Science and Two Thousand Notable Americans, James R. Callan turned to his first love—-writing. He wrote a monthly column for a national magazine for two years. He has had four non-fiction books published. He now concentrates on his favorite genre, mystery/suspense, with his sixth book releasing in 2015.
http://www.jamesrcallan.com
Amazon Author Page: http://amzn.to/1eeykvG
Click http://amzn.to/1BmYQ0Q to see Over My Dead Body.
Cleansed by Fire (paperback & e-pub) NOW in audio, narrated by five-time Emmy winner Jonathan Mumm.
Over My Dead Body at: http://amzn.to/1BmYQ0Q
Character: The Heartbeat of the Novel – Second Edition at: http://amzn.to/19l69jd
How to Write Great Dialog Second Edition at: http://amzn.to/1yHx0uK
Cleansed by Fire at: http://amzn.to/1fqgWee
Auntiemwrites Crime-Mystery Author M K Graff 