Anne-girl's Blog: Must Heroes Be Heroic?

Hello! I was reading Anne-girl's blog last week, and she posted a series of questions for her followers to answer. I answered them on my own but decided not to post any of my answers except my answer to Question #10.

Question #10. And lastly what do you think are three most important elements to being a hero?

     To my delight and surprise, my answer to question #10 sparked its own post as Anne-girl responded to it.
     Essentially, she and I had two different definitions of the word "hero".
     I considered a hero to be someone who did something heroic, someone who saved the day. The boy who defeats the evil tyrant and the boy who overcomes his own fear of heights to save a trapped victim are both heroes. The man of integrity and good morals who stands up for the oppressed and the worthless gang member who repents and makes the ultimate sacrifice for someone are both heroes. The nice old man who walked out the door, planted a little garden by himself, and walked back inside is not a hero (unless there is more to the story). So I looked at the question and thought, "What makes the difference between people saying 'he/she is a hero' or not?"
     Anne-girl was using the word "hero" to mean "hero of the story" (essentially, protagonist).
     So, the cool thing was that she was planning to write a post on whether the "hero of the story" actually had to be "heroic". My comment with my answer to question 10 was the perfect springboard for such a post, and you can read it at Must Heroes Be Heroic? Enjoy!

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More Snippets from Snow White Rose Red

One of the shadows moved. “Were you just going to chuck it in there with no thought for the poor folks on the other side?” Flip’s voice drawled out. It was a deep voice and it made my heart skip a beat. He moved away from the trees and came to stand in front of me. “Some hard-working fellow is plowing his field and then – whop! Out of nowhere, a poisoned apple flies out and hits him upside the head.” He clucked his tongue reproachfully.

A Short Story Break

via Pinterest It has been a while since I penned a short story. Usually it takes something like a "short story contest" to inspire me. But I have noticed my writing skills improve with each contest so there is something to be said for writing short stories. I say all this to lead into the fact that I am going to try another short story. There is no contest looming on the horizon, but it has been so long that I think I am due to write a short piece. Life cannot be entirely devoted to novel-length plots... I am rolling around different ideas in my head. There is no one to give me the first three words or a picture to base my story on. There are no restrictions, no props, and no judges. Methinks I will try something that is both epic and ordinary...something I have seen before. After all, personal experience, great things, and the expression of the ordinary are part of what makes a story.

The Countdown: Eight Days

Eight days. Do you know what that means? Barely over a week. Tomorrow will be one week from the announcement date. Are you excited? I am. So, today, I want to talk to those who wrote something for the contest, whether or not you entered it in the end. What made you start writing your story? What was the first inkling of an idea that tickled your brain? What was it that you liked about your premise? As you wrote, did you have a favorite character or a favorite scene? And are you glad you wrote it down? Do you feel like you learned and grew in your ability as a writer as you tried out things for this contest? And, if your story isn't included in this year's Rooglewood anthology (either because you didn't submit it or because it didn't fit with the other four stories selected), what will you do with it? Will you market it elsewhere? Or will you lock it away in a drawer?

The Pen of a Ready Writer

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