Be Honest, be truthful, and be yourself.

When I was writing a blog during #FebWritingChallenge on Twitter I showed my writing group the second and third drafts, and they said "Looks good. But what are your thoughts on your topic" to "Are you writing for a grade?" I wondered what was I doing wrong with my article because 1) I was getting my thoughts out; and 2) It wasn't college related. Then it all hit me that I was coming at my blog like an academic rather than from my own angle.

Sharing the realization with my peers, one of them said:

Be honest, be truthful, and be yourself.

Thinking about it now, it's the best advice I'd ever gotten. Why? Because what you create in a song, painting, or a book comes from your own honesty. And that's what people want.

The characters in my stories have jobs like a barista, mechanic, or an accountant. However, I don't have any experience with their job descriptions. What I do know is how working a "normal" job can be stressful. You like it. You love it. You hate it. You don't wanna do it but you have to. The emotions of working is all there.

When you're writing with the earnest honesty you're coming in clear to readers, regardless of what kind of world you create from your own sweat and tears. They will identify with the "real" elements of your creation. Ice Cube once said this,

Our art is a reflection of our reality.

Bottom line: Write with honesty and truth. And above all, be yourself.

Interesting Characters, Part 3: Sister Grimm

We now return to the third edition of my Interesting Characters series. And today's interesting character is Nico Minoru AKA Sister Grimm from Marvel's Runaways. She first appeared in Runaways #1, created by Brian K. Vaughn and Adrian Alphona in 2003.

Like all members of the team, she's the daughter of super powered criminals called "the Pride"; in the case of Nico, her parents are dark wizards. Finding out their parent's secret, she ran away with her fellow teens but discovered her parent's aptitude for dark magic. Whenever Nico bleeds, she summons a powerful staff from her chest allowing her to bend magic. Seeing the damage the Pride has done to Los Angeles, the kids set out to use all their special talents to make up for the sins of their parent's crimes.

The first time I read Runaways I was, rather, curious about the idea of this group of young cats and how they play in the Marvel Universe. After Vol. 1 of the complete series, it had me wanting to see more of them. In particular to Nico, she's unlike any character in comics I read in years. A Japanese American heroine wearing Gothic attire, wielding dark magic was not the one thing that made her cool in my book, but how she's very human. Being a very emotional person who seeks comfort in people after times of stress or highly emotional periods. However, regardless of this weakness, she's very open when trying to express her feelings and has been able to connect with her team mates on an emotional level.

And that's what makes Sister Grimm an entirely interesting character to me.