Me, She, He, I

Most fiction is written in third person: he, she, they, etc. The other way to go is first person: I, me, we, etc. Most people like third person, some dislike first, and some won’t even read a story in first person. Personally, it’s the story that interests me. The pronouns are just part of the package.

I’d always written fiction in third person. I never really thought about it. That’s just the way it was done. I wrote short stories, novellas, and novels in third person. I never really gave it a second thought. Until I wrote The Ugly Truth. 

When I started writing The Ugly Truth, I used third person as usual. After months of rewrites,  and hair pulling it just wasn’t coming together. Then I realized the best thing I’d written was my heroine’s journal. So, felling I had nothing to lose, I started writing the book from  Stephie’s point of view. Suddenly everything worked. It wasn’t easy writing a romance from only one point of view, but I sure was fun. In fact, it was so much fun that I wrote a sequel, Secrets of Ugly Creek. There might even be another Ugly Creek book or two. What can I say, Ugly Creek is a fun place to visit.

And Stephie agrees.

Do you read stories written in first person? Write stories in first person? What do you like—or dislike—about first person?

Have a great week!
Cheryel

www.cheryelhutton.com
www.facebook.com/CheryelHuttonAuthor
Twitter: @cheryelhutton

Countdown to Ugly

I’m excited. Three days until the release of The Ugly Truth, my latest novel. Set in a small town called Ugly Creek, the story centers around a woman who visits a small Tennessee town. Where, you might ask, did I come up with the name Ugly Creek?
 

The answer is I’m not sure. I know, not what you wanted to hear. But, it’s the truth. The only thing I can figure is that I tried and tried for a long time to come up with a name for my fictional town, but couldn’t seem to find anything that felt right but wasn’t already taken by a real town. Finally the Ugly Creek name came into my head and I decided I had my name. Maybe because it was the best name. Maybe it was because it was the easiest. I don’t know.

The actual town from which the fictional Ugly Creek was drawn is easier to track down. I grew up a few miles south of Dayton, Tennessee. I drew on the entire area, plus other small southern US towns. I live in a larger area now, but it was a lot of fun using my childhood home as a template.

Would your hometown be a good basis for a book? Do you like reading about small towns? Do you like stories that take you to places you’ve never been, or would you rather read stories set where you live?

Have a great week!
Cheryel
www.cheryelhutton.com