Groupie
C.M. Stunich
(Rock-Hard Beautiful, #1)
Publication date: March 21st 2017
Genres: New Adult, Romance
“Can one of these five rockstars fill the hole in my heart? Or will I stay broken forever?”
Young, dumb, and broke.
That’s what started everything. With five dollars in her pocket, and everything she owns stuffed in the back of her car, Lilith Goode’s life is over. Done. Destroyed.
Ten words. One text. That’s what it took to change the whole world.
A crumpled concert ticket. A chance encounter. That’s what it takes to start all over again.
Five rockstars. One girl. Six dark hearts, six withered souls.

But can one broken person really put another back together again?
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Guest Post: Character Development

Reading preferences are like ice cream flavors; not everybody likes vanilla. But when it comes to stories, I prefer character driven novels, books that are less about plot or mystery or prose but focus more on the people within the pages. I like to read—and I love to write—stories where I can become the main character, step into his or her shoes and forget who I am for just a little while. Equally as important, of course, are the love interests. I don't just want them to be plot devices; I want to fall in love, too.

When it comes to character development, I think the most important aspect is knowing who your character is. And I don't just mean describing their hair, their clothes, or their favorite sports team, but who they are inside. Are they angry, easily frustrated, in pain, desperate, needy, brave, etc. Finding that voice is key. I find that once I start a story, a voice comes to me naturally. But sometimes, that voice isn't right for my character, so I'll scrap that piece and start again until I feel like the character that's speaking through the words is the one I need for my story. And then, once I've got that going, I like to throw in grounding details, little actions that tell a lot. For example, one of my characters always sets a timer while she's brushing her teeth. It's an action that in and of itself doesn't mean much, but sets the tone for her as a whole, telling the reader that she's a control freak, that she likes things a certain way, etc.

Writing Groupie really tested my limits on character development. Not only was the story told in first person through our heroine's eyes—Lilith Goode—but also through her five male love interests. Each of them had their own first person chapters as well, and it was definitely a challenge to not only make them individual but also to make them stand out so one guy didn't shine above the others. For added challenge, I have another rockstar series with three heroines and three heroes making their debuts over a nine book arc (see Hard Rock Roots; the first book, Real Ugly, is free!), so I had to make sure that those characters didn't overlap with any of the ones in Groupie. In the end, I wound up with an English suit-wearing lead singer, a scarred but beautiful bassist, the gentle boy next door on drums, a lead guitarist with a wicked past, and an enigmatic rhythm guitarist.

For me, characters can make or break a story.

Author Bio: C.M. Stunich is a self-admitted bibliophile with a love for exotic teas and a whole host of characters who live full time inside the strange, swirling vortex of her thoughts. Some folks might call this crazy, but Caitlin Morgan doesn’t mind – especially considering she has to write biographies in the third person. Oh, and half the host of characters in her head are searing hot bad boys with dirty mouths and skillful hands (among other things). If being crazy means hanging out with them everyday, C.M. has decided to have herself committed.
She hates tapioca pudding, loves to binge on cheesy horror movies, and is a slave to many cats. When she’s not vacuuming fur off of her couch, C.M. can be found with her nose buried in a book or her eyes glued to a computer screen. She’s the author of over thirty novels – romance, new adult, fantasy, and young adult included. Please, come and join her inside her crazy. There’s a heck of a lot to do there.
Oh, and Caitlin loves to chat (incessantly), so feel free to e-mail her, send her a Facebook message, or put up smoke signals. She’s already looking forward to it.
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