Are you an observant person?

All of us may want to reply to that question in the affirmative, but the truth is that all of us, after self-examination, would have to admit that no matter how observant we are already, this is something we can still improve upon.
This is a great skill for writers to have as the more observant we are, the more it will come across in the books or stories that we write. We can describe a scene with better detail; we can make our characters more appealing and real.  This is true, no matter the kind of fiction you write: crime fiction, horror fiction, suspense fiction, romantic fiction, or mystery fiction.
Thankfully, even if we are not that observant now, it is a skill that can be improved!
There is a saying that “familiarity breeds contempt”.  However, familiarity with something or someone can also lead to taking it or them for granted, which in turns leads to being less observant.
I remember one work colleague arriving at work one day saying that he had just driven his car to work and had no idea how he had arrived.  He had driven the same route every day to and from work for so long, that now he could do it on “auto-pilot”.  He had become so familiar with the route he took that he did not have to think about what to do or where to go.  He just did it!   Just think of all the interesting details of each journey that he would miss out on if that continued to happen!
I can also remember when I was young traveling with my family to the wedding of some friends.  I had played chess and other games with my sister to while away the time of the journey.  At the wedding reception, I was enthusiastically greeted by an old family friend that I had not seen for a while.  Eventually, she asked me if my sister was also at the reception, to which I replied, “yes”.
She told me that she would go to find my sister and then asked me, “what is she wearing?”
Though I had earlier spent more than two hours next to my sister, for the life of me, I did not know the answer to that question.  That incident certainly taught me a lesson!
What can we do to improve?  Well, if you type “how to be more observant” in an Internet search engine, you will get a wealth of suggestions, but I will add a favorite of mine that I have found useful through the years.
Learn from comedians!  What does that mean?  Have you ever listened to a comedian and found yourself laughing at how they can take certain people behaviors or conversations and show you the humor in them?  Comedians are great observers as that is how they can get the source for much of their material.
One comedian, actor, writer and film director I enjoyed was the late Jacques Tati.  Once, when describing how he got ideas for his material, he said he got it from watching people around him.  People walking, driving their cars, people stuck in traffic in their cars.  People acting naturally, completely unaware that others might be watching them.
Become a people watcher.  Don’t take others for granted.  Notice how they dress, how they walk, their posture, what gestures they use and so forth.  Then take notes of what you have seen.  Try to get new and more in depth details every time you do this.  Notice their emotions; notice the humor in what they do.  This will not just help you become more observant, but you will also get more details for characters for the next novel or story that you write!

What is the best bottle of wine that you can buy?

Is it a bottle that costs $10 or a bottle that costs $1,000?  Would it be a French wine, Italian, South African, or from another country?  There are so many possible answers to that question because there are so many to choose from.  You can try a friend’s recommendation, or you might do research on what different wine experts say and try one of their choices.  However, the best answer I heard to this question is that the best wine to buy is the one that you enjoy.   That is logical, I am sure you will agree. People differ.  Personal tastes differ.  What you like, I might not like and vice versa.
The same kind of question can be asked about books.  What is your favorite novel?  What kind of fiction do you like to read?  Do you prefer romance fiction, crime fiction, horror fiction, mystery fiction, fantasy books, or suspense fiction?
The answer might vary depending on how you or I feel at the moment.  Yet, whatever genre of book that I might wish to read at any given moment, my preferences often have something in common.  I like a novel or a story that stimulates my imagination and that draws me into the scene that the author is creating, while at the same time engaging my emotions and interest.
One author who has that effect on me is the late Georgette Heyer.  Some of you might ask: “Georgette Who?” Georgette Heyer!  Among other things she wrote romance fiction, crime fiction and historical novels often set in the 1700’s and early 1800’s in England and Europe.  Though she may not be too well known to many modern-day lovers of fiction, one book-selling company said that she is one of their top 10 bestselling authors!  Not bad for someone who died in 1974!
One reason why I like her books is her use of description.  As mentioned, some, in fact, many of her books were set in the early 1800’s or to be more precise, what is known as the Regency period in England.  Namely, the decade of 1811-1820 when then king of Great Britain, George III was deemed unfit to rule, and his son, later George IV, ruled as his proxy as the Prince Regent.
This period was about 100 years before Georgette Heyer lived and vastly different from her world and that of her readers; in language, in dress and customs.  So to help her readers understand the setting and time period of her novels, she included a lot of detailed information in them.  This information was also apparently very accurate as Heyer collected reference works and kept detailed notes on all aspects of Regency life.
Yet, despite the level of detail that she gave in her novels, it is the way she did it that makes me marvel at her as an author.  As I read through such of her works as The Grand Sophy, Regency Buck, a collection of short stories Pistols For Two, I am not weighed down by an avalanche of detail, but I am fed just enough information at each moment to make me feel I am part of her scene, while being absorbed in her characters and her wit at storytelling.
If you have not read any of Georgette Heyer’s works, why not give them a try?  You can find them well enough online.  I may not be a literary expert, but she would be one of my recommendations!

Most Popular Species in Fictional Novels

If you are free online fiction lover, it would be not difficult for you to find out that some genres are relatedly popular among all fictional works, for example, romance, mystery/crime, or fantasy. In fact, just take a look at all forms of literature, you will see that there is an interesting topic might be useful for new writers: species that characters in a novel belong to.
One of the most fascinating incentive for fiction writers are the power they could use to set free bold and unrestrained idea free, when they can create some characters that do not exist in real world. Some genres are frequently used throughout the history of literature. You can develop your stories based on these species, or, you certainly can create a brand-new one at your will. Just see how many wonderful creatures J. K. Rowling has shown you.
The funny thing is that, generally speaking, you can divide these species of characters into three categories.

The Dead: A lot of characters could be related to death, including vampire, zombie and ghost.
As in European folklore, vampire is a kind of immortal creature feeding on blood, and its name firstly appeared in 1734. However, it is not until 19th century when it evolves into the impression on people with a pale countenance. It undoubtedly a main role in literature, horror fiction and even romance fiction for certain kind of morbid fascination. Here are some online books telling stories of vampire: How To Be A Vampire by Alexandra Yang, and, The Vampire King’s Young Mate by Wickedwith.
Zombie is quite a hit keyword during these years, especially in horror film. It is described as an undead walking body of a human or animal corpse. It could be traced back to a poet in the year of 1819 as “zombi”. We are possibly most familiar with this reanimated species in the title of Resident Evil, covering video games, novels and action movies.
Ghost is a name rather popular in lots of culture background, including Asia, Africa and Europe. It is always in different regions’ folklore. The haunt, or the spirit of dead person is the origin of a horror or a sad story in novels. You can try the short story of A Moonlit Ghost Story by Lawinbabe Hawker, or The Elven Queen by Ariel-Aristophel.

Nonhuman Shape and Shape-shifting:Werewolf, merpeople and centaurs are all imaginary creatures with a shape combing human and animal or having shape-shifting power.
When you are talking about werewolf, a typical scene with a howling wolf under the moonlight might possibly come to your mind. Since medieval period, there have been some sayings about werewolf, in which normal human will transform into a wolf for reason. Maybe it is on purpose, cursed or infected. Werewolf0917’s online novles, including The Second Chance, The Forbidden Love and Some Don't Love Back are all about the adventure of werewolf.
Merpeople, or, mermaid (merman for male) illustrate the dreamy aqua world. But still, they might be terrifying or even aggressive like siren in Greek myth. Enjoying their reputation in Near East, Europe, Africa and Asia, mermaid has been appeared in lots of well-known fictions and fairy tales.
Another species you can also related to mythology is centaur. Centaurs are believed to social inhabitant in forests or mountains, and they are good fighters in literature and arts.

Divine and Magic: Although elves and angel are somewhat cliché, it is not saying that you can’t breathe new life into these keywords.
Frequently featuring in fantasy fictions and movies, immortal elves always enchanted people with their elegant appearance, surprising magical power of skillful archery and agile moves. You can discover them in The Elven Queen by Ariel-Aristophel.
Originated from Bible, angels could be characters in romance fiction or fantasy story, such as Nithya’s My Mysterious Angel and Xeng Moua’s Angel of Light
Everyone should know about Harry Potter, or Gandolf. Yes, they are both wizards, the species that we can save the time to give you any explanation. Though they are human being, they come with magical power as legends and fairy tales had told us. Black Water, Black Magic, a science fiction by Erica Striker, would be interesting online novel for you to know magic.
You will never produce a complete list that covering all kinds of species or creatures in imagination. That’s what readers exactly hunger for more interesting things to come. As a writer, you can make full use of the above, or totally forget all about them and go in your own way.
All the books mentioned above can be read on www.ficfun.com, a free book provider.