I think it's important for writers to ask themselves these questions about the characters they create: What does this character want? How is it different from what he or she needs?

In Secrets She Left Behind, Keith, a seventeen-year-old boy who was burned in a fire, wants two things: the return of his mother who has disappeared, and a girlfriend who accepts him the way he is. I won't tell you what he ultimately gets in case you haven't yet read the book, but it's definitely what he needs.   

Is it the same in real life? It's so much harder, because there's no writer pulling the strings to make sure everything turns out fine. I've spent the last fifteen minutes trying to figure out which of the zillion examples from my own life to share with you. Here's one: I wanted to set my work-in-progress in Ecuador, but my editor vetoed the setting  midway through my first draft. Ultimately, the new North Carolina setting led me to create a story I truly needed to write. Or on a much grander scale, my treasured first marriage ended, but that loss ultimately brought three  stepdaughters and three grandchildren into my life. Or how about the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis, which forced my lily-livered self to become quite remarkably strong?

I think it is the same in real life: we don't always get what we want, but we often get what we need. The difference is, we have to help make it happen. More importantly, we have to recognize when it happens . . . and count it as a blessing.  

Dang, Shelties are cute, aren't they? My two furry babies, who are sitting next to me on the sofa as I type this, certainly think so. 

But to the topic of this post. I love research. My favorite teacher in high school, Mrs. Westphal (who seemed about 100 years old to me, but was probably about 60), taught me how exciting it could be to write a  research paper, and it was one of the most valuable things I ever learned.  I still find research to be fun and seductive. Research seductive? Yes indeed! It can suck me in and not let go, which can be a problem when I have a short time in which to write a book. It's always hard to know when to stop researching and start writing.

In Secrets She Left Behind (and its prequel, Before the Storm), the bulk of my research went into the setting of Topsail Island, which of course, necessitated several grueling trips to the beach. Haha. Second only to the setting, though, was the research I did on missing persons. That took two major forms: I spoke with Kelly Jolkowski, founder of Project Jason, as well as two members of one of the Topsail Island police departments. Kelly, whose own son, Jason, has been missing for 8 long years, helped me understand not only how the search for a person would proceed but also what the family and friends would be going through emotionally as well as how they could help the authorities in the search. Kelly is all about educating and supporting the families of the missing, and she's an amazing advocate. The police officers gave me the rundown on what would happen from a legal and procedural perspective when my character, Sara, turns up missing. I also needed to know how authorities would deal with Sara's son, Keith, since he is only 17 when she disappears.  

For my current work-in-progress, The Lies We Told, I spent hours talking and emailing with an EMS medic, Cass Topinka, about how she would treat a couple of medical emergencies. She gave me great details (as well as some necessary information on a stuck ambulance siren!). What I love most is that she told me how it feels to be the person trying to save a life. Speaking of details, though, it's important for me to use them sparingly. My readers don't want or need to know how many milligrams of a particular drug a patient would receive. They just need enough detail to make the scene feel real, because what's really important is the emotional response of my characters to what's happening. I often wonder if the people who help me with my research feel let down that our hours of conversation are reduced to a couple of sentences in the book. Those hours were invaluable though. They helped me see the scene in my mind and figure out what details would make it feel real.

My characters In Lies are doctors volunteering in an evacuation shelter after a hurricane, and I stumbled across Dr. Hemant Vankawala online. Dr. Vankawala was part of a disaster team after Hurricane Katrina and he has been so generous in telling me about his experiences in the airport in New Orleans, which was turned into an evacuation center. (an aside: Dr. V told me that, during those rare moments he was able to sleep, he slept on the baggage carousel. So when I toured the airport in Wilmington, NC, where my story is set, I wanted to see the carousels where my characters would be sleeping. I'd already written several scenes that included those uncomfortable beds. Imgine my surprise when I discovered the carousels in Wilmington are the steeply slanted variety! Really messed up my scenes. I found another place in the airport to bed down my characters. This is a good reason to view the setting firsthand whenever possible!). Dr. Vankawala told me everything, from how the patients were triaged, to the caloric content of MREs. Plus he read a scene for me. I think he's the kind of guy who goes over and above the call of duty, and he clearly loves his work.

I'm so grateful to the people who generously help me make a work of fiction feel more real for my readers. That's why I write looong acknowlegements in most of my books--I want to include everyone who helps me.

Especially Mrs. Westphal.  

I'm often asked how many drafts I write when I'm working on a book. The answer: a lot. I finished my next novel, tentatively titled The Lies We Told, last week, and thought I'd show you the stack of drafts the writing generated. In my left hand, of course, I'm holding the nice, neat perfectly formatted and spell-checked version that I sent to my editor. Beneath my elbow are all the previous versions.

I use different color paper for each draft so I can keep them straight. In this stack there's pink, blue, green and yellow, and then I had to start repeating the colors.

So, what happens now? My editor (and my agent) will weigh in with their thoughts on what works and what doesn't in the final draft. By the time I reach the final draft stage, I'm too close to the book to see the forest for the trees, so their input is invaluable. The requested changes from my editor are often things like "Character X's motivation for stealing his mother's false teeth needs to be stronger". My editor's ideas for change invariably make me a) groan and b) want to punch my computer screen. It usually takes me 24 hours to recover from an editor's feedback--and to see the value in it. By then, I'm ready to get back to work.

The one thing I've learned over the course of writing 19 books is that my

Here are a couple of examples of changes my editors have recommended in the past:

• In my latest release, Secrets She Left Behind, I originally introduced the significant character, Jen, about halfway through the book. My editor, Miranda Indrigo, suggested I introduce Jen much earlier, which made a lot of sense and increased the tension in the earlier part of the book.
• In Keeper of the Light, the old lighthouse keeper, Mary Poor, was originally a man. My editor at the time was Karen Solem, who is now an agent, and I will never forget her telling me to "sit down" before she made the particular suggestion to change Caleb Poor to Mary Poor. How I resisted for my usual 24 hours! I knew it would require revamping the entire book. Around hour 20, I realized she was right. I had to create an entirely new character in Mary, and she turned out to be a perfect and very necessary addition to the story.  

So now I wait. Soon, I expect to be enduring my 24 hours of agony, followed by the addition of one more draft to the pile. I think I'll use purple this time.  

I'm getting ready to create my next online newsletter, since some of you have told me you'd like to hear from me more than once or twice a year. Yes, I've been a little slow getting the news out! Now that many of my older books are being reissued, I agree that I need to communicate with those of you on my mailing list more frequently.

Therefore, I plan to design a unique newsletter that I can send out easily a few times a year. It will contain updates on my latest books, contests, appearances, and any other information I think will benefit my readers. But it needs a name! For example, I recently received Sue Monk Kidd's lovely newsletter, which she calls Reflections--a name that suits her writing perfectly. I have my thinking cap on, but I know y'all have amazing thinking caps yourselves (I will never forget how you helped me name the island in my work-in-progress!), so I thought I'd turn to you for some suggestions. 

If I use your idea, I'll send you autographed copies of my two latest books, Before the Storm and Secrets She Left Behind, made out to you or a friend. Thanks for your help! (If you're not already signed up to receive my newsletter, hop on over and sign up now.)

I write many, many drafts as I work on a book. Recently, someone on Facebook asked writers to share different drafts of a single paragraph. I thought this would be an interesting exercise for me to share with you, my blog readers. I want to give credit to the Facebooker who suggested this, but I don't recall who it was, so I hope that person will read this post and step forward. Until then, here are three drafts of the same paragraph of my work-in-progress, currently titled

Early Draft:

      A guy walked into the restaurant. She noticed him the second he walked in. there was something about him. the way he scanned the restaurant. unsmiling. a flare to his nostrils that reminded her of ___. His eyes came to rest on the two men at the table next to her and Adam's he walked toward the table with a deliberate stride, and she watched him pull a gun from his jacket pocket and before she could scream or duck or even widen her eyes, he'd shot the man at the table in the head. Everyone screamed then. She had a lot of company.

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Middle Draft:

      Adam said something to Brent and Rebecca, but I didn't hear him. My gaze was on a man who had just walked into the restaurant. He was dark-haired, wearing a white t-shirt and beige pants and he stood in front of the door, looking from table to table. There was something about him that sent a shiver through me.

      He started walking toward us--or at least, I thought he was heading toward us. Then I saw that his gaze--his ice-blue eyes--was on the two men at the table adjacent to ours. Adam said something that must have been funny, because Brent and Rebecca both laughed, but I'd set down my fork and was beginning to tremble, my heart thudding beneath my breastbone.

     I knew how quickly these things could happen. He reached behind his back, then whipped his arm out straight, the gun a gray blur, and I saw the small symbol tattooed on his finger as as he pressed the trigger.

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Final Draft:

       Adam said something in response, but I didn't hear him. I was watching a man who had just walked into the restaurant. He was Caucasian, dark-haired, wearing a white t-shirt and beige pants, and he stood in front of the door, shifting his gaze quickly from table to table. Something about him sent a shiver through me.

       He started walking toward us--or at least, I thought he was heading toward our table. His stride was deliberate, his nostrils flared. Then I saw that his eyes--his ice-blue eyes--were locked on the two men at the table in front of ours. Adam said something that must have been funny, because Brent and Rebecca both laughed, but I'd set down my spoon and was gripping the corner of the table, my heart thudding beneath my breastbone.

       I knew better than anyone how quickly these things could happen. He reached behind his back with his right hand, then whipped his arm out straight, the gun a gray blur as it cut through the air, and I saw the tattoo of a black star on his index finger as he pressed the trigger.

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Even as I look at the final draft of this paragraph, I see things I want to change. Imagine 400 pages of this! No wonder I'm so tired. My deadline is next week, so soon I'll have to stop tinkering and send the finished product to my editor. For now, though, I hope you enjoyed this little peek into my world.   

Breaking the Silence will be reissued in December, and I thought you might like a sneak peek at the cover my publisher is working on for it. There's a lot going on in this story, as there usually is in my books: a mute little girl, an old woman with memory loss, a man and his hot air balloon, the CIA mind control experiments that took place in the fifties, and the woman who ties them all together! What more could you want?

First, an explanation. When I auction off a character name, that means I will use the winner's name--but not his or her personality or likeness--in the novel on which I'm currently working. The winner must agree to have his or her name used for a secondary character, for good or evil. The purpose of the auction is to have fun and to make money for a charitable organization. 

The first time I auctioned a name was for my church in Virginia. I had in mind, as I usually do, both a male or female character that I could name after the winner. However, I didn't count on the winner being Moto Sato. I mean, what were the odds? The book I was working on at the time was Kiss River, and I had to somehow fit a Japanese man into the Outer Banks of North Carolina during the second World War. Okay, I could have used the name for one of the modern day characters, but I like a good challenge. As I began thinking about it, I came up with a perfect subplot involving Mr Sato. Writing is often that way. What seems like a dilemma turns into an opportunity, just as in life. 

The second auction, also for my church, was won by a gentleman with the perfectly sane name Jim Price. I've always been grateful to Mr Price for this! He became a lovely character in Her Mother's Shadow.

Next came The Bay at Midnight. I knew which character I needed a name for. He was a thug. A real brute. And who won? Bruno Walker. The name was too perfect. How could I name a brute Bruno without the reader groaning? But I did, and it worked out well.     

Unless I'm forgetting, which is very possible, I don't think I auctioned a character name for The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes. I was writing that book the year I moved from Virginia to North Carolina, so a) I was moving away from my church community and its auctions and b) I was frazzled.

When I became involved with the North Carolina Writers' Network, though, I raffled off a name at their conference. I was writing Before the Storm at the time, and I had a fairly good idea what character I needed a name for. I'd forgotten my usual luck at this auctioning-off-names thing, though. The person who won? Jabeen Akhtar. Sigh. I played around with the name for weeks, trying to figure out where she would fit into the story without simply taking over the book. Such a great name! I had a coffee shop in the book, and it came to me one sleepless night: Jabeen's Java Bean. Jabeen's is practically a character in the book, and since the coffee shop is also in the sequel, my current release Secrets She Left Behind, I think I've done my duty by Jabeen.

So I will do this again with my next book (which I'll be starting in September! No rest for the weary). I'm not sure yet, but I may use the Internet to help me auction off the name this time. That way, I can increase my chances of getting a name that keeps me awake at night as I try to figure out how to use it.

That's certainly the case with my work-in-progress, The Lies We Told, in which Maya, a doctor, has been afraid for her physical well being ever since witnessing the murder of her parents when she was fourteen. It's also the case with Keith in my current novel, Secrets She Left Behind. Keith has always had a fear of heights, but ever since he was burned in a fire, he's feared fire as well. Of course, I put him to the test on both fronts during the course of the story.

Back in my days as a therapist, I was trained to view fear as a primary emotion, with other negative emotions being secondary to that fear. Anger is a perfect example. Think of the last time you were angry and dig deep into that emotion to learn what was really going on inside you. I bet you'll discover that fear was the underlying emotion. A good example is the woman who loses sight of her child in a grocery store. When she finds that child, she shakes him and yells, "Don't you ever do that again!" She looks angry, but she's actually terrified. Fear operates under many guises.

I think authors tend to write about the things they need to gain control over, whether that's loss, anger, betrayal, inadequacy, or simply a tendency to have one unsatisfying relationship after another (all of which, in my opinion, can be tied back to fear). In our stories, we strive to have our characters overcome the things we struggle with ourselves. I love that vicarious thrill of having my characters triumph over their demons.

If you were a writer, what demons would you be trying to lay to rest?

Since my novels usually involve twists and turns, readers often ask me if I think all those plot points in advance. The answer is: I wish. What usually happens is that, despite my carefully plotted outlines, new ideas come to me once I really get into the writing. Sometimes it feels as though the characters are shaking the boat. Sometimes it's Diane, the writer, doing the shaking. The outcome is the same: I get to chapter five or twenty-seven or forty-two and something happens in the story that I wasn't expecting. That twist to the story, more often than not, requires me to make changes to previous chapters. Thus, the creation of my backtrack list.

With every draft of the book (I usually write between four and six drafts), I maintain such a list. It will have many small things on it. For example, the list to the left, which I'm now maintaining as I write a late draft of my work-in-progress, has a few items such as "plant chicken" and "Becca." I decided late in the game to give some of my characters a chicken coop, which means I need to go back and show the chickens from time to time. And Becca? My character, Maya, started calling her sister, Rebecca, "Becca" around chapter twenty of this draft (don't ask me why! I'm only the author), and I liked it, so I will have to go back and make sure Maya calls her Becca in the chapters I've already written. There are many other, larger, examples on this list that I won't share with you, because they'll give away too much of the story.

I love my backtrack list. It helps me keep order in an otherwise disorderly process. It allows me to move forward, knowing I can give my characters and myself free reign, because I can always amend what I've already set in place. Think about that when you encounter twists and turns in the next novel you read. You can bet the author had his or her own version of a backtrack list.

It's very early--the reissue of Summer's Child won't be out until April 2010--but I can't resist sharing the cover that's in the works. I love it and hope you all do, too.

When I work on a manuscript, I take shortcuts. For example, one of my characters in my work-in-progress is named Rebecca, so I have my Word software set so that when I type "reb", it actually types Rebecca. The same with my character Dorothea. I type "doro" and Word types Dorothea.

(On a side note: my ex-husband once set up his poor secretary, Joan's, Word program so that every time she typed the word "the", it would show up as "Ouch, Joanie! Not so hard!")

Anyhow, I have a character in my current work-in-progress whom I love. She's this tiny African American woman named Lady Alice. I have my Word software set up so that every time I type the word "lady" it types "Lady Alice." This is causing me problems. I never realized how often I type the word "lady" in other documents and email. "The lady at the drugstore" becomes "The Lady Alice at the drugstore." "First Lady Michelle Obama" becomes "FIrst Lady Alice Michelle Obama." You get the idea.

Needless to say, I'm proofreading everything!

I love having a new book out in time for summer! My readers and friends have been sending me pictures of themselves reading my books on the beach, and nothing could make me happier. I write for many reasons (I don't think I could stop, for one), but my

Yesterday, I signed books for three hours at Quarter Moon Books on Topsail Island, the setting for Before the Storm and Secrets She Left Behind. Here I am with Quarter Moon Books owner Lori Fisher, who did a fantastic job of getting many of my titles for her customers. I met wonderful, new-to-me readers as well as people who've been reading me for years

So, how about you? I hope all of you are getting some time to relax this summer. Where are you going? What do you plan to do? Do you find it hard to relax? And most importantly, will you be reading?

Speaking of relaxing, I have a new contest on my website to help you enjoy your leisure time. Pop over and see what you can win!