Food and books or writing seem to just seem to go together.
Not just cook books, noveling in general. During NaNoWriMo many writers I know
use food as rewards for making goals during the month. A handful of candy
kisses for reaching a daily word count or a meal at a favorite restaurant for
making a major goal.
I’m terrible about doing this myself. *blush… I have a
special jar on my desk that I keep filled with some kind of confection. Right
now it’s home to dark chocolate crack thin mints. It’s so difficult to
only munch the recommended serving of four tiny crack filled minty
discs.
I’ve noticed that some of my stories tend to have a food
theme mixed in. Not purposely, it’s just something that kind of happens in the
telling. For example in Don’t Touch you’ll notice they seem to have pizza
delivery on speed dial. I did eat a good deal of pizza during the NaNoWriMo in
which that story was written.
Actually, that might have influenced their taste just a bit
maybe. However, those cheese and pepperoni gatherings became an important part
of the story. Not the pizza but what went on around it. That time out in the
hunt for a serial killer gave the characters a chance to bond.
They talked about things involving the case a bit, but they
also touched on topics that are more personal as well. Having a meal together
created an atmosphere that let the characters drop their guard for a moment so
they could become closer to each other. That goes for us as readers too. We
could relate and get a little drawn in seeing their vulnerabilities.
Food can be fun to play with. A favorite food or treat can
make a great trademark or personality quirk.Take the 4 th Doctor.
(Doctor Who as if you didn’t know. If you didn’t go get some dvds stat!) In a moment of what everyone else believed a
crisis and tension is thick in the air, he would pull a bag from his pocket and
offer someone some Jelly Babies.
The situation was still possibly grave and tense. But the
audience was given a chance to let go of the breath they were holding before
the story began to rise into the next plot element.
When someone is sick or there is a death the family is often
swamped with casseroles and baked goods of all sorts for comfort. Cooking and
giving food is a way we show how much we care for someone. The same goes with
characters in a story. Many family sagas have a bonding or important moment
occur during a family dinner.
Part of the new Monday Musing's blog hop hosted by Lake Writers for more about the hop just visit Lake Writers Blog
I never thought about how much I use food to get the characters together. Good post.
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