The Basics - Part Two: CHARACTER

The Driving Force

So, you feel that you have a sure-to-dazzle idea in your head, it's grand and vivid and full of things you can't wait to share with others. Here's a very important fact: it doesn't matter if it takes place on a space shuttle, in a submarine, on top of a mountain in a haunted cottage or in a meadow of talking flowers (it will matter how you introduce your world and set the scenes, but more of that in Chapter Four: WORLD). If the scenery doesn't matter, then what does? At this early stage of your plotting the plot, I would say that the focus should fall on the people; the characters; the villains; the humpty dumpties; the maniacs and jesters; the good-in-need-of-some-bad and the bad-in-search-of-some-good. In short - build interesting, gripping personas to populate your story, and you will have the audience hook, line and sinker.


Safe to say: most worlds are built around the character, and perhaps the STORY and the CHARACTER are really the same chapter, because usually the concept of your story will be born from the idea of a character. Let's then say that you have done a list or an overview of some sort - as discussed in the chapter prior - of your storyline, showing the plot and where you would like it to take you; naturally, you already have your main characters already in mind, and so should, as they are the driving force behind the storyline.

Nothing has taught me more about character than writing screenplays. There's such a subtlety that can be used when revealing character and all of it doesn't have to be cramped into the first page or first chapter. As with anything when you are writing - you shouldn't rush. There's no hurry, plant little revealing moments along the way, and your readers will enjoy getting to know your characters just as much as you do when you write them.

To the Point

When presenting the characters, I try to remember these points:

¤ Action Speaks Louder Than Words - let your character be active. A screenplay mantra is "Show, don't tell", this can easily be applied to your novel writing as well. Keep it in the back of your head: instead of writing a line of descriptive dialogue that is superflous for the scene, or situation, simply cut to the action that it preludes.

Example:

"Where are we going?" asked Peter, taking a huge bite of the hamburger he had just extracted from the bag, the look on his face not being far from delight as he chewed the food.
"Over there, I guess," Susan replied non-committaly, strolling past him to follow in the footsteps of her brother.

Consider:

Peter dug around in the bag for the hamburger he knew was hidden somewhere behind the french fries, extracting it with a look on his face which was not far from delight and biting into it just as Susan strolled past him, heading across the parking lot in the footsteps of her brother. Her back was quickly fading among the shadows of the woods beyond it and he wanted to call out to her before she disappeared from view completely, however, it proved mightily difficult with his mouth full of burger.
He stood indecisive for another moment, but the scuttling of a newspaper being ushered across the asphalt by an impatient wind got his feet quickly moving after his friend.

By removing the dialogue, which was simply preluding the action that was about to show, and not tell us what they were going to do anyway, it still conveys what I wanted it to tell the reader: that Peter doesn't know where they're going, that he's a follower, while Susan is rather careless with him and doesn't really care whether he comes or not.


¤ Character Arc - decide who your character is at the beginning of the story and then make sure that he or she has an arc that is believable and progressive.

Example: If your main character is meek and cowardly, he should, of course, end up a brave and brazen hero; if your main character is strong and independent, he may need to be reminded that it's okay to ask for help once in a while, and that co-dependency can be necessary; if your character is happy-go-lucky he may need to face reality and the struggles that most of us have to go through; and if your character is beaten and down on his knees he will need to teach himself about strength and how to get back on his feet and carry on.

Naturally, unless it's a tragedy you're writing - well, even then - the main character is on a journey of self-discovery and needs to evolve during the story in a positive way; he needs to find those sides to himself that so far has been subconscious, but that are necessary for his personal growth. Bravery, humility, strength - all of these are powerful traits that, once they're beginning to be apparent in a character that has been lacking them, will make the reader feel that the evolution has come full circle.

¤ Appearance and Accessories - hair color; eye color; height; weight; what is his or hers favorite color; does he or she wear jeans or trousers; does she enjoy skirts, blouses, sweaters; are they comfortable in their own skin or do they want to loose or maybe gain weight; does he or she bite their nails; does she wear make-up, does he?

By accessories I mean, does she have a ring that never comes off her finger, a favorite bracelet, does she always carry pen and paper, a day planner, would she not survive without her cell-phone? Does he have tattoos, piercings, jewellery? Does she? We all have everyday items that we can't imagine leaving the house without, let your characters everyday items be tattle-tales of who your characters are. Let them reflect if they're miserable, pretending to be happy; frightened, pretending to be brave; lonely, pretending not to care.

And what they wear and what colors they choose naturally goes into what type of person they are: whimsical and she may not be wearing a tight gray office suit with a pink tie; broken and depressed and she will probably not be adorning pastelles. It doesn't have to be too on-the-nose. You could have a lawyer in a strict gray suit who is whimsical in her off-hours and likes to wear can-can skirts and go dance polka, but then, perhaps, she wouldn't wear just any tie, but one with polka dots. Or even something subtler, like a certain belt, or a big, sparkly ring on one finger, the possibilities are endless.

To reveal - by describing your characters outards - what is moving in your characters innards is something to strive for.

The Most Important

Naturally your characters will come to life on the page. I very seldom sit down and list personal traits for my characters - though sometimes it absolutely helps, especially when I'm writing a script - but these points are good to remember when you go back and edit.

The most important thing - in my opinion - for any character to have is what I mentioned above: a strong, believable arc that moves steadily from its starting dot to its finishing dot, and which is unshakable in its foundations. You don't want anyone to go "But why is she running out of the cave when she got that sword from the prince and she's been talking about wanting to be a dragon slayer?" (Not that I personally would have her slay the dragon, because I believe them to be magnificent mythical creatures that mean no real harm; but then I would have her face the dragon and actively choose to put down her sword, not do a complete turn of character and run screaming for her life.)

The "It's Alive" Factor

Let your instincts guide you, play around, empathize with your characters, see yourself in their situation, act it out in your head or read your words outloud and try to get a sense of the realism of it. It doesn't matter if it's a mob story and you've never met a mafia boss in your life or if it's a fantasy adventure where half of the creatures populating your world is something that only stems from your imagination - the characters have to be alive.

An alive character isn't dead (duh), but has little tics, might say the wrong thing at the wrong time, might feel awkward, might hesitate when they shouldn't, will absolutely make mistakes, though they will usually be able to fix them or at least learn from them, might be obnoxious and not know it, might be smarter than they realize, shyness, boldness, humor, warmth, infuse your characters with as much real life that you can get, and if you still feel unsure of what I mean - look around, study your family, your friends, your pets, yourself. We all have characteristics that you can pick and choose from.

Good luck!


Summary


¤ Interesting, Gripping, Alive Personas will help draw the reader in and keep them from putting the book down. Ever.

¤ There's No Rush, plant your revelations of character selectively throughout the story, not throughout the first chapter. Remember, the evolution of the character is also interwoven with the evolution of the storyline itself. You wouldn't begin the story with the last chapter, would you?

¤ Action Speaks Louder Than Words - let your character be active and cut unnecessary dialogue. More of this in Chapter Three: DIALOGUE.

¤ The Character Arc/The Most Important - the main character is on a journey throughout the story and needs to evolve in a positive way; she/he needs to find those sides to her/himself that have been subconscious, but which are necessary for her/his personal growth. Bravery, humility, strength - all of these are powerful traits that, once they're beginning to be apparent in a character that's been lacking them, the reader will feel that the evolutionary process has come full circle.

¤ The "It's Alive" Factor - fashion your character, be they fantasy or mobsters, after people with flaws, no matter what the flaw is, everyone has them, and your reader will be able to identify and laugh, cry or wish to kill your character for them. Oh, yeah - trust me on that.

Recommended Literature:

The Harry Potter Series by JK Rowling (every character is memorable and has traits that are completely personal)

The Lord of the Rings by JR Tolkien (the same as with Harry Potter - a world is painted around the characters to bring them into focus)

American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis (Patrick Bateman is delivered in a flawlessly ruptured manner that fits perfectly with Bateman's ruptured psyche)

Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk (to teach your character that for every action - a reaction. Palahniuk does this effortlessly by creating a modern Jekyll and Hyde.)

For personal traits I would also recommend you opt for the visual and watch a few of your favorite movies. Let's take a classic, which most of us should know, as a simple example on how to observe character:

Dirty Dancing - Who is Baby? Does she start out as a shy, silent girl-in-the-corner type of character? No, she doesn't. She isn't as self-confident as her sister Lisa, but she's driven, she wants to help people, join the Peace Corps, and so, in a sense, she already possesses bravery in certain areas of life. Where she needs to evolve is on the love front, where she hasn't had much experience. And what is the theme of the movie? Yes, yes, dance - and the other? When Johnny says that famous quote "Nobody puts Baby in a corner" - it's almost as though he's stating the essence of her character right then and there.