  Short Stories
This week: The "Care" in Character Edited by: Dawn Embers  
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| As a reader, a few factors exist that affect my enjoyment of a story. Readability, quality, tone and even the plot create varying instances, but for me (and I imagine others) the real key element to a great story is the character. I need to care about the characters involved in the story, at least one of them, whether it's a novel or a flash fiction piece and there are a few reasons. If one can write that character then they have my attention. Because in the end, it's hard to beat a good character driven story. |
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The "Care" in Character
To write a good story, one might first consider the main viewpoint character and in some varying degrees other characters involved. Hence the title, because we must put the "Care" into the "Character."
What do I mean by "Care" in Character?
The inspiration for this newsletter comes from the fact that aside from writing, I am a reader. And the truth is I like character driven stories and find that I need to care about the character of the ones I read. I will preface this a little by saying I don't have to always like the character, it's possible to care about someone but not like them. But as someone who judges a few different contests and reviews novels on the side, I find the overall opinion I have on a story (whether it's flash fiction, short stories or novels) is more often related to my general perception of the character and not the overall plot. Give me a character I can care about in a contest and it will stand a chance of winning. However, it's not quite that easy to accomplish.
It's worse in a novel, I will say. Short stories do sometimes benefit from their length because a reader may make it through a story with a character they don't care about because it isn't 300 pages long. On the other hand, it can be more of a challenge to provide enough character development in the limited word count when writing. There is only so much one can do in 1000 words. This is where word economy comes into play along with figuring out what moves the plot and character development along and what isn't needed. And with the right couple of sentences, one can work wonders in providing an empathic handle for the reader to hold on tight.
I must also add that picking first person point of view doesn't mean it's easier to relate to as a reader. In fact, I have a harder time connecting with the character in first person because we get their name less often it seems and not as much detail. Plus, the stuck with the annoying main character situation gets worse in first person because as the reader we are in their head the whole time. It can be a death knell for a story when that situation occurs. Don't forget about plot either, but consider this: you have a fascinating world and an awesome conflict but will that matter if the reader doesn't care about the character? On occasion, rare occasion, the answer might be sure with the right story character isn't as important. But I would guess a pretty penny that a good percent of the time, no matter how intriguing the plot, how cool the concept or how marvelous the world, without some care for the character it may go unread.
So, even if you don't have much time word count wise in the story, don't forget to consider the reader's possible reactions to the character. Make them care.
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Picking a few items to showcase here proved difficult. I tried to get a mix of item types because while short story is the important factor in this particular newsletter, there are activities that can help when considering characters.
This first one is a survey where the creator wants to know what you think makes an outstanding character. I like it because it requires self reflection. As both readers and writers, we can see what we like and how to incorporate that into the stories we write.
A fun little In & Out here where you can pick which story character, from published books or even stories on WDC that you'd like to be, if you could.
This story interested me for a couple of reasons. First, there are images used that help get an immediate picture of the character. Then there is the story that follows, which isn't about his whole life but takes a small section and shows us it.
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#1936397 by Not Available. |
Written for the Daily Slice, a horror contest on here, this story did something that isn't easy to do. It made me care about a character who in essence is not a good person. While she is the main viewpoint character, there is enough twisted about her that makes me not want to be her but at the same time in a dark way I almost felt happy for the main character by the end.
The following three I have chosen because they were the winners in the last round of What a Character, the official WDC contest that focuses on character. Each has its own merit and a character that caught the readers' (and judges') attention.
This one is a fun challenge that is designed for character development. The Gauntlet includes a daily challenge with varying prompts meant to help develop different aspects of a main character. Current round is in progress, so check out some of the entries. No exact time frame given for next round but it's a good one to watch for if you're interested in working on a specific character.
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#1897404 by Not Available. |
round in progress
Official WDC contest that focuses on character based on a prompt. Next round starts July 1.
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Have an opinion on what you've read here today? Then send the Editor feedback! Find an item that you think would be perfect for showcasing here? Submit it for consideration in the newsletter!
https://www.Writing.Com/go/nl_form
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This is my first (official) newsletter so I don't have any feedback to showcase here. Often times I like to end my blog posts on my non-wdc blogs with questions. I also am starting up a new activity to coax me and others to write. So, instead of feedback I will post a few questions for you (for you to answer one or two or all three), then post a dare.
Do you need to care about the character to enjoy a short story?
Who is your favorite character to write about?
Is it easier to relate to a character in first person or third person point of view?
I Dare You to enter in July: |
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Short Stories: June 12, 2013 Issue [#5726]
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