 Drama: October 18, 2017 Issue [#8540] |
  Drama
This week: On Supporting and Minor Characters Edited by: Joy  
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“I think the deeper you go into questions, the deeper or more interesting the questions get. And I think that’s the job of art.”
—Andre Dubus II
“When I say work I only mean writing. Everything else is just odd jobs.”
—Margaret Laurence
“If a nation loses its storytellers, it loses its childhood.”
—Peter Handke
Hello, I am Joy , this week's drama editor. This issue is about the best ways to develop supporting and minor characters.
Thank you for reading our newsletters and for supplying the editors with feedback and encouragement.
Note: In the editorial, if I refer to third person singular as he, I also mean the female gender, because I don't like to use they or he/she.
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Welcome to the Drama newsletter
Are you getting ready for NaNo or planning to write a long story or a novel? I bet you keep planning or thinking about what to write and how to coordinate the characters in your work. Yet, no matter how much we ready ourselves for the actual writing of our novels, surprises will come up along the way. Most of these are good surprises, some not so. It is a fact of writing that any supporting or minor character may emerge during the course of the writing process, especially in a novel, even if that character wasn’t planned beforehand. These characters are valuable because they add texture to our stories.
Several opinions exist on how to handle such a character when he or she pops up out of thin air. Our first question, then, might be, “Why do I (or does this story) need this character?” If the answer to this question points to the character not being so important, we don’t have a choice but to eliminate him.
On the other hand, if this character will be important to the protagonist or to the progress of the story, we need to give him his due process by providing him with a successful birth. By birth, I don’t mean an actual birth but the character’s entry into the storyline. For example, we must first pinpoint which part of the story this new character will relate to or spring from. A few important supporting or minor characters spring from the setting, for example. Others may show up to direct the protagonist toward the resolution of the plot.
Then, if such a character is present in only a scene or two, should the writer need a bio for him? I would have to say this depends on the writer. If the writer can picture in his head this character as vividly as necessary, then he’d have no need for further development or research; however, such a writer is a rarity. In addition, if a character is really minor, like a person passing by and throwing a fearful or surprised look just to add to the color of the scene, keeping who he is as simple as possible would be the best way to handle that character. The story will sound closer to the truth if such a small character would make an impression but not create havoc when he enters or passes through a scene.
Yet, to be on the safe side, for more important secondary, supporting, or minor characters, a mini-bio would help. If the writer cannot bother with filling up a huge character sheet for a supporting character, he should at least focus on this character’s thoughts because thoughts add tension and suspense, reveal character, and can build reader empathy. It is important for the writer to know those thoughts even if they are not exactly written inside the novel.
Above all, the writer needs to keep mind that character is action. Sometimes that action is an expected one, but more often than not, a surprising action by any characters animates the story. It is also important to find out if this character is acting as the world he is in dictates or if he is against that world.
Here is a mini bio to apply to all genres:
1. Name, age, social standing, and a very short backstory to include family background or the character’s earlier story.
2. His physical being: face, body, and mannerisms, if needed
3. What does this character want? What does he fear? What are his thoughts, his outlook on life, and beliefs?
4. Flaws, Strengths, Weaknesses. Keep in mind that even animals or fantasy character have flaws, strengths, and weaknesses.
May all our characters bring life to our work while keeping their authenticity, and Happy   Halloween!
Until next time… 
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 This Issue's Tip: Great characters sell scripts much better because the studios want roles for their stars.
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Feedback for "Our Specific Fiction Voices as Writers"
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Christopher Roy Denton 
Thank you for plugging my short story in your newsletter. I'm honored. 
You're very welcome. I uttered a "Wow!" when I read your story.
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Quick-Quill 
Voice is always so confusing to me. I write the way I talk or the way I think a dialect should be spoken. In my book, I chose the husband and children to depict the local dialect. My editor/publisher advised me to remove all dialect. I disagreed. Mother tried to better herself and speaking properly was one way to do it. She corrected her children. I left it in. No one complained. It actually enhanced the characters. Made them more sympathetic.
On another note, I read an e-read book where the author wrote the accent of an Italian character in phonetics. Every time he spoke I had to say aloud the words to see what he was trying to say. After a couple of chapters I gave up and never finished the book. Be careful of the voice you use and how colloquial you write to portray that voice.
Thanks for the feedback.
There is a place for dialect, no question about it; as long as it is understandable by the readers.
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