April Editorial: Character Creation

One thing is certain, ask a novelist a couple of simple questions on a topic and he will go on for pages with his response! Solar asked some questions in the forums about character development and we received two really detailed responses we would like to share with the rest of the group. Thanks to both mschlemmer and olddrifter for taking the time not only to think about the questions but to write down such succinct responses.


mschlemmer

Character development is perhaps the most important key to good story telling. A reader must care about the characters to care about what happens next in the story. A reader must dislike the bad guy/gal enough to wish him/her to get what's coming to them in the end. I have a couple steps that I've learned throughout the years from various authors.

First, I find a picture for each and every character in my story; whether from a family photo album, magazine, newspapers, on-line photos, or a snapshot of a neighbor or friend. I tape all the character's pictures onto a huge bulletin board in my office.

Secondly, I set out defining their histories. I develop a full history, whether I include it all in the book or not, depicting where each character was born, raised, whether their parents are alive or dead, how they were raised, their financial backgrounds, whether they had friends or not, etc., like tiny biographies. I place the histories under the pictures.

After their backgrounds are developed it is time to figure out their personalities based on the histories they've lived to date. Included in the personalities are their internal conflicts. Some people would describe internal conflict as a person's "baggage", issues we all have that effect how we deal with other people, and cause stresses in one's life if not dealt with. Of course the purpose of the internal conflict is to cause separation or emotional distance between the lead characters. Usually solved in the end, allowing our happy couple to ride off into the sunset. The internal conflict also determines how our characters deal with external conflict (the environmental or situational aspects of the story----settings and plot twists). Your characters must react to their environment otherwise your plot will become stagnant.

Now it's time to put our characters to the page. We introduce the characters in numerous ways. Here are a few of them:

Dialog: This is a key component to getting a true feel for a character. The dialog is how and what our characters say in reaction to other characters and their situations. This allows the reader to know what the character is thinking and feeling. We must be careful not to use dialects that we are unfamiliar with, because our characters will become fake and contrived if done inappropriately. We also need to be true to our characters. Tommy should never sound like Jessie and vice versa. We need to use dialog to show emotion or inflection. Avoid the often overused and blah "He said, she said". Use this as an opportunity to show a piece of our character's personality... He cursed under his breath. She groaned. (Much better, isn't it?)

Narration: This is a powerful way of directly or indirectly describing our characters. Her long, blond hair reached to the floor like a wedding veil. Is one example. Narration is the easiest way of describing our characters, however we want to provide unique glimpses in creative ways. Sure, I could've just said... Cathy had long, blond hair. However it wouldn't have created a mental picture for the reader as the description above does. Narration can also set the mood of our characters. For example... The wind whistled through the trees, making Cathy shiver. She quickly pulled her cloak together, hoping that Damon would soon find her. See how the narration sets the scene in a way that makes us see the characters perspective and emotions at the time they are happening?

Point of View: We tell the story through the eyes of our characters. This is described as the character's point of view (POV). When the writer explains the story or scene through the character's thoughts and actions. This is most often accomplished through dialog and narration. However the POV is established in a broader sense throughout the whole story. We must be careful not to combine too many points of view in one area, to keep the reader from getting confused.

Setting: The setting is a great way to describe our character indirectly. For example: Tommy surveyed his car, taking note of the many candy wrappers and fast food containers recklessly thrown about the seats and floor. This tells the reader allot about the character... he's a bit of a slob and he likes candy and fast food. Describing a character's house adds personality to the character, too. Our hero living in a mansion says something about him. His knick-knacks and choice of decorations add glimpses into his personality.

Writing isn't just putting words on a page and the same applies to creating believable characters that interest the reader and push your story forward. We writers need to know and care about our characters. They must exist in our minds as real individuals. Otherwise, how can a reader care about them if the writer doesn't? Know your characters. What makes them tick? How would your character react if they fell down a well? Would they sit down and cry? Or devise a way to climb out? Have fun with developing your characters and the reader will enjoy them as well.


olddrifter

For me, a character in any story is defined by his personality first; the character's habits, or quirks if you prefer. We all have certain things we do that are at least similar. It's the unusual ones that set a character apart from every other character. Detective Columbo is a good example here. He's constantly putting his finger to his head as if to think about something then, like a bolt from heaven he suddenly remembers an innocent question he forgot. Either that or he goes off talking about his wife and how she would love ……… Those traits help define Columbo.

The physical appearance is a defining trait although it can be misleading. A perfect example is Detective Columbo again. He dresses in a wrinkled trench coat and looks like yesterday’s dirty laundry. However his ability to solve a crime is uncanny. The company he keeps or fails to keep also helps define the character. Rick Blaine in Casablanca kept to himself, at least until the end.
Where he lives is also an indicator. Example, living in a mansion or living in a cold water flat would give the reader some different ideas about the character.

Working a character's development into the story depends on the story first of all but in general I would drop hints about him during the story. I may say …"Eddies fiery hair blew recklessly in the desert wind as he tried in vain to push his truck from the ditch." That tells the reader that Eddie is a red head. He is probably a rancher or farmer and he lives most likely in the Southwest.

To get familiar with my character, I talk to him or her. I'll actually have a conversation out loud if necessary to hear them speak. Something else that helps me personally a great deal is a picture. I may find a photo of someone, anyone, and fit the character to the image at first. I'm very visual in that respect.

Being involved in horror and erotic horror, I love the way Dean Koontz takes me on a roller coaster ride through out his story. In "Intensity", from the first page I was on the ride. Up slowly then a short sudden drop. Up slowly again but not as far to the top this time then that drop to the bottom and a more rapid rise then the drop again, over and over and over until the ride is over. I barely had time to take a breath. I like Creighton and King as well. Jurassic Park was much better as the book than the movie. As for Stephen King, I don't think there is a better storyteller in the genre. King makes you believe you're there. I've been to Maine and I passed through Bangor. I kept waiting to see one of his characters on the street.

I know there are a thousand other things that I probably go through to create a character. Some are visual, some verbal, some are just accidental to begin with but they all come from me. I may take various traits of the characters I've read about or the people I've known but I put them together to make that one special character for whatever the story may be.


Although their approach to the question was different, it is apparent that writers in different genres use some of the same techniques in creating their characters. It is important to get to know the character, his past, his idiosyncrasies, his likes, and dislikes. Having a picture often helps a writer visualize the character. Photographs are easy to obtain from magazines or simply snapping a shot during a walk through the park or any location your character would be found. Simply creating the character isn’t enough. In order to make the character believable to the reader, you must be able to anticipate the reader’s questions and know how your character would answer. You might not need to know if he likes broccoli in this chapter but who knows when it may come up later?