by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig
Every once in a while, I’ll grind to a halt with my story. I’ll either want to flesh out a subplot or develop the main plot a bit more, but I won’t be sure which direction to go in.
I always manage to muddle my way through and solve my problem, but I’d never sent a lot of time thinking about how I solve it.
I read a post by Steven-John Tait recently and one of his tips really resonated with me. Tait said, “Find empathy. If you can empathize with a character, you can get into their head. Once you’re in their head, you can fill in the blanks.”
Tait’s tip was intended to help with developing a protagonist, but it works well with all of the characters in the story. This is one of the main methods that I use when I’m ‘muddling’ through the book to find my way.
Plot Development
For instance, when I was working on developing a subplot recently, I put myself in the shoes of one of my minor recurring characters. I realized that I’d left her kind of stalled-out in her life for several books…that she wasn’t really arcing. When I put myself in her shoes, I realized that she needed to move forward in her relationship and in her life and needed a dramatic change. I wrote it in.
When I put myself in the shoes of my story’s killer, it was interesting, too. I can’t say that I empathized with her, but the exercise did help me realize what might be going on in that character’s timeline at various points in the story.
Character Likeability Check
Tait has a point–the protagonist is likely the most important character for us to be able to empathize with. After all, if we can’t, then our readers likely won’t be able to. And readers can be tough on characters that they can’t connect with in some way.
This is a tough one for me because I tend to like unlikeable characters. In fact, I have two protagonists who can be prickly. As the writer, you can leave your unlikeable characters completely alone, or you can tweak them to please readers more…your choice.
If your character is borderline or even over-the-top unlikeable, there are pretty easy fixes. Blake Snyder famously developed the “save the cat” approach where the protagonist does something kind to create empathy. You can also show a potential for kindness from the character. These approaches are explained by Robert Wood of Standout Books in this post.
You could also explore what makes them prickly or otherwise unlikeable. Some skilful use of backstory can help with this.
Character Consistency
Putting ourselves in our characters’ heads is a good way to make sure they’re acting in character, too. That they’re behaving like themselves. Or, if they aren’t, we need to find a way to explain why they aren’t.
Do you ever use this method as a way of keeping your story on track? Have you ever used it for developing plots and subplots?
How Empathizing With Characters Can Create a Better Story: Click To TweetPhoto credit: neilalderney123 on VisualHunt / CC BY-NC
I really like this idea of putting yourself in a character’s shoes, Elizabeth. Seeing the world through a character’s eyes can put the author in touch with ho that character thinks, what that character needs, and more. Oh, and I’m with you – sometimes I like< unlikable characters. If they’re interesting or appealing in some way, that draws me in.
There’s something interesting about it…maybe figuring out what makes them tick?
That’s a good tip. If we don’t empathize with a character in some way, our readers won’t either.
Exactly. I may not be able to imagine myself as the character, as a reader, but at least I can have some idea where he or she is coming from.
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