My daughter has been horseback riding on the weekends for years now. I love that she loves it, I love the way she excels at it. I love that it’s an outdoor activity in a digital, indoor age. The barns are interesting places and the people who hang out in barns are very different from the people I’m ordinarily around, so that’s very stimulating. And, of course, the horses are gorgeous.
But I really just didn’t get the whole horse thing. My daughter would talk about the horses while we were at the barn and continue talking about them during the week. There was lots of personification going on…in my mind, anyway. “Dusty worries about the jumps when they’re in different locations than usual. That’s why he kept trying to look at them as we were cantering around the ring. I had to really make sure he was looking straight ahead,” she’d say. And I’d nod and ask more about Dusty’s proclivities and his outlook on the world, and think, “What a creative child I have!” Because I’d look at Dusty, the largest horse in the barn, and all I got out of it was… “My Lord, what a massive animal that is.” And hope she always stayed on the horse.
I’m perfectly capable of telling people what’s on my dog’s mind and my cats’ minds, but I couldn’t get into the horses’ heads at all. Until my daughter started riding Sweet Pea a month or so ago. That was when I started getting into horses.
Sweet Pea was curious. My daughter would be trying to tack her up and the horse would hear someone coming and crane her head to peer around and see who was there with this intelligent, interested, curious look on her face. She attentively watches the pasture, when she has a view to it, to spy on her horse buddies. Actually, I guess Sweet Pea is more nosy than curious.
With characters, we’re doing the same thing. We’re trying to find some way for readers to connect with them. How can we bring them to life, especially if they only have a minor role in a book (protagonists, hopefully, we’ve got nailed). How do we keep our book’s characters from becoming just another horse in the stable?
I like to start out simple and then build from there…maybe even in the edits if I don’t have the character fully-developed as I’m writing him. Having something small to build around…like Sweet Pea’s nosiness…is helpful when you’re starting out on a new book.
At this point and after over a dozen books, I look for ways to keep characters and plots fresh. I know writers who’ve written upwards of sixty or eighty books and I marvel at their ability to keep their books from getting stale or exploring the same types of characters or subject matter. Sometimes when I’m brainstorming, it’s almost as though my brain is trying to follow on the same course…I’ll immediately come up with something I’ve done before (even if it’s a few books ago) and dig deeper.
Sometimes, I need a prompt. Get me started with a direction that’s different from the well-worn track I’m trying to steer down again. At that point, going to a site like the Inspiration for Writers site, can help to just jumpstart your own process. There are lists of character traits there that can just help get your imagination in gear. The site Read, Write, Think , a resource for teachers, also has a nice sample list.
Sometimes I’ll go on sites like Pinterest…and be careful there, because that place is a major time-suck. Set a timer. But you can see so many pictures of different types of people there that it can help break you out of any particular pattern that your brain is bent on repeating. People’s appearances in the pictures suggest different types of personalities.
My standby is ‘collecting people’ out in public. Just being at the library gives you the opportunity to see many different types of people—and attitude and personality tends to show itself easily, even to casual observers (especially after you do this kind of collecting through the years).
Most of us have written amalgams of different people we know—family, friends, co-workers, acquaintances. After a while, though, unless we get out and meet more people, we’ll have run through all the folks we know. At least…I have. :) I didn’t know that many people, even starting out. But making amalgams can be helpful for a while.
You can also twist it around and build a character from what they want most. Because sometimes, what someone wants most suggests certain traits about them. If what someone wants most is money, for instance…it’s easy to dream up particular traits for them. What if it’s respect, power, love, friendship, shelter, faith?
What if you dump a bunch of challenges/problems on some of these characters? How they react to that and deal with it will indicate some of their traits…traits that can also be shown in other parts of their life and relationships with others in the story.
So…lots of different ways of doing this. And this is just getting us started…the next drafts we can add to the skeleton first draft and fill them out even more. The whole point is just to make the characters stand out from each other to readers and make it more likely that readers will foster connections with them and relate to them and just plain get them like I finally got Sweet Pea.
How do you set your characters apart from each other and provide them with unique traits and personalities?
You’ve just given me some ideas for some future Story Game posts! (Too many ideas, unfortunately….)
I like the the idea of starting with what the character wants most — that’s kind of how I start. I divide it, though — there’s what they emotionally deep down want most, and then what they intellectually THINK they want most. I notice that with most people, these two things don’t quite match up.
And for me, that is where the interest really kicks in.
Elizabeth – To me, characters are the heart of a story. So I agree that taking the time to develop them and make them real for readers is important. I think it starts with making them real to us as authors. When I write characters, I think about one important thing that defines them and build from there. For instance, one character I wrote has a mother who’s got Alzheimer’s. While that doesn’t come near to defining her whole character, it does give one a picture of what her life is like (visits to Mom, planning with the care provider and so on). And then I added another dimension to her character. Once you do that, then you can ask, ‘OK what would this kind of character do in that situation?’ And there you’ve got a more fully-rounded character. Well, at least it works for me.
Elizabeth, I’m at the I have a skeleton stage of my novel and now have to add flesh and depth. My writing coach recorded a meditation for me that asks the characters to come and then I ask them questions. It was the first time the character became “real” to me and I learned a lot about them. I’m looking forward to getting to know them better now that I know I can do this. There are very useful ideas in your post and the comments from other writers. Thank you.
The Daring Novelist–Ha! No, I don’t need to distract you from the writing. You’ve got enough going on between your blogging, art, and game.
I like that, too….what they think they want and what they actually want. And then I also think about that book that made such a splash (this spring? this summer? Where does time go?) about the ‘Top 5 Regrets of the Dying’ (not to inject a too-solemn note here, lol) and the top one was “I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.” So then we have that conflict and pressure between what we want only because everyone around us wants it for us and what we *truly* want. Or maybe that the character hasn’t had the space or time or the private moments to actually even determine what they want for themselves until there’s an unexpected event of some kind that makes them discover it.
Oh I love using Pinterest for inspiration! Characters, settings, everything! You’re right though, it’s very easy to lose a few hours there and not even realize it.
What they want can certainly help mold the character. Not into horses either, but that’s a good analogy about characters being just another horse in the field.
As I’m working on the outline for a different book, I understand how easy it is to fall into a similar pattern with the characters and story.
Margot–I like that approach. And the character can decide whether that tremendous challenge *does* define her or not…and that’s part of the characterization process.
Alex–Oh, glad to hear you’re still writing! Wonderful news.
It’s so, so easy to fall into those same storylines and characters. I’ll sometimes think, “I’ve got a great idea!” Then I’ll think: “Wait. Haven’t I had this great idea before?” Sure enough, it’ll be part of another book from a couple of years ago. Maybe even a small part of another book, but what if a reader reads *that* book right before the new one?
Hi Elizabeth
An excellent question! As you say, it’s the minor characters that can get lost and appear a bit simple and undeveloped, definitely something to work on.
I loved your comment about starting with what they want. I find that beginning with that, and then using it to dig a little deeper and find the values, even it it’s just one main one for the smaller parts, can add real personality, and perhaps more important, motivation.
I, too, like collecting people. My wife and I will spend our time in restaurants and on trains making up stories for people, which I then pinch! Almost everyone starts off with some sort of scandal, but then you have to get creative and come up with some interesting stuff. Great for inventing new characters and staying creative away from the computer. :)
Thanks again
Mike
Karen–I love that! Very cool. Seems to me an interview would be a great way to get to know a character.
Momlarky–Such a time-suck on Pinterest…but in a fun way!
I’m a people collector too! I think teaching and interacting with staff, students and parents over the years has given me dozens and dozens of ideas! :)
Hi Elizabeth .. so interesting to read – I’m like you with horses .. or the way you were! Karen’s idea of having skeleton to hang our characteristics on .. is interesting .. fascinating read – cheers Hilary
Hilary–And I still can’t connect with all those other horses…just one or two now that I’ve gotten to “know” Sweet Pea. :)
Michael–Starting with motivation is probably the best course. It’s very, very easy, suggests immediate values and traits, and goes a bit deeper than simply creating particular personality traits.
Oh, that’s a fun game. I’ve done that at airports before–make up stories to go along with the people I see.
Jemi–That’s where you have a huge advantage! I never meet so many people….or if I do, I’m at a party and I’m not ‘collecting people’….I’m avoiding them. :)
I collect characters from the coffee shop where I write. I ask the questions who they are and what do they want, and go from there. Sometimes I get a great character, and if I’m lucky, I’ll get a story.
Elizabeth–
As usual, you’ve raised a very interesting topic. You say that “sometimes, what someone wants most suggests certain traits about them.” I would say strong wants, like visceral dislikes are always revealing of characters, both real and imagined. As for what works and what doesn’t for a writer in individualizing characters, That’s a toughy. With me, one thing is the naming process. If I get a name right, that alone can serve to clarify a character for me. Diokens was perhaps the greatest at creating characters through names. Mr. Gradgrind, the schoolmaster (and you know just what kind of schoolmaster he is), Mr Scrooge, the money manager (a character whose name is now a dictionary definition of a miser), etcetera. The “right” name isn’t usually enough, but it can be very helpful in developing a character. At least for me.
Elke–Me too. :) I’ve gotten fairly good at taking snapshots with my phone’s camera, too, in an inconspicuous way…to add to a character file.
You know, this post really hit home for me. I’m 38k into a terrible first draft, and I was feeling all icky because I know my character work isn’t great right now. But I reminded myself, and this post reinforced my reminder, that further character development can take place after the skeleton of the story is down. Thank you!
Julie–After that skeleton is done, you just feel so much better. Even if I have only 30 thousand words, if I’ve written all the way from the beginning of the story to the end, then I know I can add in the rest in layers. That’s really the way I write as quickly as I do.
Barry–Good point about the visceral dislikes. It can really shine a light on a character, especially in terms of background (I know I inherited a lot of my dislikes from my parents). Naming! Yes! Such a good point and a great example. My favorite was Uriah Heep. Terrific, if extremely unlikeable, character and the name says so much. Sometimes I find myself having to rename my characters halfway through a book….
Elizabeth,
Great post! I love the people collecter idea. I guess I’ve been doing it for years, too. But the best part was using horses to illustrate characterization. Several weeks ago, I used my horse to illustrate how riding is so like writing: tighten up your muscle here, relax your back, look down the road to where you want to go. Would you mind if I re-post yours Friday?
Thonie: The perfect analogy. :) Absolutely…feel free to reblog.