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| Who Are You And Why Are You Ruining My
Story? By Christine Urbaniak Okay, so you've gotten over your writer's block, but now you find you're stuck and your writing is just plain BO-RING... and who are these people you've created and why don't you like them? Characterization is the most important part of your story. If you don't like your characters, why should anyone else? Some might argue that plot is number one, but think about it -- if you have a great plot, but disagreeable, unlikable, unsympathetic characters, what does it matter? You must have a point at which you connect with the characters in a story, the plot, but if you don't have interesting characters, the rest is just window dressing. The following are some writer's exercises guaranteed to get your pen flowing and your characters interesting. 1) Talk to your characters: Have a conversation with your character, on paper, and ask who they are, what they like, what the problem is -- ME: Molly, why are you having trouble deciding whether to marry George or Lance? MOLLY: I like them both. ME: Like or love? MOLLY: Well, I love George, but Lance turns me on! ME: But George is a drunk! MOLLY: But he has a better job... ME: But Lance has a nice -- car! Hmm! Hash it out with your character and see what pops up or how your storyline might change or improve with what you have learned from them. 2) You've painted yourself into a corner -- change the paint, or move to another room. Your character was on the right track; Mary, the happy housewife, had everything going for her, but BUMP. Now what? She's in a rut and has lost her luster. Even if it's totally off the wall, make your character do something completely OUT of character. You may change the story totally around in the end, but now you have a few fresh ideas with which to work and may see your character in a new light. You know, Mary the housewife who develops a gambling problem and has to moonlight as a porno star -- now we're seeing a whole different "side" of Mary, aren't we? She may still be boring as the end result, but we know she has the capacity to be interesting or slimy. Your readers may never know of Mary's odd vices, but you do -- and it will reflect in your characterization. 3) Freak out -- Let your character have a total lapse of moral judgment, commit a crime or have a temper tantrum. Now write why. "Dear Grandma Mabel isn't really going to beat the town drunk to death, but if she DID, you can bet..." You have to give people the capacity for evil and give them the chance to screw up. Nobody's perfect! We need to be able to sympathize or empathize with our characters or no one else will. 4) Let your characters write the story. I asked a writer friend of mine her opinion on a story and where I might go with it. She told me at this point it was no longer up to me; the characters had taken over the story and would finish telling it. After thinking about it, I realized she was right. Every time I started to say one thing, the characters said, "no way!" and it went the way they wanted it to. I thought this was one of the nicest complements I'd ever gotten and my characters have changed that story from a woman with an addiction, to a romantic murder mystery thriller! When I had gone back and really thought about it, I didn't like this character very much and certainly couldn't connect with her. I thought her addiction was not only selfish, but stupid because she didn't have a reason to justify it. After spending some time alone with her, in the little world I call my mind, I realized that she was too special to be a housewife with an addiction and no direction. We hashed it out and decided to change a few things. Now she's REAL -- a bit embellished, but real nonetheless. I know I am, in a sense, telling you to make your characters do things that go against what they may believe, but this is an exercise to improve your characterization. When it all comes down to who that person is, on paper, so to speak, these exercises have helped to make them who they are, and not FORCED them to be someone they don't WANT to be. Forcing your character to do something or be someone they were not intended to be is unnatural and obvious. Add another character if you really need to, or reassess the character in question, but in the end, the character will be who they WANT to be, whether you like it or not; it is up to you to help them get there. You have created that life, let them LIVE it! About the Author I live in the boonies of central Wisconsin with 3 teenagers, 2 cats and 1 farmer. I have had various articles and stories published both online and in print. Currently, I am polishing up my first E-Book, a humorous writer's reference, entitled "And STAY Out! How to Send Writer's Block Packing" and have 2 more of the like in the works. After a brief hiatus, I am continuing the online serial novel, the "Addicted To Sex" Series due out late April of 2001 at NoSpine.net. Aside from my "paying job" as Internet Marketing and Recruiting Specialist for a broadcasting company in Madison, I specialize in building low-cost, e-commerce websites for starving writers looking to sell their works via the Internet. If you would like more information on publication dates, websites, or to just say "hello", drop me an email! |
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