You are here#4: Characters: Introduction

#4: Characters: Introduction

By KLCtheBookWorm - Posted on 18 October 2009

By now you should have brainstormed enough to realize who is in your cast of characters for this story. Characters are the most important aspect of a story. Everything else hinges upon the people inside. "Character is the destiny of the novel," is how Donna Levin puts it (Get That Novel Written! 5) and it applies to short stories too. Characters influence the plot, and the actions and conflicts show off the characters. And if you don't write about interesting characters, no one is going to read. Heck, why do you read fanfics--to see what other people do with the characters you love, right?

With fanfics, you have established characters and new characters. New characters are obvious, the ones you create, usually called “OC” for original character. Established characters are the ones from the show, movie, comic book, book, etc. "Well, I'm not making any new characters so I don't need to read this." Wrong, if you turn the established characters unbelievable, you've killed your story. Trying some of these exercises with the developed personalities you already know will help you grasp them even better.

Two more ways to classify characters are by dividing into the main and the secondary. The main character is the one the story is about, the protagonist. The other characters are secondary. Levin's way to explain it is that all characters fall on a line graph; the main character on one end and the guys who wanted the bros' bikes before the Biker Mice charged into Limburger's Tower in "Rock & Ride" on the other. Everyone else falls in between the two extremes.

Can you have more than one protagonist? The usual answer is no. The protagonist is the one who changes throughout the plot of the novel, making him or her the main-est of the main characters. My answer is that it depends, especially when you have a complicated sub-plot going along with the plot. If this sub-plot has a different set of characters, the protagonist is going to be different. Who is the bigger protagonist in "Shatter Your Illusions", Throttle or Tala? I have a hard time deciding.

Now with a short story, you only have room for one protagonist. It is usually the point of view character and you stay in their head or very close to it throughout the short story. That's not a hard and fast rule, just a good place to start. You don't have the word length to jump from character to character in a short story.

One more thing before getting to the nitty-gritty of creating characters: characters move the plot. This means your characters must be true to their pasts, beliefs, strengths, and limitations. For example, in "Reunions" one of my beta readers pointed out that it was highly uncharacteristic of Throttle to charge off after a shooter without a weapon. In this case, it only took a little tweaking to fix. And it was a case of plot moving character, I wanted to show off Charley's quick thinking and get them both back to the room.

Enough background, let's look at actual characters. My cast sheet as follows in order of importance:

Charley - the protagonist and point of view character
Jack
Charley and Jack's daughter
The Bros
Chef Andy

All established characters except for Charley and Jack's daughter, which means we follow the way the characters were shown on the show or expand from that in a believable way.

John Ames explained how he creates great, memorable characters. "The idea is to have them [main characters] so clearly fleshed out before you begin that you know instinctively how they would react in any situation. Of course, you don't give the reader nearly as much information about your characters as you know." (Building Believable Characters by Marc McCutcheon 8) And my added advice is to write down everything you know.

Some considerations for those planning a series: "strategy" vs. "tactics". Jeremiah Healy explains the metaphor as "tactics represent the short-term plan for winning a battle (i.e. a book)" and "strategy represents the long-term plan for winning a war (i.e. a series)." His point with developing series character is that decisions reached in the beginning about the character for the first book often make the writer pull her hair or grind his teeth in later books. ("Developing a Series Character" Writing the Private Eye Novel 80) And why is that? Why not change the character if whatever about them is causing headaches?

Your character must be true to their past, beliefs, strengths, and limitations.

”Great, like there wasn't enough to worry about. But why is it such a big deal?” Continuity means everything fits together as a seamless whole. Little give-away tidbits come back to have interesting repercussions. Everyone is familiar with Modo's arm scenario? First Karbunkle just took the original arm. Then he built the metal replacement. Then the circumstances surrounding the arm changed completely with the flesh arm blown away in a battle. That's bad continuity.

"So why should we care when the makers of the show didn't?" Because the fans care. And since you don't want to piss off your fans, a professional should care. "I'm not a professional." Neither are most Olympic athletes but you can bet your tushie they work like they are.

Let's make some characters already. Main characters are larger than life and must compel the reader's interest. Three qualities a character must have to do this are “complexity, stature, and a strong goal and the ability to act upon it.” (Levin 24)

Since Charley is my protagonist and point of view character during the entire story, it is essential that she have all three qualities. Complexity is showing your characters as real people. Give out flaws and bad habits. Give villains something admirable or sympathetic.

How is Charley complex? Especially in this version of her where she'll be a fish out of water for the vast majority of the story. What flaws can she possibly have? She's stubborn, she has a temper, she holds grudges, she shows her jealousy. But her biggest flaw is that she is a mortal, human woman with all the advantages and disadvantages that being one contains. (Let's face it unless you're a world-class weightlifter, most men are physically stronger. Just biological fact. And most women are more in touch with their feelings. Just societal conditioning.)

Stature is what makes a character larger-than-life, the traits everyone admires. Charley's mechanical skills certainly give her stature--she is the best wrench jockey in Chi-town--but I think her compassion and her bravery give her even more. She's taken in three aliens and taken up their cause, and she didn't have to.

Having a strong goal and the ability to act on it is the most important because it is what drives the plot forward. It helps the reader identify with and root for your main characters. Related to this is giving a character a central problem to overcome. In a series, this problem should take many stories to resolve if ever. The Biker Mice constantly fight Limburger but never manage to get rid of him is an example of a central problem. With stand-alones, once the goal of the protagonist has been reached and the central problem solved, the story is ready to be wrapped up and "The End" written. And this goal is the central jumping off spot to pull the plot together. More on that when we reach the plotting tutorial.

Charley's goal is simple. Her most recent memories--the past four years--are blank. Jack is acting oddly and things aren't adding up. Her goal is to figure out the blank portion of her life and try to make sense of everything. Her central problem is her amnesia and her lack of trust in anyone.

"Back up a minute. My main character is new. I don't know its eye color much less its goal in life." Don't panic, we'll cover it in the next tutorial.

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