For this edition I've decided to write about characters. Mainly because I've been thinking about them a lot lately. What inspires you, what makes you create a character? Do you base it on people you know? On yourself? What do you admire? What do you detest?
I have many writer friends who base all their main characters on people they know and on themselves. There is nothing wrong with that, but you'd better be careful in case one or more of those folks gets it into their heads to interfere in some way with your writing. We are talking dangerous ground here.
In writing fantasy I often use a quest plot, the description of my worlds are based on this world, dialogue is no longer a challenge for me after more than twenty years experience. So what surprises me? It is always character. They invade my life and demand I tell their story which isn't always good for the manuscript I'm working on.
Back to people you know. With permission I'm going to tell you a little about my friend.
She is an optimist. As a child she was verbally abused and saw her father beat her mother and sister. This trauma caused her to gain weight and gave her a debilitating fear of boys, and men even thought she had an older brother she loved. She has close to zero self confidence and is horribly shy. When she did marry, the man she married continued with verbal abuse. She never left him because she didn't make enough money to support herself and her children and refused to abandon the children.
That's enough information. Given what I just told you, would you use her in a book? Would she be a villain, a hero or a minor character who troubles the hero? What character strengths and/or flaws would you incorporate into your story?
Hope this gave you some food for thought, to coin a phrase. Ugh, two cliches in one sentence.
Nancy
Copyright 2013
To read other IWSG post go here.
I am participating in two Halloween bloghops. One on Oct. 30 and the other Oct. 31, 2013. The beauty is that one story will serve both bloghops. To learn more or sign up and participate click on the links below.
Denise Covey at Write...Edit...Publish is hosting Haunting.
October. 30, 2013
October 31, 2013
Hope to see some of you or all of you.
Nancy
