TECH: Nanowrimo Notes #23: Avoiding Cardboard Characters?

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

2D? 3D? Well-rounded characters!

On another list, there was a discussion of what goes into making up a 3D character. It seems to me that this might be useful for the nanowrimo triathlon (characters, setting, plot -- three events, all wrapped up in one blur of words. Sounds like a triathlon to me.) So this is my reflections on what goes into making a character jump off the page.

"There are no small parts, only small actors." Milan Kundera? Konstantin Stanislavisky? Whoever said it, the point is that even the little bit parts -- the taxicab driver, the doorman, and so forth -- can be a great part if the actor makes it stand out. And I think the same thing happens with characters. Sure, we have our spear carriers, our redshirts, and the other "minor" characters, but if we spend a little time making them real, making them live and breathe in our story, they don't have to be 2D -- they can be 3D too!

"Onions have layers. Ogres have layers. Onions have layers. You get it? We both have layers." Shrek said it, but I think maybe it works for characters too. If they have layers, then they're more likely to be 3D. Of course, you may have to peel them, and you're going to cry when you do that? But the key is that they don't just do one thing, that they have multiple agendas, different feelings and beliefs and inconsistencies -- kind of like real people :-) think about what is pushing them at different layers, from the obvious to the inner quirkiness.

Goals, motivations, conflicts. These are the engines that make characters do things in plots. If they are organic -- the character is acting because of them -- then the character feels real. If the character is acting because the writer is pulling his strings a la Pinocchio, then the character feels like a puppet. And puppets are really 2D, no matter how well carved. So cut the strings, and let the character tell you where they are going, what they are doing, and why they are doing it.

Change -- no, not spare change. We usually remember to give the protagonist some kind of a character arc, a change in who they are. Sometimes it's simply a recognition of what's already there, sometimes it's breaking out from the prison of who they have been, but that change of person is part of making the story really work. Depending on the genre or type of story, you may have more or less introspection and recognition of that internal change, but even in action thrillers, it's often part of what's going on. And other characters also can change. That shift in actions, persona, and so forth -- characters learning about life and doing something different -- is also part of the difference between flat characters and rounded characters.

Do they feel real? Or just painted on the backdrop? That's the origin of the 2D/3D metaphor, and I think it makes sense. If the character just seems to be sketched in for background, and not really doing anything significant in the story, then they are going to feel 2D. But let them get up and do something, and now they're starting to feel 3D. So as someone commented, part of it is back to show vs. tell. If you (the writer) describe them (ye olde narrative summary), they will be 2D characters on the backdrop. If they start acting -- action, dialogue, and all that stuff -- so that readers feel involved in the lives of the characters, then they will be 3D -- heck, they're going to be real. Show the characters in action.

Admittedly, in the rush to nanowrimo quotas, you may not want to spend too much time pondering characterization. At the same time, adding the extra bits and pieces to make your characters more than just pencil sketches on the background can be both a way to make rounded characters and more words for the quota. So let your characters do things, let them show your readers just what kind of a character they are, and watch your word count go up.

tink
(about 700 words)
A hippo in a tutu? Now that's something to clap for :-)