TECH: Creating Characters

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original posting 8 January 2010

Writers Digest, October 2007, pages 79-80, have an excerpt from What Would Your Character Do? by Eric Maisel and Ann Maisel, along with a short sidebar about choosing your character's career by Nancy Kress. The main article suggests that you create a character notebook, with your notes organized around 12 categories. I prefer to think of them as questions that you might want to use to provoke thinking about your character. In any case, here are the 12 categories:

1. Basic Headline. This is a one line, short summation that says how this character is likely to react. Edith Bunker in All in the Family "would react as Jesus Christ might have reacted." Is there a principle, a core that defines this character?
2. Basic history. Everyone has a history, extended family, social cultural and religious roots, family myths and secrets, family rules and customs, pivotal childhood and adolescent events, etc. You don't need to sketch out their entire history at first, but keep track of these as you work. What's behind them?
3. Archetypal, categorical, or stereotypical resonance. Archetypes like Aphrodite, Hercules, or whatever? Categorical roles -- the beat cop, the sniveling clerk, etc.? How about a stereotype like the best friend, Watson, or other? Identifying those resonances lets you add features and behaviors aligned with or opposed to the base. Who or what is this character like?
4. Actions and reactions. Every scene, you see the character acting and reacting. Put notes on circumstances or triggers, and how the character acts/reacts to them. What makes them jump, and what's the character do?
5. Moral Valence. In the crucible of your story, what is the core of this character? Good-bad, trustworthy-or-not, sober-impulsive, principled-a rat, kind-cruel? Are they light or dark? Is this character a hero or a villian?
6. Dreams and ambitions. What do they wish for, what do they want, where would they like to go?
7. Inner life. Each character has a rich internal life, which may or may not be explicit, depending on the pov and such. But you can still record what the character is thinking, hoping, intending. What is this character thinking? What is the internal monologue going on? Is the character an optimist or pessimist? In each scene, imagine what the character is thinking as they act/react. What's the character thinking?
8. Shadow sides and difficulties in living. Everyone has flaws, angry moments, and irritations. What are the difficulties that this character has with life?
9. Consequences of upbringing. In real life, we may never know how upbringing ties to behavior, attitudes, beliefs, and actions. But in fiction, ah, you are the boss, and you can choose to connect the dots for the reader. So, what difficulties of growing up are linked to problems and actions of today? Was it really father's criticism that led to our hero's fits of rage today? What seeds of today's life were planted in this character while growing up?
10. Power, sexual potency, and alphaness. Characters tend to be considered powerful, sexy, leaders or not. Keep track of the alpha drive of your character.
11. Cultural component. "Each character is a representative of culture." Lots of niches, of course, from the political party to the music that the character listens to. Food, entertainment, and so forth help define who a person is in a culture -- and who a character is. So, how does this character relate to their society and culture?
12. Meaning web, beliefs, opinions. How does your character see the world around them and make sense out of it?

The key, of course, is figuring out who this character is in your story, and how they will act. What makes them act like that? Who is this person, and how can you show that to the reader?

And the sidebar -- choosing a career for your character. Most people have to make a living somehow. Even when it doesn't come up in the story, knowing what your character does can help understand them. So, when you are choosing a career for your character, think about:

1. What aspects of their personality does the job demonstrate? Sure, some of the reaction will be stereotypes, but scientist, janitor, doctor, actor, etc. are expected to think and act differently.
2. Deepen characterization by showing how the person feels about their job and how well they do it.
3. Think about how the job links to plot. Perhaps the job put the character in the right place and time to observe critical events? Or, problems with the job drive the plot? And, of course, the job situations can help or hinder other plot problems.
4. Use occupations that you understand or want to learn about. Details from experience or research can make the job, and the person, come to life.

So -- characters need to be more than just cardboard cutouts.
Write?

TECH: A doll without a head

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

Original posting 11 January 2010

A.k.a. Titles

Writers DIgest, June 2008, pages 71-72, has an article by Steve Almond with the title "Titles." It starts out with a little reflection from teaching writing fiction, where Steve says usually the day that people turn in stories for the first workshop, someone apologizes for not having a title. And usually a chorus of other people join in, with mention of how much they hate titles. At which point Steve apparently goes into his rant about how cool titles are!

And a key note of that is "a story without a title is like a doll without a head!" And then he gives his lecture on titles, with the title, "Who wants to play with a headless doll? No one, that's who."

So what's a title for? Well, Steve says they serve three purposes. First, they introduce the story's crucial images and ideas. Second, they initiate the rhetorical pitch of the prose. And third, they act as an inducement to keep reading. Now, all titles don't do all three, but the best titles catch them all.

Then he looks at some famous titles, and how they do on these three points. E.g. The Catcher in the Rye, Pride and Prejudice, and Lord of the Flies. But... don't be fooled, titles don't always come easy.

Good titles are organic, not imposed. They should grow out of the story, the vernacular that's used, the language and imagery and ideas.

But... avoid using a character's name as a title. Don't just recycle the last line, or something -- make the title original. Beware the pun, or the famous quote.

Think about details, or bits of dialogue. Look for images that grab you, and make a hook for the story. What's at the heart of your story? What kind of promise do you want to make to the reader?

And the sidebar has some exercises just for fun...

1. Take a look at your most recent work. Underline phrases that resonate for you. Try them as titles. Do they change the way you envision the story? How do they measure up to Steve's three points -- key image, rhetorical intro, and keep reading?
2. Make a list of your favorite novels and/or stories. Look at those titles. How do they work? What do they promise?
3. Consider what expectations -- in terms of plot, theme and tone -- the following titles provoke: The Day I Became a Virgin; Blue Falls; First Month, Last Month and Security; Sacrifice Fly; Sylvia Plath is My Love Goddess
4. Gather any old stories lying around, particularly ones that employ puns, famous allusions or character names. Now think about how to retitle them.

So, there you have it. Don't just expect readers to get interested in "Untitled Work #9" -- put your titles to work.

And write.