Category: characters

Is your character a good person?

Anti-heroes become more popular with each passing year. And I’m not referring to heroes with negative qualities like Tony Stark or Deadpool. That’s an example of a character who has personal failings, but still overall does heroic things.

No, I’m referring to characters who are bad guys. Dexter, Hannibal, Ray Donovan, The Joker. These are all characters who are not seeking to do good in the world but are hurting others based on their selfish wants.

Lots of bad guys are getting their stories told. And I love this, even if the execution isn’t always fantastic. The Joker was a fantastic movie. Cruella, not as much. But it was still interesting to see the world from her perspective.

While I wouldn’t be thrilled if my fiction content was full of bad guys, I do love that we are seeing more and more of this. I do think, however, it takes a bit of creative bravery and imagination to write these sorts of characters. Writing Jim Gordon is easy, and makes the writer feel good because he’s doing everything just like we hope we would do. Writing The Joker is harder because he’s doing everything we’re disgusted by.

So, this sort of character is worth some consideration.

Bad guys are cathartic

Still picking on The Joker, I mentioned that most of what he does is disgusting. But some of what he does is also cathartic. There’s a part of us that roots for him when he abuses bank owners and politicians. When he’s punching up, terrifying, and abusing people in power, that’s great fun. It allows us to get some of our anger out. No one’s too upset when The Joker is harassing Bruce Wayne’s rich buddies, I’m sorry to say. So, that always feels like a good time.

No one is ever the bad guy in their own life. Or are they?

Most of us would consider ourselves good people most of the time. But, not all of us. Some people genuinely do not like themselves. Some people feel like they’re trapped making a series of bad decisions over and over again. They’re hurting themselves and the people around them, and they do not know how to stop.

Even if you don’t feel like this all the time, we’ve all felt like it some of the time. We have all not liked ourselves. We have all made stupid, selfish decisions. We have all struggled.

In that case, a character who’s doing the same sort of thing can be inspiring, if they eventually pull themselves out of it. When that character who’s spiraling asks for help, goes to therapy and gets away from the life they’ve been living, that should inspire all of us. Because we can always choose to be better tomorrow. It’s not easy, but it can be done.

You can explore the different morality levels

There’s bad, and then there’s bad. One good example is the title character in Lucifer. He openly encourages people to give in to their most selfish desires. Cheating on their spouses, drinking too much, and gambling. All the things we know we shouldn’t do, but they feel so good in the moment.

And while this is damaging, there are worse things. Murdering people, for instance.

Bad characters can give an example of moral hierarchy. Dexter, in the first episode, killed someone who serially abused and killed children. Lucifer tracks down murderers.

I think these bad characters give a good example of bad things because they hurt us, and things that are bad because they hurt other people. While neither is good, one is worse.

Your bad guy can learn a lesson

This isn’t a necessity. I think some of the worst fiction is created under the guise of teaching a moral lesson. The story should come first, and you don’t have to give any moral lessons at all if you don’t want to.

But if you want to give a lesson, then using a bad guy character can be a great way to do it. Let them heal. Let them grow. Let them have a breakdown moment and come back a better person.

Let us see that, in this dark and scary world, someone really can get better. That’s going to be a genuinely uplifting story every time.

But what about the morality question

So, what if you don’t want your bad guy to be redeemed? Are you endorsing bad life decisions? What if your fiction encourages someone to do something bad or wrong? Are you responsible?

Honestly, this could probably be a post all on its own, but I’ll try to keep it brief today. Our society loves to blame fictional stories for actual atrocities. And I absolutely call bullshit on that.

The guy who killed John Lennon didn’t do it because he read Catcher in the Rye.

The shooters at Columbin didn’t do it because of violent video games.

Ted Bundy didn’t kill people because of porn.

These were people who were just looking for an excuse to do what they already wanted to do. And they were going to find one. We as artists cannot blame ourselves for the actions of others unless we are actively condoning and inciting violence in real life. Otherwise, if someone watches Rick and Morty and then thinks it’s okay to become an abusive alcoholic, they probably didn’t need that much of a push.

So write what you want to write.

In the end, remember that we are making art. We are making a character, not moral decisions for other people. We are not preachers, teachers, or advisers. Our job is to tell a story that only we can tell. And that means that your characters should be as bad, or as good, as you want them to be.

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Writing Prompt Saturday- List Jobs

This week, I’d like to continue a writers notebook building exercise that I started at the end of last month.

That’s right, it’s a list!

I love lists. Today, we’re going to make a list of jobs.

100 jobs someone can have, to be precise. Because sometimes you’re going to have that character that has a job that isn’t a huge part of their story, but what they do for a living still matters. Lots of them, probably. And it’s far more fun to write about some unique or interesting job than a boring one, or one that everyone’s heard of.

Just like last month, I’d love to see a list built here, right on the site. So, same rules as last time. I’m going to list ten jobs. Then, anyone who wants can list ten more in the comments section.

1. Vet
2. EMT, or Ambulance driver
3. Housekeeper
4. FBI agent
5. Waiter
6. Copy editor
7. Police officer
8. Illustrator
9. Librarian
10. Writer

Funny thing is, I’ve also wanted to be all of the things on that list at one time.

What can you come up with?

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Writing 101, Day 6

Today’s Prompt: Who’s the most interesting person (or people) you’ve met this year?

Wow, just one person?  No way, can’t do it.

See, here’s the thing.  I work in tech support and billing, which means I have the amazing opportunity to talk to brand new people all day long.  Here’s the thing, though, I never see any of them.  All I have is their voices, and their stories.  Oh, and let me tell you, the stories!

For some reason, people want to open up to someone when they’re stressed, and the tech chick on the other side of the phone is really non threatening.  So I get to hear all about what’s going on in their life today.

There was one woman, though, that stuck out in my mind.  After I fixed her tech problem we just talked for awhile, because she seemed like she needed someone to talk to.

Her husband had died a year before, but when he was alive they owned a Cesna, and she told me all about flying it all over America.  They’d started out working class, just like me and probably you.  But they’d invested so carefully and faithfully over the years, that they retired early and spent their retirement flying all over visiting their family.  She kept me on the phone for half an hour, and encouraged me to invest.  (I’m trying.)

People who are getting divorced, getting married, kids are about to leave for college, college kids just starting out on their own.  Every one of them has a story to tell, and sometimes they tell them to me.  And I love to listen.

I hear about the great new jobs, and I love that.  I had a gentleman call me to cancel his account with my company because he was moving into hospice, and it made me cry.  If you don’t know, hospice is the end of life portion of the hospital.  I talk to baby sitters who managed to break something, and moms who don’t know how to unhook the game system so they can watch their shows.

If you’re an aspiring writer, and you’ve got to have a day job, try to have one where you’ve got to handle people.  Because if you’re friendly, and ready to listen, you will hear more stories than you ever thought were there.

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listening to children

Recently I’ve realized that I’ve done almost nothing for children’s writers. This makes less than no sense, because in my opinion, children’s authors are super heroes. You think I’m wrong? I’m not, and I can prove it, too. Think back to your very first favorite book. I am willing to bet it was not an adult book, and it likely wasn’t a young adult book, either. My very first favorite book ever was Where The Wild Things are, by Maurice Sendack. I read that book twice a day on average. I also read Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, and it’s thrilling sequel, Pickles To Pittsburgh. I devoured these books and gradually discovered bigger and bigger books. Goosebumps, The Baby Sitter’s Club, Chocolate Fever, The Last of The Unicorns. If I hadn’t learned to love reading with these, I might never have bothered with Philippa Gregory, Robert Jordan, Brandon Sanderson, or any of the other adult writers I love so much.

If you write for adults, stick around. We’re going to talk about that too. Today, we are talking about developing a skill that tool me years to master; listening to children. It’s all about character building, you remember, and some of your characters just might be children. So, if you don’t have any of your own kids, borrow some.

Learning the language

Children don’t talk the same way adults do. It’s like a whole new language, or an old one depending on how you look at it. And I’m not just talking about word usage, though that is a big factor. Kids string together words in a fresher, less uniform way than adults, because they haven’t yet learned the way everyone says things. They don’t use cliche phrases or metaphors. They just say it just how they see it. This can also be hilarious.

Learning the ideas

Another thing you’ll learn when listening to children is that they have what they think are all new ideas about, oh everything! Simple things are new to them, and they have none of the structural knowledge that we as grown ups are burdened with. You give a grown up a coffee cup. Unless they spend too much time on pintrest, there are about four things we can do with that cup.

A kid, oh my goodness, a kid will look at the coffee cup and give you ways to use it that you never in your wildest dreams considered. It’s a Barbie bath, it’s a car, it’s literally anything you could possibly think of. So when you’re writing for children characters you have to keep in mind that level of creativity. You have to learn how to see the world like a child sees the world again.

Learning the topics of high importance

Another really important thing to consider when writing for a child character is that what adult considers important is nowhere near what a child considers important. Time moves so different. Remember when it felt like Christmas was never going to happen because there was just no possible way that many days could go past.

Things that are important to children are things like shiny rocks on the sidewalk or finding a $5 bill on the ground. That is a monumental event to a child. Though to be fair if I find a five dollar bill on the ground that’s a pretty monumental event but that’s another story. (A sad one about a starving artist who likes coffee shops too much.)

The point is, children see the world with more excited eyes, they know things that we as adults have entirely forgotten. So when you’re going to write children characters, you need to spend time around children to remember their level of priorities.

So take some time and spend it around small children. They don’t need to be yours. Trust me you can always find ways to borrow other people’s kids if you don’t have any nieces or nephews or friends with kids.

Look for babysitting jobs if you’re still in college or high school. People are always looking for people to watch their kids especially if your affordable, because believe me as a parent, affordable childcare is not a thing that exists.

Take a notebook and just listen to them talk and take notes. The kid will love being the center of your attention and you will be in a better position to write a child character for your next book.

Our affiliates sponsor this week is Pen Boutique if you get a chance be sure to check them out. I swear, I found half my birthday wish list there.

And don’t forget to check us out on Monday on Facebook for the literary agent of the week, and on Thursdays for the discussion of the week.

So what do you think? When you need to write about a child character what do you do to get inspired? even better what was your favorite book of the kid that sparked your love of reading?

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Idiosyncracies, how to use them and why your character needs them

This is an often overlooked and sometimes misunderstood part of creating a character. Too often we talk about a characters strengths, weaknesses, likes, dislikes, favorite brand of coffee, that sort of thing. We don’t talk a lot about characters idiosyncrasies, though, and that doesn’t make a lot of sense to me. When you think about it, isn’t that a big part of what you think of when you think about a real person?

So, just so we’re all aware, an idiosyncrasy is a behavior or way of thought particular to a specific person. Often this is associated with something weird or unexpected in someone’s personality. There are a lot of examples, but the first one that comes to mind for me is from the show Burn Notice. The main character is a smart, fearless super spy. Or as he says, he used to be a spy. He eats yogurt. I don’t mean like sometimes for breakfast. I mean he is often seen with yogurt. People bring him yogurt as a gift, steal his yogurt as a threat. He’s done at least one job for yogurt. He’s a super deadly man, who has worked for yogurt.

To clarify a bit further, an idiosyncrasy is not a character flaw. If a character is scared of spiders, that is a flaw. If a character is scared of spiders, so he takes off his shoe to kill them every time he sees one instead of just stepping on them, that is an idiosyncrasy.

An idiosyncrasy is also not a strength, or a normal hobby. Your character likes books. That is a strength. Your character speaks three languages. That is a strength. Your character has gone out of her way to collect fairy tales in French. That is an idiosyncrasy. Extra marks if she can’t actually speak French.

With this being little more than a weird character trait, some might say, why even bother with it at all?

For one thing, it makes your character more human. We’ll go back to Michael Weston for a minute. He’s not always a very likable or relatable character. He’s often doing terrible things or being a terrible person. His obsession with yogurt is humanizing. It’s also funny.

Idiosyncrasies can also suggest sub plots, or add to a main plot. Let’s take, for example, A Series of Unfortunate Events. One of the main characters, Violet, wears a hair ribbon when she’s making an invention. This hair ribbon has been used to incriminate her in a crime. People have used it to impersonate her. Once getting her ribbon back helped her feel more like herself so that she was able to think of an amazing invention to save her siblings.

Here’s another thing that Violet’s hair ribbon did for me, as a reader. I have long hair, and I can’t think of anything if it’s all around my face. I have to have my hair pulled back if I’m to get anything done from dishes to writing. This made Violet a very relatable character for me. Though I actually had more in common with Klause. #glassesproblems.

Finally, I’d like to revisit Michael Weston. He with his yogurt fetish. That was a clever thing to put into his character, because it does so much. The last thing it does for him is give him a spot of humor, which helps balance out his character. Without that, he’s sort of a narrow minded hard ass who has repeatedly put his friends and family in danger on the road to his goals.

Look at your character, and think about what sort of weird idiosyncrasy you can give them. My personal example was to give my main character Lenore a love of dogs. She’s a very professional, stern, get shit done sort of person, until she sees a puppy then she goes all over girly.

What do you think? What’s your favorite idiosyncrasy from a famous literary or movie character?

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The Writing Life- People Watching

What are characters? Your cast, your actors, the most important parts of your story? Well, yes, that’s all very true. But there’s a more basic answer than that. Characters are people. Or at least, they are the way we either wish people were, or secretly think people are.

To learn to write great characters, you need to learn about people. To do that, you must master the art of people watching. Once again we are borrowing from the habits of our fellow artists, visual artists. Sit near an artist in a coffee shop, and you run the risk of ending up in their sketchbook. So it should be with writers as well. If you’ve never practiced people watching, here are some steps to help you get started.

Always have your notebook with you.

You should already have a notebook with you at all times, but try to keep some pages open for taking notes on the people that surround you. When I started paying attention to the people around me, I was shocked by how no one ever seems to be aware of the fact that anyone else is around them. People will have amazingly personal conversations while shopping in the grocery store.

Wear headphones with the music off.

Like a spy, you don’t always want to be observed observing others. That’s when headphones are your friends. People assume that when you have headphones on you can’t hear them, so they’re not so self conscious. Pop on some headphones and settle in at a local coffee shop. People will go about their business, letting you take notes.

Listen more than look

You can see how people look on the internet. You’re watching people to learn how they act, but more importantly how they talk. Remember, I talked about how important dialog is in this post. So, when you’re people watching, you’re actually listening. Close your eyes and listen to how people talk to each other. Talking is like music in a way. You have to listen to a lot of it to develop an ear for it. If a piece of dialog strikes you, jot it down. Why does it strike you? Take notes on how that line made you feel, and how it would have felt if a friend or loved one had said it to you.

Take a walk through the park

Especially if you’re writing with children characters. Kids gravitate toward parks, and so do a lot of other sorts. Besides, it’s probably a good idea to get out of the house when you can. We don’t need anymore of the sun deprived pale geek stereotype.

Take public transportation

If you’ve never ridden on a bus or subway, do it. I have sat on long bus trips and just wrote notes on everything people around me were saying. Yes, all the rumors about people on public transportation are true. Yes, a woman once petted my chest while I was on a bus. Go try it anyway, you will not find a better place for people watching, I promise you.

If you want your characters to sound and act like real people, you’ve got to study real people. So practice people watching every chance you get.

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Editing Dialog

I think it’s important to know your strengths and your weaknesses in life. Doubly so when you ‘re a writer, (read small business owner.) For instance, my weakness, which has been pointed out many times, is fight scenes. Probably because I don’t like to read them.

What I really am good with, though, is dialog. Talking, which shouldn’t be a surprise to anybody. No one runs a blog who doesn’t like to hear themselves talk. But I really love writing dialog, and I think that’s why I’m good at it. But, like everything else with writing, the first draft is shitty, and the second draft is only a little bit better. It’s really my third draft that makes my dialog sing. Here’s how I edit dialog.

Read it out loud.

I read my whole second draft out loud. Every single page. When something makes my mouth trip, I highlight it. You ears know what sounds natural, and what doesn’t. So, if you read your work, especially your dialog, out loud, think about how you’d react if someone said this to you. Would it sound natural? If not, consider why.

Different character, different voice.

Reading your dialog out loud will also help you detect different voices in your characters. Not all of your characters will talk the same, at least you’d damn well better hope not. Each person’s word choice is based on their own personality, background and lifestyle. A bar maid’s going to talk differently than than a princess or a computer programmer. At the same time, a computer programmer will talk differently when she’s talking to a friend, parent or teacher.

This requires you to get into your characters. You should know how your character would say something, and what he or she would say in a given situation. I will straight up act out scenes, much to the amusement of my family.

All the grammar rules are thrown out the window.

We don’t talk how we’d write things down. We don’t talk with proper grammar. This is a good thing. So don’t keep to those rules when your characters are talking. Write how your character will actually talk. For example, my character uses the word ain’t. I really hate that word, it makes me itch. If I was writing a book with a character from around my home town, I might have them say “Yinz.” If you don’t speak Pittsburghese, Yinz means you guys or y’all. Like, “Yinz need to settle down!” Boy, do I want to punch everyone who says that word. But it’s perfectly fine if I’m trying to show you that this character’s from Pittsburgh.

Time period dialog.

If, that is, the character is from this time period. If this is a book set in the past, I’d chose something different. If you’re writing a book based in a different time, remember that you have to write how people talked then. If you’re writing a book set in the future, consider how people might talk then. One of my favorite examples of this is Firefly. People use random Chinese phrases in everyday life. That’s brilliant, I think. And speaking of brilliant…

Nationality dialog.

Consider where your character comes from. Back to our computer programmer analogy, a programmer from America will talk differently than one from India. In researching my book, I had to find Russian dialog to listen to, because one of my fictional countries is heavily based on Russia. That was fun, by the way, except for the fact that I had Checkov from Star Track stuck in my head for days. Nuclear Vessils. Hehehe, snort haha.

Take dialog editing seriously. Dialog is one of the strongest tools you’ve got to show us who your characters are. Make sure you take advantage of that.

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