Tag: crafting character

Categories
The Picky Pen

How to Edit Your Character

We’re heading into a New Year. Perhaps you’ve finished a novel during Nanowrimo. Maybe you’re plotting a new story to begin writing in January. New Year, new goals, new story, right? I’d like to touch a little on how to edit your character. This might be something you tuck away and pull out after you’ve finished your discovery draft, or something you’re ready to use if you’ve completed your draft during the November writing frenzy.

I’d like to share a blurb from a well-loved classic to delve into the art of editing your character so that their inner/outer journey, actions, and dialogue is specific to the special person you’ve created. These elements will apply to both fiction and non-fiction.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte is a leading example of the depth of story through the power of its characters and how each character is important to the plot. We see all of the main elements in Jane’s character that really endear her to us: background, personality, appearance, and journey.

Background

Jane in Jane Eyre came from a horrible background. She thinks she will be nothing more than a servant because that’s what she’s been told as a young girl. However, she desires to be more, and applies at Thornfield Hall as the new governess. And throughout this new experience, we see Jane struggle with feelings of being good enough for her new position, but how she chooses to react to those past situations in light of her interactions with Mr. Rochester eventually allows her to influence Mr. Rochester’s life.

What about your characters? Whether you’re writing fiction or non-fiction, you have many different characters who all play a part in your story. Your main character drives the story, and the other characters enhance what your main character does. What brought your characters to the beginning of your story?

Personality

When Jane first meets Mr. Rochester, she thinks he’s an angry person, but he does not scare her. What does that tell you of her personality? Her background of being treated unkindly and unfairly is characterized in her personality. She is not afraid of Mr. Rochester because she has learned how to respond to less-than-desirable actions from others. Jane’s gentle, firm, and idealistic personality is consistent throughout the novel, which creates a compelling character in Jane, and one that readers admire and love.

What about your story? What motivates your character to do the things they do, say what they say, or react and respond to different events within the story? In a non-fiction manuscript, your character’s personality will enhance the illustrations for each point you’re trying to

make and the content will really come alive for your readers. Developing these elements will ensure your character has a depth of personality that will affect your readers.

Appearance

Jane thinks she is plain, but in the end Mr. Rochester thinks she is the most beautiful person he’s ever seen, even though he has lost his sight due to the fire. Why is this? Jane’s inner character shines through to her outward appearance in her tone, mannerisms, and attitude.

What about your characters? Your readers will gauge your characters’ general appearance (hair color, eye color, skin tone, height), but it’s the inner appearance we create that will give readers a deeper understanding and appreciation for your characters. For example, a reader may find a character’s smile to be endearing, while the character themselves may think that their smile makes them look awkward because they have a crooked smile. When we describe the characters in our manuscript, we may be compelled to give a list of all of our character’s features. However, this type of character description bogs down the story. The trick is to describe characters in a way that is natural, and that is through your character’s actions in each scene.

Character’s journey

There are two kinds of journeys for your character. The inner journey and the outer journey. Each journey motivates the character throughout the story and engages the reader in your character’s life. What is the inner journey and the outer journey supposed to look like? The outer journey is what the character wants, and the inner journey is the inner struggle of that desire.

Jane wants to be treated not as a servant but as an equal. She wants independence, but she also wants someone to love her. The story shows how she displays that independence by standing up to Mr. Rochester’s indifferent attitude toward her. But with her inner journey, her struggle, she fears that she is not his equal because of their class differences, and she also fears that she might lose her independence, even though she desires to marry Mr. Rochester.

What about your characters? What does your character want? What is your character struggling with? What are they afraid of? What do they have to lose? Your characters will go through a series of emotional arcs. Michael Hague describes a character arc as a journey from living in fear to living courageously. Whether fiction or nonfiction, you decide what your character or reader wants. Then you structure the different events that your character goes through with the inner journey of how they are internalizing the events around them based on their outer journey, what they want.

Wrap-Up

The key here is to create a trail of breadcrumbs that leads your readers from Point A to Point B, keeps them guessing at how the character is going to get what they want, and what might get in their way and prevent them from getting what they want. And these four elements of your character’s background, personality, appearance, and journey set the stage for an engaging reading experience that whisks your readers away to a world of characters—and story—your readers will never forget.

Please take a minute and join in the discussion! I’d love to hear from you!

What’s your favorite character from a novel you’ve read, and what makes that character special to you? How can you enhance your own characters by the characters you read about in other books?

Tisha Martin writes historical fiction and nonfiction but also edits and proofreads for beginning and best-selling writers, professional editing agencies, and publishing houses. She has a BA in Professional Writing, an MS in English Education, and an editing certificate from the PEN Institute, affordable continuing education for editors. Active in American Christian Fiction Writers and The PEN, she appreciates the writing and editing communities. As Assistant Director of PENCON, a conference for editors, she enjoys travel marketing and updating PENCON’s Facebook Page. Connect with Tisha on her website www.tishamartin.com and engage in the conversation.

Categories
History in the Making

Naming Characters in Your Historical Novels

History in the making

Have you ever read a fictional novel set in the 1700s where the main character is named Harper (22 on a current top girl’s name list) or Summer (76) or Sienna (20) for a woman? How about Jayden (67 on a top 100 boy’s name list) or Kai (85) or Dylan (43) for a man?

Using character names accurate for the novel’s time period lends another layer of authenticity for readers. So where can we find these names?

The easiest source for me is books written during my story’s time period. For instance, I write Civil War romances. Soldiers’ journals provide names of family and comrades. Nonfiction books about the war cite many names of officers and rank and file soldiers. At that time, many men had a family surname as their first name or middle name, such as Harrison or Carter. Often these names were from the mother’s side of the family, so this could be a fun aspect for a novel’s secondary character as well.

Many regiments published a short history. Included with battle details were the men who served in that regiment. Names of wives, children, siblings, and parents may also be listed, providing many ideas for first and last names.

If an author is stuck for names, reading about an event that took place near the time either gives some ideas or send the writer on a chase that leads to timely names.

If a novel is set in 1790, reading about the American Revolution will give plenty of period names. Is the location set in the New England area in 1645? Look at names found in the Salem Witch Trials.

Also consider the character’s surname. If the main character has Scottish parents, a German surname does not ring true. If the character has an Irish mother and an Italian father, a first name common to either country will work—and so will a name common to the novel’s location.

One source to find the history of names is Behind the Name,  where writers can search by name, gender, or country. Authors may also browse for names under Ancient & Medieval, Biblical, or Mythology categories. The site even has a section for “Logical Names for Twins.”

Another fun tool is NameTrends. Search the site by clicking on the first letter of a name. Each letter has a listing that show when it was popular in history, beginning in 1880. Even if your novel is set earlier than this, it may provide ideas.

There is a lot to consider when naming characters in historical novels. Hopefully these sources have sparked some ideas for that next novel.

Award-winning and Amazon bestselling author Sandra Merville Hart loves to uncover little-known yet fascinating facts about our American history to include in her stories. Her debut Civil War Romance, A Stranger On My Land, was IRCA Finalist 2015. A Rebel in My House, set during the historic Battle of Gettysburg, won the 2018 Silver Illumination Award and 2018 Faith Hope and Love Reader’s Choice Award. A Musket in My Hands, where two sisters join the Confederate army with the men they love, releases November of 2018. Watch for her novellas, Surprised by Love in “From the Lake to the River” releasing in September of 2018, and Trail’s End, in “Smitten Novella Collection: The Cowboys” releasing in August of 2019.

Find her on her blog, sandramervillehart.wordpress.com.

Categories
Child's Craft

Crafting Characters Readers Will Love Part 1 by Jean Hall

According to Elaine Marie Alphin (Creating Characters Kids Will Love p. 2)

“Kids read because a magical closeness springs up between them and the characters in books and stories—the same magical closeness I felt as a child. They read because a writer has brought a character to life on the page for them.”

Every great children’s story pivots around a character who has a problem, a desire or a need. Through the events and conflicts of the story this character, by personal investment and volition, solves that problem, gains that desire (or loses it) or meets that need. In doing so, that character changes, grows or learns something.

Here we have the elements that define “story.”

A memorable character

A problem or need

Crises that compel the character to make choices and to act

Resolution of the problem or need

Change and growth in the character

Every element involves the main character. That’s why we must create characters that kids love and admire, or like and root for, or detest and enjoy their demise.

So, how do we do that?

Here’s my take.

For me, every story begins with the main character. I’ll be thinking “what ifs” and a character will parachute into my head. This usually gets me pretty excited! I get a rough idea of what’s going to happen to this character and how they are going to react.

Next, I get to know that character really well. Some people fill out complicated character charts or profiles, some sketch pictures of the character. Some writers find a magazine image that looks like their character and post it above their desk or on their desktop. I chat with my character in my head. I get an image of the character physically. Then I hear them talk. I imagine their home, their parents, their friends. I imagine what the kid likes and hates. What kind of personality do they have? I guess I’m creating my own character profile—just not in print. Each of us as writers has to get that character fully imagined in our own heads before we start putting them into a story. We have to get to know that character inside and out.

As I write the first few drafts of the story I fine-tune my character’s actions and reactions. I refer to experts for this like PscheWriter and The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Expression by Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi.

I also try to keep the following in mind as I develop the characters. In Part 2 of this post I’ll expand on this list.

  • Is this really how a kid this age would think? Talk? Act? If not, fix it.
  • Is this really how a kid would react in this type of situation?
  • Does this character have flaws?
  • Does this bad guy have at least one redeeming trait? How else will we love to hate them?
  • Have I created enough CONFLICT in this kid’s life or situation?
  • Have I created a character readers can feel for? Connect with?
  • Is this character bigger-than-life? EXAGGERATION well done makes readers laugh, cry and shriek with your character.
  • Do I SHOW how the character thinks? Acts? Feels? Speaks?
  • Are each of my characters distinctive?
  • Does my main character have one primary trait that the story focuses on?
  • Have I built motivation into this character? Is their need, desire or problem big enough to push them through the story?

Then, I put my character to the test by getting feedback from other writers, and sometimes, readers. They always help me smooth out the wrinkles. Or, sometimes, create more!

Please join me next month for a lot more detail about these bullet points.

Just Wondering…

How do YOU create memorable characters?

Need a little free advice about one of your characters?

Just leave a comment and I’ll respond with great joy!

Scroll to the top of the page and click on CRAFT, then CHARACTER to find other helpful A3 blog posts about creating characters.

 

BIO

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book Four Seasons series was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at www.jeanmatthewhall.com, on Face Book at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

Categories
Talking Character

Which Comes First, Plot Or Character?

Plot and character. Two halves of any great story. Both are critical, whether you are telling a character-driven literary story or a plot-driven spy thriller.

Disagree? Consider this quote:

Plot and character are integral to one another. Remove either one from the equation (or even just try to approach them as if they were independent of one another), and you risk creating a story that may have awesome parts, but which will not be an awesome whole. K. M. Weiland in Creating Character Arcs.

Or, to put it differently, consider this statement from Lisa Cron in Wired for Story:

Myth: The plot is what the story is about.
Reality: A story is about how the plot affects the protagonist.

So then, a good story is one where the plot affects the main character. Does that mean plot comes first?

Not necessarily.

I don’t think it matters where a writer begins, so long as you remember that the two are intertwined.  The character must have goals and issues that are challenged by the plot. The plot is nothing but a series of unconnected events unless there is a character whose struggles give them meaning. A writer cannot get too far along in one before he needs to consider the other.

The big mistake is to forget they are two sides of the same whole. The great discovery is when you allow your developing character to spark plot ideas, or vice versa.

Where do you start?

 

Character first

If you are a character-first writer, you begin by crafting an intriguing character. But at some point the character will need a goal, and obstacles that stand in his way. Remember, it is a reader’s anticipation of what the character will do next that sucks them into the story. A protagonist without a clear goal gives a reader no reason to care—and thus no reason to keep reading.

Therefore a character-first writer will need to consider the complex, flawed character you have created and ask what climax moment will force the hero to face the strongest of his inner demons. Come up with a climax that forces the character to dig deep, to strive against the enemy with every fiber of his moral and physical being, and then work the plot backwards from that moment.

Plot first

If you are a plot-first writer, you start with an intriguing what-if or an awesome idea for an amazing climax scene. But at some point you will need to create a character worthy of your plot. One whose inner demons threaten to keep her from defeating the opposition.

The most powerful stories are built on a character whose exterior plot goal is in direct conflict with her inner story goal. This is true whether the story has a classic character arc or not. Even in stories where the character does not change (a flat arc) she still needs to overcome something beyond the antagonist’s evil plans. That something might be as simple as convincing everyone around her that the evil villain is truly an evil villain, but the plot must force her to dig deep inside herself to find the strength to keep fighting when no one else believes.

Therefore, plot-first writers need to stop and consider what conflict of inner need and outer goal will might work with the plot. Create a believable character that embodies those two things, (giving the character enough backstory to explain the why of it) and you are well on your way to a great story.

[bctt tweet=”The character drives the plot, and the plot molds the character’s arc. They cannot work independently. K. M. Weiland #quote #writer” username=””]

Lisa E. Betz is a Bible study leader, drama director, and aspiring novelist. She lives with her husband and a neurotic cat in a scenic corner of Pennsylvania. When not teaching or sorting books at the library, Lisa blogs about intentional living at www.lisaebetz.com.

Connect with her:

Website: www.lisaebetz.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/LisaEBetzWriter/
Twitter: @LisaEBetz

Categories
Dear Young Scribes

Journaling Prompt Questions to Ask Your Protagonist

Sometimes, we writers can become so focused on writing an enticing, hard-to-put-down plot that we neglect one of the main building blocks of storytelling: Characterization. Without three-dimensional characters, our story falls apart, and our readers won’t have any motivation to follow the protagonist’s journey.

 

Another reason it’s important to craft well-developed characters is because the direction your plot takes is a direct result of characterization. Your protagonist’s personality, desires/goals, and backstory will influence his/her motivations; his motivations will influence the decisions he makes; and these decisions result in conflict. Thus, a plot is born.

 

To summarize: Without strong, believable, and authentic characterization, there is no story.

 

So how can we create well-rounded characters that dictate our plot? Is it possible to know our protagonist so well that, in a way, it’s almost as though we’ve become them?

 

Of course, filling out a character chart is a great way to figure out your characters’ basics. But sometimes, our characters don’t reveal their depth unless we ask specific questions that forces them to dig down deep. These questions reveal who they are truly are — not just the surface-level questions that character charts often present.

 

Interviewing your character — or asking them journaling prompt questions — will allow you to discover your protagonist at their very core. You’ll discover their unique voice, their heart, motivation, backstory, personality, etc.

 

Not sure of what to ask your protagonist? Here are some journaling prompt ideas to help you get started:

 

  1. When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up? Why?
  2. Where do you hope to be in ten years? Why?
  3. What do you wish you could tell your sixteen-year-old self? (Or if the character is a teen: What do you wish you could tell your twelve-year-old self?) Why?
  4. If you could change anything about your life, what would it be? Why?
  5. If you could change anything about your personality and appearance, what would it be? Why?
  6. How would you describe your style? Be specific. Why do you prefer to wear these types of clothes?
  7. How do you cope with anger? Disappointment? Depression?
  8. Who is your best friend and why? What is your greatest memory with them?
  9. What’s your biggest regret? Why?
  10. In what ways do you like to express your creativity?
  11. What’s a secret that you hope never gets out? Why?
  12. What are you looking forward to the most? Why?
  13. Why did you choose the type of car that you drive? If you don’t have one yet, what is your dream vehicle and why?
  14. How have you changed within the past three years? How has your life changed within the past three years?
  15.  Are you right-brained or left-brained?
  16. What’s your happiest childhood memory? Why?
  17. What’s your worst childhood memory? Why?
  18. How have your parents influenced who you are, your worldview, and the decisions that you make today? How is your relationship with them? Do you resent the way they raised you?
  19. Who is the person you admire the most? Why?
  20. What’s your most prized possession? Why?

 

Questions for you …

How do you develop your characters? Do you prefer character charts or interview questions?

 

 

[bctt tweet=”Journaling Prompt Questions to Ask Your Protagonist @TessaEmilyHall #amwriting #writingprompts” username=””]