Like many other persons who teach writing fiction courses, I advise my students to make detailed character sketches for the persons they put in their stories. This is a must for the protagonists and any other significant characters in the story.
We go down the usual check lists : name (nickname if any); age; physical description; primary relationship(s) MOTIVATION etc
You know the list. As a writer/creator you should know every aspect of your characters' lives. This will help if you run into a roadblock in the story-knowing how your character responds to various situations etc.
Good advice, but not all writers write in the same way.
My characters tend to be born whole. I don't have to work at creating a back story, they come with it. I often find that as I write I am following the character with great interest to find out just what it is they are planning and will get up to next and they tell me why. Once I know what it is I want to say, I can start writing and trust the characters to do their thing. Characters even force their way into my stories. I find that these are usually very interesting persons. They very often add another dimension to the story. (see my earlier post on this blog at http://hazeldeebooks.blogspot.com/2012/04/my-favourite-story-in-my-darling-you-4.html
I tell my students that they need to know the 'rules' - i.e. what usually works for writers, but not to be so hard bound by the 'lessons' that they stifle their own creativity. The guidelines work for some, but not for everybody.
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Great lessons, but I can only draw stick people lol! I don't think you would get the feel from my drawings, but I do know my characters! Thanks for the great post Hazel!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, Hazel. Know the rules but don't feel bound to stick with them. Let your story dictate which path to take.
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