Tag: Characters

Character Actions: Should There Be a Reason Why? by Andrea Lundgren

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Characters do all kinds of things in fiction. Their actions make up the stories we write, and if they did nothing…it’d be pretty boring.

But how much motivation should there be in what they do? Do you, as the author, need to always know why they’re doing it, or can they just “do something for doing it”?

Let’s take a look at a scene and see how it works.

She walked over to the glass. On the other side was a habitat, all sand and rocks with only a few scaly plants, the surface of their stems mirroring that of the creature who should’ve been inside.

Slowly, she touched the glass. Her hand stayed there for a long moment, not moving, in firm but gentle contact against the clear silica-based partition until it slowly began to warm to her touch.

Then she backed away.

Now, we, as readers, don’t need to know why she touched the glass at this point in the story. It can be something we’re left to speculate about, wondering if she misses the creature or if she is trying to see whether, perhaps, it’s still hiding somewhere in there. Or we could later learn that she touches the glass out of solidarity with the creature, feeling like her own life is encased in glass and she longs to break free, to escape like the lizard or snake did.

Keep reading via Character Actions: Should There Be a Reason Why?

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Using Relationships 105-03

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For me, characters and their relationships with each other are the lifeblood of a good story. My whole book series started because I loved my two roleplaying characters so much, I couldn’t let go of them when I left the gaming world. Their original back stories live on today, but the world around them, and the circumstances of their lives, changed completely from my gaming days. But it didn’t really matter, because the characters–the most important part–lived on. Without people to move a plot, all you really have is a setting.

Today I’m sharing an interesting post I found from Adam at Write Thoughts on using relationships in your stories. As always, click the source link to view the entire post. Enjoy!

“No man is an island, whole unto itself.” People are always part of a network of relationships, a community. For most it’s a web of familiar faces, with individual relationships growing or fading, much like the tides of the ocean. Characters can even engage relationships without interacting with the other person, through memory and imagination. Similarly, some characters may personify an animal, object, or force of nature. A character struggling to endure a storm may come to regard that storm as a rival, with a will and personality of its own.

In storytelling relationships can be used to accomplish three goals: to create tension, reveal information, and help explore ideas. Most relationships do all three…

Source: Using Relationships 105-03

Writers: How to Tame a Wild Character #MondayBlogs #Writer #AmWriting

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I love wild and unruly characters. You know the ones who just want to have a good time, the ones who refuse to do what you want them to do, the ones who do not let you into their head or the characters who take us off on wild goose chases.

Of course it’s never the author’s fault that their imaginary friends are running riot….um…no…fault lies with the unruly characters! Yes!

Sometimes you do need to take control of your rebellious literary offspring.

Here is my guide on how to tame your wild character…

Source: Writers: How to Tame a Wild Character #MondayBlogs #Writer #AmWriting