Welcome back!
It's been a while since I was able to join in but this month I thought it would be fun. Our topic for the month is: Breathing Life into your Characters.
I've been asked in interviews how I create my characters and make them seem like the man or woman next door. That's the fun part of writing a book!
Sometimes I'll base a character on an image I've seen or a person I know or see in my daily life. Most of the time, they just kind of walk right into a story and take on a life all their own. They become the "voices in my head" while I work on the story. Right up to the point where they take control of the whole shebang!
I don't always go into deep detail about appearances of my characters. Not because I don't know what they look like or don't want anyone else to know, but I find it fun for the reader to picture characters for themselves. I've read books where I've forgotten what the main character looked like and had a complete picture in my head, only to read later that I was WAY off on hair color or physique. Not that it matters. I kept my own image and continued on reading!
Of course, characters are made up of more than physical descriptions. Every character is made up of habits, talents, tempraments and so on. A really strong character is neither all good or all bad. They make mistakes. They say the wrong thing at the wrong time. They do their best, just as we all do.
The trick to breathing life into your characters is putting yourself in their shoes. Ask yourself what you think they would do in certain situations. Not what YOU would do. What THEY would do. How they would move, what they would say, how they would get in and out of a situation--good or bad!
As a writer, one way to learn about characters is by reading books written by authors you admire. Make note of how they treat their characters and describe them. Also how they create depth to their personalities and even to their appearances.
Let's see how the rest of the Round Robin Gang breathes life into their characters!
Anne Stenhouse http://annestenhousenovelist.wordpress.com
Connie Vines http://mizging.blogspot.com/
Dr. Bob Rich https://wp.me/p3Xihq-2TY
Fiona McGier http://www.fionamcgier.com/
Marci Baun http://www.marcibaun.com/blog/
Victoria Chatham http://www.victoriachatham.com
A.J. Maguire http://ajmaguire.wordpress.com/
Skye Taylor http://www.skye-writer.com/blogging_by_the_sea
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| https://books2read.com/All-That-Shimmers |
Diane
