So, in moving in with my boyfriend, I'm learning a lot about myself, and in many ways, about characterization.
My entire life I tried to be something I wasn't - I tried to be what I thought everyone expected me to be. In essence, I tried to be a cookie cutout of a person, which is a complete bore. I wanted to be smart, girlie, pretty, confident, cheerful, and yet snarky all at once. I never had a drive to go against the grain or to be the original I was made to be.
But in moving in with the boyfriend, I've realized that at some point the only person I can be is me, and he's beginning to see every quirk and strangeness that I used to be able to keep to myself. He's seen how I like to pour my milk before pouring in my cereal. He's noticed how I have a bad habit of NOT eating leftovers...depending on what those leftovers are. And that doesn't even count what he's already seen before now - like how I twirl my hair when I'm concentrating.
All of these quirks make me who I am, and I'd like to believe that I'm more interesting because of them. That's what readers are looking for in characters. They don't want to read about people who do everything right. No one wants to read about a girl who's always done what she's told, and always will. Hell, there's no story without conflict. Characters have to do the unexpected, and it's the little things that make them come to life.
Writers have to remember that when creating their characters. You have to let the characters be themselves, flaws and all. You have to make them dynamic, and interesting, and crazy if that's who they are.
Happy writing!!!
I completely agree with you, Kena. Characters have to be engaging and engaging people have faults whether they're the villain or the hero.
ReplyDeleteSo true!!! It's so hard to not go for perfection, but I figure that if your character doesn't piss someone off at least once in the story, then something isn't right.
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