No News is . . . well, you know the rest . . .
Monday, June 23, 2008
Being an author is like being in charge of your own personal insane asylum.First off: Yes, I'm still alive and kicking. Things have just been really busy and hectic, giving me little time to do other things. The script is still progressing. I'm at that point where I'm trying to get the two ends to meet in the middle. I seem to do that a lot, knowing how a story begins and ends, but I've already covered that topic in another post.Graycie Harmon
As I've been working through my various stories, particularly during moments when characters take on lives of their own, I find myself asking why they behave the way they do, why they react to other characters the way they do. Interesting characters have flaws, really interesting characters have interesting flaws.
The genesis of these flaws might come from anywhere—their childhood, traumatic events in their lives, interactions from other people—but each influences how a character behaves. Understanding these motives forces you to really get inside a character's head, to internalize their flaws, to comprehend what drives them.
Consider that most stories contain more than character. Each character, however minor, has their own personality, interests, desires, and quirks. And you have to live within the mind and thoughts of each and every one of them, even if only for a brief time.
It's no wonder that writers have a reputation for being a little bit crazy. (Okay, maybe sometimes more than just a little bit.) How many people can you fit inside your head?
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