Meeting your characters (part 1).
When you first start writing something new, you pick up your pen and a stack of fresh paper (or a laptop, if that’s how you think), and you face the dilemma of who you’re going to put down on that paper.
What will their name be? Their personality? Their looks? Their motivation? Hopes, dreams, fears? What will they struggle with? What sorts of things cross through their mind as they fall asleep at night? Who will drive them absolutely, utterly crazy?
You’ll learn all of this eventually, but at the start, you have only a blank page. It’s up to you to figure out who you’re going to fill it with. For me, a name is the beginning of the process. I like to pick something before I even begin, and I won’t start until I have the right one. At times, this has been the hardest part, and stories have died because I can’t find a name that fits the person I want to write about.
But typically, I find a name (first & last), and then things really get started. The first conversation that person has often shows some of their defining characteristics, so it’s important to get it right. Is your character shy or confident? Do they jump into things right away, or hang back until things are more clear? Do they like to joke, or are they a serious type? Who are they talking to, and why? Do they like that person? How does this character show that through their external actions? Do they have any habits (think biting their fingernails, twirling a lock of hair, or bouncing restlessly on their toes as they talk) that are going to show up more later on? If so, a first conversation is a good place to introduce these.
At this point, you’ll also have to include a physical description of some kind, so your readers can follow along with the portrait you have in your head. (I often forget this, and then have to go back and add it later!) Give your readers the main details, taking care to weave them into the dialogue or scene description. This helps avoid a clunky paragraph chock-full of physical details that could overwhelm your readers, and allows for better flow on the page. I suggest jotting these details down in a handy place so you can refer to them later. While you may not forget things like hair or eye colour, features such as height, beauty marks, or favourite clothing colours may not be as fresh in your mind if you need to include them further on.
This has grown long, but come back for part 2 of meeting your characters, where we’ll discuss how to flesh out more of their desires and motivations!
