Saturday, September 14, 2013

Creating Memorable Characters

What makes us remember a character? Not what they're wearing, or the color of their hair, but "their quirks, their body language, their histories, their beliefs." How does a writer create vivid, memorable characters?


In "Tell Their Secrets" (NY Times, 7/13/13) Silas House gives examples of how to "shape your characters by revealing their deepest, darkest secrets. Show us what drives them, what makes them completely individual in this wide world. Tell us how they pine, how they tick."

A recipe for producing memorable characters? Perhaps.

Print it out. Reread often.

11 comments:

  1. Thank you, Gale. I printed this out and will re-read often!

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    1. Glad you enjoyed it and found it useful. No more "blue-eyed blondes in red dresses."!

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  2. Great article! I've a quote from it that I want to put on my corkboard for inspiration. Thanks!

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    1. I liked his wanting "characters who resonate because they epitomize our own hopes and struggles and stories."

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  3. Excellent. Very well put and memorable. I love the 'heart gone to seed' quote. Thanks Gale. Read, printed, and pinned, to be reread soon.

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  4. Excellent. Very well put and memorable. I love the 'heart gone to seed' quote. Thanks Gale. Read, printed, and pinned, to be reread soon.

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  5. Happy. Happy. That you liked it. That you liked it. :)

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  6. Awesome article! Thanks for sharing! So many great quotes. I will be rereading many times!

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    1. Even though this article is basically for fiction writers, I think we PB people can learn from it also.

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  7. I will print it out. And it's funny -- in my writing, what makes me stop most often is description. I can't dash off description in a draft, because getting it right -- or close, at least -- is central to me getting to know a character.

    "That’s the way we talk in real life, but fiction has to be more revealing, intriguing and eloquent.

    Indeed.

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    1. And I so admire anyone who can produce characters and dialogue that rise above real life!

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