But there’s a phenomenon I’ve experienced, and I’m sure that
I’m not the only one. I sometimes have
problems with characters who try to take over.
And I know what you’re thinking.
You’re the writer. Don’t you
decide what happens?
That’s like me asking, “They’re your children. Can’t you control them?”
Now, maybe some of you are amazing parents and do have
control of your parents. But there are
always those special kids who have their own way of doing things. And that’s how some of my characters
are.
I was talking to my Alpha the other day (she’s read
EVERYTHING I’ve ever written). And she
asked me about a novel I’d been working on in Junior High. That novel wasn’t bad, but my characters
decided to sabotage me until I completely lost control of the novel and had to
set it aside. I had two character who
were twins, based off of me (which, I learned, is a terrible idea). One of the twins picked on the other one so
much that she became incredibly, violently depressed. That’s right, half of me made the other half
depressed. A psychologist could probably
have a field day with that.
I hadn’t planned how these characters would behave, what
their paths were. So they chose their own
paths. One son got mad at his parents,
packed up, and moved his family to Greece.
Another broke off his engagement because he lost an arm. I had a character chance his name halfway
through the story. By the time I set it
aside, it was a muddled mess and completely different from what I’d imagined.
That's why I plan my stories.
My characters may surprise me, but I can always direct them back to the
right path.
Now I have a different phenomenon. I’m currently working on planning out the
third book in the same world, with same characters. Character who were only children in the first
book are now older with families of their own.
I go back and read the first book, and there are so many hidden things
in there about these characters that just match up perfectly to who they are
now. I’ve even had betas mention that it
sounds like a certain character will go through specific trials that eventually
happen. There’s foreshadowing that I don’t
even realize was foreshadowing. And I
love it when my characters do that.
How about you? Had
any fights with your characters recently?
I have some amazing characters like that -- which sounds like bragging, except I honestly don't feel I can take credit for much of what they do, and are.
ReplyDeleteI've experienced that crazy foreshadowing phenomenon, where you can look back and wonder how you missed something so huge, 'cause it was all /right there/, as perfect as if you'd planned it all ahead of time. And yes, I've got characters who could easily run out of control if I didn't set up some story guidelines to keep them from self-destructing. And some of them come pretty close to self-destructing anyway.
I don't get into fights with most of them, though there is one character I met during last year's NaNoWriMo with whom I guess I've been having a war of wills. He's been demanding that his story be told a certain way, but I just haven't found a way to make it work yet. So this year, I'm offering him a new role -- new name, new life, new set of deep-seated issues. He's reluctant to step out of the box he'd constructed for himself; I guess, from his perspective, it is sort of a scary thing, to undergo that kind of identity shift. But letting him drive hasn't gotten us anywhere, so I'm playing the author card and grabbing the wheel. Worst case scenario, it doesn't go well and he continues to resent me. *shrug* Sometimes the parent's got to be the bad guy, right?
I like how you're able to give your characters a compromise. When they're too loud for the story they're in, maybe they need a story of their own. And yes, we do sometimes need to be the bad guy for the character's own good.
DeleteI only read your G+ post before, and now I understand more about how your characters had a mind of their own. Be happy. Many, many writers find it difficult to build a strong character. It appears you have a knack that others only dream of.
ReplyDeleteThank you! Many of the other G+ comments have also agreed that this is a phenomenon that should be celebrated because it means my characters are three dimensional.
DeleteIt's nice to know someone else shares my craziness. At least one character wound up getting himself killed, which was not cool, but less problematic all around than trying to keep him alive.
ReplyDeleteCurrent problem: MC won't SHUT UP.
I'm deeply impressed by your characters' consistency through the trilogy! Now I'm curious about the story :)
Thank you! And yes, I feel like I'm crazy when I complain about my characters like they're real people. I'm impressed with their consistency as well! I'm not sure how that happened, but I honestly can't get rid of them now. More and more side characters are clamoring for a novel of their own.
DeleteI love and hate that characters do what they want. One of my characters killed another character. I refuse to write it down actually because I don't want it to happen.
ReplyDelete