"You recommend keeping a character journal to get to know your characters better before writing the story. How does a writer go about this?'" - Sandy
Carrie: There are lots of ways to get to know your characters.
Interviews. Family histories. Questionnaires.
One of the potentially most fun and most revealing, but also
the most difficult, is journaling.
With journaling, your character keeps a personal journal. A
diary, if you will. They talk about deep, dark secrets; dreams they’ve never
shared with anyone else; triumphs and tragedies.
Journaling from the character’s point of view is a great way
to get into the character’s mind and personality and to learn about a character
from the inside out.
But there are a couple of caveats.
First and foremost, don’t ask questions. You want to write
as the character so don’t allow any author intrusion. Step back and let the
character speak for him- or herself.
Second, don’t edit. Take a minute or two (or three or four
if necessary) to get into the character’s frame of mind, then just start
writing.
What your character journals about will be different from
day to day and character to character, but if you need something to get
started, consider these topics.
·
Childhood
·
Young adulthood
·
Fondest dreams of the future
·
Biggest pet peeve
·
Biggest fears
Still not sure where to start?
Here is an excerpt from my current lead character.
The worst thing that could have
happened just happened. The perfect layout. A nice old lady who treats me like
a son. A big house and a great neighborhood. Access to anything I want and
honest pay for a cushy job to boot. What more could a guy want?
So here comes this guy breaking
into the house and here I come, protecting my territory. Next thing I know, I’m
a hero. Didn’t plan for that. Don’t necessarily want that. It might have its
advantages in other situations, but right now, it’s the last thing I need. A
little bit of press and there goes my hiding place.
I didn’t actively solicit this character’s comments, but I
had written myself into what looked like a corner. The character was able to
not only remind me who he was and why he was in the story in the first place;
he also suggested an aspect of the storyline I hadn’t previously considered.
That’s what you want with a character journal. The
interaction between you as the author and the character as the one who is
actually experiencing the story.
Don’t worry about getting it right the first time. It takes
time and practice to turn off your author’s voice and personal voice well
enough to hear nothing but your character’s voice. This is an activity that improves with
practice, so don’t give up too soon.
And don’t worry if a character seems reluctant to
journalize. Some will step forward and take over eagerly. Getting others to
speak will be like pulling teeth. Be patient. Learn to roll with the punches
and follow the character’s lead.
And most of all, feel free to step back and let them rant!
You won’t be sorry.
~~~
For over thirty years, Carrie's writing took a backseat to
full-time work outside the home and to her small business painting portraits of
horses and other animals from across the country.
In 2008, she rediscovered writing and, in late 2009, became
a full-time artist, which opened up time each day to pursue writing.
Her favorite genres are mystery, suspense, and political
thriller, with manuscripts in the works in each of those categories. She also
is an active crit partner for other authors, both published and unpublished.
Carrie’s
writing blog can be found at http://writing-well.carrie-lewis.com/ and
includes quarterly Writing Well Story Clinics. Her art website and blog is
http://www.carrie-lewis.com/.