If you know me and my experience
as a writer, you know I started as an aspiring screenwriter. Movies,
television, visual mediums of all kinds have been a passion of mine since a
very young age. So it should come as no real surprise that I’ve retained that
passion and adjusted it accordingly for writing novels.
In most cases, each of my book
concepts start with the germ of a character. Something quirky about them draws
me to wanting to develop them further, and before I know it … I’m lost in
imagining what kind of trouble they’ll stir up, how their fish-out-of-waterness
will have them reacting to certain situations, what kind of person might offset
their personality in an interesting way. Before that phase is complete, I’ve
almost always “cast them” in my mind by choosing an actor/actress to play the
part as I’m dreaming up their storyline.
While I’ve never been a real fan
of character profiles – pages and pages of questions to answer about people I
haven’t fully drawn in my own mind yet – I do find that a storyboard is
helpful. I usually use a white board in
my office to post those casting photos and make general shorthand notes. For
instance, here’s an example of what I created while writing the Jessie Stanton series.
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| STORYBOARD: JESSIE STANTON SERIES - SANDRA D. BRICKER |
As novelists, it is our
responsibility to take the reader from shadowy sketch to clear identification
with the character on the page. And yet how many times have entertainment
headlines reflected outrage of eager viewers when a casting decision has been
made that failed to resonate with their impression of a beloved character? Ben Affleck
as Batman? Renee Zellweger as Bridget Jones? Never mind acting abilities! These
were not the faces in the minds of moviegoers. While this sort of thing is
certainly regrettable for filmmakers hoping to round up those entertainment
dollars by cashing in on commitment to translating the written word to the big
screen, it speaks to the adeptness of those authors who created the original
material.
Imagine the repercussions if
actress Kaley Cuoco, for instance, had been cast as Sheldon’s girlfriend Amy
instead of Penny on The
Big Bang Theory. Even though Kaley’s acting prowess might have allowed
her to suitably characterize Amy in her own way, Mayim Bialik – through
wardrobe, makeup, facial expression, and the like – personifies Amy Farrah Fowler in every subtle way.
Viewers can’t imagine anyone else playing Amy,
which is what we aim for in creating characters on the written page as well.
In the original draft of Star
Wars, the character of Han Solo
was scripted as a green-skinned alien. It wasn’t until the third draft that
visionary George Lucas decided to morph Han
into “a tough, James Dean-style starpilot about twenty-five years old. A cowboy
in a starship—simple, sentimental and cocksure of himself.” Try for a moment to
imagine Star Wars without that dramatic revision to one of its most
beloved characters.
When I’ve conducted workshops for
authors about characterization, one of the exercises attendees have found
particularly helpful is one that helps them define a main character by avoiding
physical stereotypes while still relying on the general nuances of appearance.
Have a look at these two people:
Now use your visual
imagination to define character distinctions, quirks, etc. of each of them. Ask yourself about their details. Where are their hometowns? What do they do for a living? Give each of them a unique character trait, habit, or vice. Explore their greatest fears, their moral/ethical beliefs, and their greatest passions in life.
After doing so for
the first set of main characters, repeat
the exercise for this second set of actors:
When you’re finished, they are sure to be very
different. And if they're not, go a little deeper. Ask yourself why.
So now it's your turn to weigh in on this subject. What are YOUR secrets to creating
memorable and unique characters?
~~~~~
SANDRAD.
BRICKER
was an entertainment publicist in Los Angeles for 15+ years where she attended
school to learn screenwriting and eventually taught the craft for several
semesters. When she put Hollywood in the rear view mirror and headed across the
country to take care of her mom until she passed away, she traded her scripts
for books, and a best-selling, award-winning author of Live-Out-Loud fiction
for the inspirational market was born. Sandie is best known for her Another Emma Rae Creation and Jessie Stanton series for Abingdon
Press, and she was also recently named ACFW’s Editor of the Year for her work
as managing editor of Bling!, an edgy romance imprint for Lighthouse Publishing
of the Carolinas. As an ovarian cancer survivor, Sandie also gears time
and effort toward raising awareness and funds for research, diagnostics and a
cure.
Connect
with Sandie:
Author
website: http://sandradbricker.com/
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/SandieBricker
Author
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sandradbricker
