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Characters
and how to make them come alive.
Creating
believable characters, which readers want to follow through the journey of your
book, is a fun and exciting process. You’ve decided on your characters, know
their names and how and when they appear in your story. This is all good, but
much more is needed to create a real and believable characters.
Have
you ever been told your characters are wooden, or that you, the author, is
moving them around your story like puppets? This is something I encountered as
I worked my way through the eight manuscripts which formed part of my
apprenticeship.
Every
writer strives to create a character that will drag the reader into their
story, evoking emotions to ensure the reader will invest their time and read
the story right to the very last word. But how is this achieved?
Firstly,
as an author you need to know everything about your characters, even incidental
details that may seem totally unconnected to the story. You need to interview
them, find out their likes and dislikes. Treat them as your new best friend and
find out everything about them.
One
of the most important interview questions you can ask your character is – What
happened in your past, good or bad, to make you the person you are today?
Answering this will provoke other questions and pretty soon you will have a
well filled out backstory for that character.
Some
of the questions you ask your character may not be answered immediately and you
might have to interview them a second time. If you met a new friend, you
wouldn’t find out everything about them in the first few minutes. Also some
answers may never make it into your story, but knowing that answer means you
know your character a bit better.
Once
you have most of you answers, you will have a well-rounded character, complete
with a backstory and when situations arise in your story you will know how that
character behaves. They will be living breathing characters that had a past
before they appeared on your page.
In
short they will take over your story. They will become believable to the
reader, ensuring your book isn’t put down until their story is told.
Princess Amber's arranged marriage to Prince Kazim Al-Amed of Barazbin was a dream come true—for her, at least! But then their wedding night went spectacularly wrong, and a furious Kazim banished Amber from his kingdom and his life…
Hunted!
Now, with his country in turmoil, Kazim must prove his ability to rule and provide an heir for his people. But to do so he'll need to track down his princess.
Claimed!
Amber has always threatened Kazim's tightly held control. Yet if he is to save his nation—and his marriage—he must finally make the ultimate claim…on his wife!
Claimed By The Sheikh
Banished!
Princess Amber's arranged marriage to Prince Kazim Al-Amed of Barazbin was a dream come true—for her, at least! But then their wedding night went spectacularly wrong, and a furious Kazim banished Amber from his kingdom and his life…Hunted!
Now, with his country in turmoil, Kazim must prove his ability to rule and provide an heir for his people. But to do so he'll need to track down his princess.
Claimed!
Amber has always threatened Kazim's tightly held control. Yet if he is to save his nation—and his marriage—he must finally make the ultimate claim…on his wife!
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There's a Kindle Copy Giveaway of Claimed By The Sheikh to one commenter!
You can Enter this Goodreads giveaway for signed copies of Claimed By The Sheikh.
Great post! Definitely getting to know your characters is incredibly important! :)
ReplyDeleteI so enjoy getting to know my characters and as you say Maradeth, it's incredibly important.
DeleteThat's so true you have to keep coming back to characters to learn more about them. Congrats, Rachael!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the congrats Cheire - and coming back to your characters again and again, to find out more is the best way.
DeleteI love looking into my characters' pasts, because just as we are shaped by our pasts, our characters' pasts should shape them too.
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing what sort of things can lurk in a character's past just waiting to become a problem.
DeleteInterviewing your characters is fun and a great way to get to know them.
ReplyDeleteCouldn't agree more Kelly!
DeleteGreat advice! Love the 'getting to know you' stage of creating characters!! :)
ReplyDeleteIt's fun when they hold something back which later surprises you!
DeleteIt's great to meet Rachael! :) Wishing her all the best. I love to interview characters to get to know them better. It's such a big help.
ReplyDeleteGlad the post helped you Karen and thanks for the good wishes.
DeleteWhat a great post. Love Rachael's tips for getting to know your characters. Exactly what I needed at the moment. I've learned it's a procedure you can't skip over. And Rachael's book looks great too! :-)
ReplyDeleteYou have to know just about everything about them Denise, even if as a writer you don't use it in the story, but it means you really know them.
DeleteCongrats, Rachael, on your latest release.
ReplyDeleteThanks Armchair Squid for the congrats and stopping by!
DeleteWhen I read a book I want to feel I know the characters inside out and the only way I can do that is if the author tells me. I’ve never really thought about how it’s done I just know when it’s done well.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by Barbara and for proving writers have to know their characters inside out!
DeleteGreat advice, Rachael. Really getting to know your characters is so important. A lot of fun too - especially when you find out something that surprises you! :)
ReplyDeleteHeaps of fun Andie. Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteGood tips for creating memorable characters! This is especially important in a series, where you want readers to follow your characters through many books.
ReplyDeleteI agree Sherry. If you want your readers to follow characters through a series they have to be memorable. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteAwesome thoughts. I also like putting characters in situations just to see how they'd react, or in front of an enemy or greatest fear. Actions speak louder than words, eh?
ReplyDeleteThat's my favourite thing Crystal - making the situation worse for them!
ReplyDeleteAgreed! Of course you feel like a terrible person while doing it, right?
DeleteGreat advice about the questions we should ask out characters! Definitely helps to get their whole back story and really know them, even if you don't need all the background. :)
ReplyDeleteBest of luck to Rachael-
~Jess
Thanks Jess for the good luck wishes!
DeleteGreat post on characterization. It's so important to make them come alive in every way. Thank you for the giveaway.
ReplyDeleteGreat to see you here Medeia! Pleased you enjoyed the post.
DeleteI've never tried a character interview. I need to give that a go!
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing what you learn!
DeleteRachel's books sounds delicious! Whoever wins is one lucky reader.
ReplyDeleteGreat advice on creating relatable characters. I try to envision myself the best I can within my story so I can keep a close eye on my characters. We have establish an emotional gravity to pull our readers in.
Thanks Gina!
Delete