Joined: 16 Apr 2009 Posts: 7 Location: Cambridge, England
Posted: Wed Jun 03, 2009 10:25 am
A bit of both, my characters develop as the story goes and then after I tend to add scenes in to gel it all together. As well as this I like the writing short stories about your characters. I can get half way into a long story and pause and write out an aspect of my characters history. A story to give me a personal insight into their life. As well as this I tend to think a lot and plan out in my head timelines fact files etc, when I do get around to it I pen them just to keep a reference for myself of details while writing later.
Joined: 03 Apr 2006 Posts: 318 Location: Milwaukee, WI
Posted: Thu Mar 18, 2010 9:22 pm
In the story. I don't plot, or prewrite, or write out a biography of the characters. They develop as I write. I learn about them at the same time as the reader.
Oftentimes, my process of character development involves writing on the page and in my head. I'll dream up future scenes while working on current ones and they will inform each other. _________________ Violet "Violanthe" Kane
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Joined: 29 Mar 2006 Posts: 21 Location: Sol-3, USA, CA, Sacramento
Posted: Tue Sep 07, 2010 12:11 pm
It varies with how centrally the character's role is to the story. For important characters, I usually start out with a general concept of the type of person the character is. Sort of like archetypes; not in the sense of role but personality. Things like how serious the person acts, how loyal, how responsible, how rational, how flawed. Is this character formal or casual in conversation? Is it a Snape-like character that is unlikable and yet an ally?
While that appears to be an off-page origin for the character, the precursor to developing the characer concept comes form the story. As I get my story going, it asks me for certain character types. Of course, one should avoid stereotypes. The Gandalf/Alanon mysterous wizard/mentor character who never tells you everything and despite knowing what has to be done can't, for some obscure reason, be the one to do it has just been done to death. In fact, I brought one into my story just so I could kill him off in the next chapter. Well ... that wasn't the only reason, but he had served his purpose and it was time to exit stage left.
I do tend to use archetypes and stereotypes for peripheral characters .. you know ... the gruff inkeeper, the friendly inkeeper, the inkeeper with a heart of gold and unsavory connections, yada yada yada.
I think it is a good idea to present the appearance of the stereotype and then go the opposite direction with it. Then you get things like the inkeeper with the heart of gold and unsavory connections that sells you out because the only heart of gold he REALLY has is the one he cut out of the chest of his last victim. But even that one is not too uncommon. Not to mention more realistic; most people who really have unsavory connections are themselves unsavory.
But I digress (as is my wont).
For me, the character need comes from the page, is developed in general terms off paper, and then is solidified, developed, and evolved on paper. It's a collaboritve effort between me and the story. The story says to me, "Dude, if we go down this road we are going to need another character or three, and here's some things we can do with them..." I review the options and pick the one that best aligns with the direction of the story without being predictable. I insert the character into the story and see how well the story accepts it. "If it doesn't fit, I make adjustments" (Silverado).
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