My guest, is fiction editor, Beth Hill. Her topic is on creating characters the touch readers. If you get the chance, do stop by Beth's Blog and check out her archives. She has some fabulous articles on craft and they are a great resource for writers.
I was recently talking to a frustrated writer,
frustrated because beta readers were finding fault with her lead characters.
Some readers didn’t like her male
lead; others had trouble with the female. They said the characters were
unsympathetic, unkind, or just not nice.
No, her leads aren’t rotten; they
aren’t the bitch and bastard referred to in this article’s title. They are
simply characters with character.
And isn’t that what we want for our
stories, characters who stand out, who grab our attention? Don’t we want
characters who make us notice them? Characters with character, characters we’ll
remember for their bold actions, characters who stir our emotions? Don’t we
want stories peopled with characters who aren’t safe and who don’t blend in?
The characters we most
enjoy have some growing to do. They aren’t necessarily nice. They
certainly aren’t insipid.
They don’t always do the right thing,
say the right words, and have the correct motivations. They aren’t always
politically correct and they may hurt others, both willingly and unknowingly.
They may never apologize. They may
make excuses. They may lie or cheat or steal.
Characters who are bold, who aren’t
always nice or polite or solicitous, are the characters readers will remember.
So why all the fuss from beta
readers?
My guess is that the readers don’t
want the writer to submit something they think won’t be popular with either
agents or editors. Yet
characters that stand out, who are outrageous or who stumble or who push the
readers’ buttons, are exactly the
kinds of characters agents and acquiring editors are looking for.
Who wants to read about nice
characters, characters who don’t ruffle feathers or who don’t get into trouble
or who always say the right thing?
Wouldn’t we rather read about flawed
humans, people who make mistakes but who still manage to redeem themselves or a
portion of their lives? Don’t we want bold characters who are different from
us, who speak their minds—even when fearful of consequences—who press ahead
despite fear and anxiety and feelings of worthlessness?
I know I’m seldom looking for nice
characters. Nice characters don’t create tension—they’d work to diffuse it.
Nice characters mean bland scenes and ho-hum motivations. Nice characters mean
not-so-nice stories.
And lest anyone take offense, I’m not
talking about doing away with characters who are good, who stand on the side
of justice or integrity or decency. Good characters can be strong and bold and
powerful. But nice characters, characters
who don’t take stands and who have no outstanding quirks and who don’t rock the
boat are not strong enough to be the leads in a novel.
Characters without flaw are flat and
the stories told about them can’t draw the readers’ interest the same way
stories about imperfect characters can. What surprise is there when a perfect
character defeats his enemy? Doesn’t he always defeat his enemy? Was there any
doubt that he’d win again?
But what about the imperfect
character who’s admitted to cheating to get ahead—can he win the biggest
challenge in his life without resorting to cheating again? Will those around
him let him forget what he’s done before and pull for him or will they always
stand against him, no matter how honest he now is? Can a rude or belligerent
character change enough to get other characters on his side when it counts?
If your lead character is perfect,
how will he grow? If he’s perfect, how will his next victory be any different
for him than his last? If he’s perfect, how will the reader relate?
Perfect characters are fit for cartoons. It’s
the flawed ones who make for fascinating fiction.
The writer I was speaking with said
the characters didn’t resonate with the beta readers. Yet after hearing some of
the comments her readers had made, I told her the characters certainly did resonate. They had those readers
upset. The characters had succeeded in touching the readers.
And that’s exactly what you want your
characters to do.
——————————-
Exceptions
~ There is a difference between
characters your readers refuse to follow through a story and characters who are
flawed or who have problems or who irritate the snot out of the reader.
Flawed and irritating characters
belong in fiction. But characters who are poorly written or who are repulsive
to most readers deserve to be shunned. Yet, keep in mind that some characters,
no matter how abhorrent, can make compelling stories.
~ Genre is an important
consideration for character personality. In romance, readers are going to want
to like your hero and heroine, even through their flaws. Be aware of what the
genre allows. Be willing to push expectations, of course. But realize that you
might not change those expectations with a single book, a single severely
flawed character.
But don’t necessarily bow to what the
beta readers say they want. They definitely don’t want
perfection in their leads. They don’t want the beautiful and perfect and
flawless. They may want redeemable; they don’t want main characters who don’t
ruffle feathers.
Consider Rhett and Scarlett, whose
movie was on TV just in time to bring them to mind for this article. Neither
Rhett nor Scarlett are perfect, but they are good characters. Great characters.
They give us reasons to both loathe them and root for them. They are bold,
brash, audacious, and larger than life. They pull us into their lives not by
their goodness, but by their manner. Their personalities. Their daring and
confidence. Who would work his way through Margaret Mitchell’s tome without the
reward of Scarlett’s nerve and Rhett’s disregard for propriety?
So, be bold in ruffling feathers of
both other characters and your readers and don’t be afraid of writing
characters who stir the puddin’. Certainly don’t shy away from giving
characters unlikable qualities. Give them those negative qualities and make us
like them anyway. Or make us root for them, even if they have flaws.
Don’t play it safe with your characters.
Don’t make readers wish they had
picked up a more engrossing book rather than yours.
Do remember character traits and behaviors can have a range of
intensities. That is, not all
characters have to operate at the peak of their traits at all times. Adapt
character behavior to the story you want to create, to the needs of the scene.
Use lively characters to establish tone and to make other characters nervous.
Use the behavior and thoughts and words of characters to make readers uncomfortable. They’ll thank you for
it. And they’ll come back for more.
*******
No, characters don’t have to be
bastards or bitches or cruel or crazy or repulsive. But they could be. And if you write them well,
readers will enjoy reading them.
Take your beta readers’ comments
under consideration? Absolutely. But don’t allow them to strip the emotion and
verve from your stories and characters. Write bold characters with quirks and
faults and flaws. And remember that you don’t have to redeem them or heal all
their frailties by the end of your book. You could.
But if the ending, if the story, is more powerful with a still flawed
protagonist limping home with the prize, then keep him flawed.
Create characters that are boldly imperfect.
And allow yourself to be bold as you
envision imperfect characters to live in your story worlds.
Write
strong fiction by creating characters who are far from bland and nice.
I love the written word, the ability we have to create worlds and emotions with well-chosen phrases. It’s my intention to share tips and insights and encouragement with writers at all levels, to help you craft stories that will entertain and satisfy your readers. That will help satisfy you as writer as well. I am both writer and editor. My editing focus is on long fiction, primarily novels. I also mentor beginning writers.
