Making a Literary Life: Memorable Characters

Memorable characters leap off the page and stay with a reader long after a book is closed and returned to the shelf. Reading like writers, we study our favorite characters in fiction, frequently making recommendations to each other. Whether the ones you've come to love are from novels you've read years ago or just last week, we'd love to know your favorites.

Lisa Marnell
I loved Maddelena in A Kiss From Maddelena by Christopher Castellani. Was she the victim of circumstances, meeting the wrong man at the wrong time, or did she simply make a foolish choice that changed her life?

Amy MacKinnon
Inman from Cold Mountain rattles my bones. It's as if Camille Preaker of Sharp Objects lies huddled in one of my upstairs bedrooms. Deenie is a dear, dear friend, someone I spent a lot of time with when we were children. Meursault from Camus' The Stranger still haunts me. Pauline Chen's 83rd organ procurement from Final Exam will leave you gasping for air (did you see Dr. Chen's new column debut in the New York Times?). And then the cast of characters I reunite with every so often because they are so dear to me: Stu Redman, Nick, Frannie, Trashcan Man, Larry Underwood, the Walking Dude aka Randal Flagg, and darling Tom. Don't you know this book?

Hannah Roveto
I love Pat Wood's Perry L.-for Lucky- Crandall in Lottery. Love him, love him, and his Gram and Keith. I know them, had lunch with them: microwaved burritos and a soda. Joe Kavalier and Sammy Clay, of The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay are complex, unwinding as each page turns. Quoyle in E. Annie Proulx's The Shipping News is so solid I couldn't see the movie, for fear those images would remove the ones I hold so clearly. Christopher Boone, the autistic boy in Curious Incident by Mark Haddon... Celie in Alice Walker's Color Purple... oh, how the list goes on!

Lynne Griffin
Oh, there are so many! The unnamed, second Mrs. DeWinter in Rebecca, by Daphne Du Maurier is a wonderful example of a multi-layered, complicated character whose inner motivations make her physical attributes almost unnecessary. Leo Gursky in Nicole Krauss's, The History of Love is so fully drawn, I feel like he's a relative or friend. And Jennie in Portrait of Jennie, by Robert Nathan exemplifies how to craft characters across the stages in human development.

*CHECK THIS OUT*

Look for Marilyn Stasio's review of Tethered in this weekend's New York Times Review of Books!

Fake Out

Posted by Lynne Griffin

I'm a confronter. In the nicest sort of way, I encourage open conversation between my children and my husband and I. Conflict in our family happens, but it doesn't stick around very long because it rarely has the chance to get under anyone's skin. Conflict in fiction is a different matter entirely. The more it lingers on the page the better.

I've recommended John Truby's book, The Anatomy of Story, before. If you haven't read the chapter on character yet, you should. The most useful section of this highly useful material is about opponents and allies.

Opponents as you know are those characters that are in conflict with what the protagonist wants and desires. Reading Truby, you'll get lots of ideas on how to create opponent characters without merely putting them in the physical path of your protagonist. Be creative.

Allies are those characters that assist the protag. Okay, I'm not telling you anything you don't already know. But what I love about Truby's content here, and what I think has added depth to my second novel, is the introduction of the concepts of fake-ally and fake-opponent.

Like these labels suggest, some characters may appear to the reader to be one thing and then turn out to be another all together. With some slight of hand writing and a few reversals in plot, you've added more conflict, more texture, and more layers to your novel.

Creating three dimensional characters by adding in some complexity in the form of wants and needs of minor characters is a great way to up the stakes and increase the tension. Conflict in your family may not be desirable, yet conflict in your novel is a marvelous thing. It keeps the reader reading, and it gets the reader raving.

So take a few minutes of your writing routine to conjure a fake-opponent and/or a fake-ally for your work-in-progress. The oh-so-helpful mother-in-law who loves the children, but inserts herself too prominently in her son's marriage, manipulating his relationship to her advantage. Or the pain-in-the-neck neighbor who drives one character mad when she catches her ear each morning on the way to her car, but who ultimately gives the protagonist vital information, propelling the plot forward, her noisy traits coming in handy. These should not be contrived characters, there for your convenience. They should be characters that offer something unique to the narrative, something the story can not do without.

Have fun with this writing exercise. And if you have any examples of these types of characters, feel free to share them in the comment section.

The Character is the Story

By Amy MacKinnon

Sunday was a day of decadence.

While my children entertained themselves with painting and books, video games and IMing, while my husband prepared our dinner in the kitchen and my dog chased turkeys in the backyard, I laid on the couch, tucked myself under a blanket, and read a book cover-to-cover. It was divine. I justified it by telling myself it was research and it was.

The book was Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane. No, it isn't as good as his others --Mystic River and the Patrick Kenzie series -- but it does share one important aspect, in fact, the most important aspect of any good story: memorable characters.

I finished reading Shutter Island about 11:00 p.m., long after I should have been asleep. But I stayed with it not because of the plot, though it had that great hook everyone talks about; not because of the pacing, though it had that too; I stayed because of Lehane's protagonist Teddy Daniels. He moved me. And when I closed the book hours after my bedtime, I wanted nothing more than to give Teddy Daniels shelter from this cruel world of ours. I cared for him. Deeply.

That's been the problem with a lot of books I've picked up lately -- great hook, okay pacing, life-altering conflict -- but the characters fall flat. I read 20, 30, sometimes as many as 50 pages and then I close the book. If I don't believe in the characters, feel them as wholly as I do the people around me, I simply don't care to read more.

Jane Austen isn't beloved because of her stories and conflicts, pacing and settings. Her books are still read today because her characters come to life on the page. Ms. Austen didn't think readers would much like her novel's namesake Emma, too flawed, she thought, but that is exactly why we adore her. Emma is a reflection of our misguided desires. Have you read Austen lately? The writing is difficult, the conflicts are simple, and we all can be assured of how the stories will end, and yet her books live on and on because her characters do.

Stephen King isn't the bestselling writer of all time because he writes horror. I don't actually read horror, nor do many people I know who read Stephen King. We read his books because he writes characters who are as real to us as the man three doors down with the bad teeth and taste for Schlitz, the one who calls the ambulance to his home every so often when loneliness gets the better of him. King's good guys can be bad (Larry Underwood) and his bad guys can be unbearably sweet (Trashcan Man). His characters are alive. Just writing about it now makes me want to read The Stand again.
I think about all of this as I write my next book. I want to create people who are as real to you as they are to me. I want you to see the grit and tears caking in Mrs. Martin's crows feet; smell the collective sweat of the room that contains them all; I want you to hear the blood pumping in Edith's ears as she runs through the woods and feel the bruise forming at her hip where the gun butt beats in time to her step; and I want you to know George and his angst the way only George has come to know it.

So Sunday wasn't completely decadent. It was just another reminder of what I need to do to write a good book. God, I hope I can.

Angst Ridden

Posted by Lisa Marnell

Inner conflict rocks – in our characters, that is, not in ourselves.

I’ve been re-reading one of my first “craft” fiction books: How to Write a Damn Good Novel, by James Frey. It’s one of the best writing books I own. It has simple common sense rules for good writing!

The latest chapter I reviewed talks about inner conflict:

“When a reader experiences profound empathy with a character, it is because the character is in the throes of intense inner conflict. A character may be in the most pathetic straights in the history of literature, but if he has no inner conflict, the only emotional response the writer can expect from the reader is pity”

Think about these scenarios...

Should religious convictions prevent an MC (main character) from courting the woman he loves?

Does an MC’s own personal experience with alcoholism conflict with his decision to fire an employee caught drinking?

Should loyalty to the New England Patriots stop you from heading to a Superbowl party hosted by Giants fans (of course, not much inner conflict there, actually).

Inner conflict, angst in characters, brings them to life. In a way, it’s because we’ve all been there. We know how all consuming that inner turmoil can be. The decisions a character comes to and why, are stakes themselves, a reason to keep turning pages.

The most beautiful, sensual, and powerful example of inner turmoil in current fiction is found in Edward, the vampire in the NYT bestseller, Twilight; he both longs for Isabella and loves her.

I’ve been asking myself how my characters stack up. Inner conflict is there, but not fully front and center, yet.

Likable Characters

Posted by Lynne Griffin

There's an intangible something, the proverbial it factor, that endears characters to me. It doesn't have anything to do with the set of physical traits the author chooses, though those can help. I don't like certain characters because they're nice, either. In fact, whether I'm reading or writing, I like my characters deeply flawed. To be honest, the more flawed, the more I seem to like them. Certainly in real life, some of my best friends don't have movie star looks or flawless moral character and I like them just fine.

So if character traits don't equal likability, and being positive, kind, or even admirable don't always up the it factor, then what does?

For me, character likability comes from two things. First, good characters are interesting. They say and do things that keep me reading. I don't need quirky, though quirky can be good. I don't need the carefully planned bizarre. Though bizarre can be good. It's the delicate balance between being offered enough to engage me, without being flogged with character details that are overly contrived. I don't like unusually usual names or hobbies I've never heard of--unless of course each is the perfect detail for the perfect character.

How's that for tangible.

Most of the time the less is more rule applies. I don't like writers who go overboard on so-called interesting details. More to the point, I want characters to react in interesting ways. To convey attention-getting thoughts, and to engage in note worthy actions.

Last week at a three day book event for Negotiation Generation, I met a woman who stood out from the rest because of her unusual fashion sense. Her distinctive look drew comments from those of us introduced to her. She became more memorable as she explained how she designs and markets the clothes that so fascinated us. Knowing she would be there the next day, I looked for her. And she didn't disappoint. Her overcoat with hand sewed designs embroidered into the fabric, held tiny flowers emblematic of her native country. The coat and her talent drew me in. At first it was the observable that enthralled me, then her back story sealed the deal. Why did she have the power to engage me, while the others she'd come to the workshop with, did not? Could it all have been because of a simple coat? Or was it because the very whole of her intrigued me?

The second likability factor that has the power to grab me, is the tight connection between plausibility of behavior and empathy. When a character acts in a way I personally object to, moral or spiritually, I can cast judgment aside if I can identify with him or her. In a previous post, I wrote about Ian McEwen's Brionny, and what a wonderful example she is of a character with the power to create empathy. Believability of plot rests on whether or not a character would actually do what she's done. When I don't believe in a character's actions or feel he would've made certain choices, that's usually the end of that book for me. But put intrigue, and curiosity, and plausibility, and empathy together and I'm hooked.

It's one thing as a reader to find characters likable; I love it. It's another thing entirely to capture likability on the page. As a writer, I'm committed to this element of craft and I rely on The Writers' Group to tell me when a character hasn't quite hit the mark. I will relentlessly edit until I've achieved likability, it's that important to me. I can honestly say that I like all of my characters in Life Without Summer. The next question is, will readers?

Uncomfortable Places

Posted by Lisa MarnellThe writer in me is trapped between the ages of seven and seventeen. That time of my life represents such emotion, delight, frustration, discovery. It’s so real to me, I can’t help but love reading (and writing) YA and middle grade fiction.

Something bothers me, though. There’s a book I read when I was thirteen. Its topic was mental illness. I realize that now. At the time I just knew it frightened me. The writing and issues were powerful, too powerful for me at that particular time in my life. It affected me profoundly, but not in a good way. A friend recommended it. When I started it, I couldn’t put it down. Years beyond reading it, there were times when that book surfaced in my mind; it wasn't a help to me, ever. To this day, its title gives me chills.

As an adult, I’m particular about what books I read. Recently I read and loved Twilight by Stephenie Meyer and 13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher. On Lynne’s recommendation, I picked up Atonement by Ian McEwan. I want to write books of quality. Books I would love to read.

My work in progress has potential, but it has to address teen issues as well. The problem is that I make my characters' lives too cushy; I’m a wimp at heart. I keep extra blankets at the foot of my bed in case I get chilly at night. When I play ice hockey, I have a weakness: I back off when it comes to digging at the puck along the boards. I might get hurt, right?

The question I struggle with now is how do I balance timely teen issues without crossing the line where subject material is too inappropriate – gosh, can you tell I’m a mom? My writers group all had brilliant advice when we met over the weekend. I'm so grateful to them. They said, more or less: Give us more (than you do) and reel it in if it’s too much. Oh, how I need to toss that fishing line and see where it takes me. I’m in for the long haul: writing takes patience, and there’s no where I gotta be (no deadline).

Fiction has to be real, timely, exciting. But I have to love my product. It must be something I would want to read.

The bar stays high. Good thing I’m stubborn! If only I were more patient.

At Work in the Post Office

by Hannah Roveto

The woman is suspended from the post office counter by her elbows, which rest a good foot or two across the surface. Ugg boots dangle an inch or two off the floor. An inch-wide line of skin shows between her jeans and her fleece.

"Ooh! That one! What's that one?"

The postal clerk says something about cars.

"Yes! Cars! I need two sheets of those."

The clerk looks at me and the woman turns, still in mid-air with a grin.

"I hate being behind people like me at the post office." With that she points at another page to which the man turns. "What are those? Kwanzaa? No. Muslim? Oh, no. Christmas? Now, how come they can't make good Christian stamps? Those aren't pretty at all."

The clerk is a neutral party, offering only the tidbit that the Madonna of the Carnation is an old painting. The factoid is greeted with a grunt.

The post office is a two-room building circa 1880 or so. In the front half, fifteen-foot-long walls of brass mail boxes in three sizes with dial combinations are centered by this counter and this woman. Her long, curly hair is topped by a cap similar to Eastern bloc sailor hats. With a slight shift in angle, one can see postal logos on it.

By the time the woman is done, she has asked for all the sheets of stamps for the North American Pollinator Protection Campaign, featuring birds and bees, bats and butterflies near gorgeous blooms. Dozens of them. "A bat! Look, it's all the animals in my backyard! I have that exact bird!" She wants the cars, passes over the princesses, returns the Liberty Bells, waves away all holiday leftovers.

As the clerk rings her up, she proceeds to put twenty or so individual stamps from the hundreds before her onto envelopes. Where I assumed she was buying sheets for younger relatives who collect stamps, no, apparently she is known in her family for using fabulous stamps on her mailings. She proceeds to put each stamp where the return address should go.

The two women behind me are agitated, with thin smiles that reinforce exactly how pleasant they are being at great effort. Maybe it is because I have a front row seat, but I am enjoying this all greatly despite the fact that I should have been home by now.

"Sorry for the wait," the clerk says without expression when the woman leaves, waving her sheets at us and giggling at how she never knew the post office could process mail with the stamp in the upper left hand corner.

"I'm good," I tell him. "I'm a writer. You'll be reading a novel some day, and there will be a scene that seems eerily familiar."

Not a single muscle in his face twitches or shifts, up or down. He hands me my change and takes my single, small package. The woman directly behind me laughs and winks at him.

"John, this is your big chance." She takes her turn at the counter. "Make sure the postal clerk is very handsome and charming."

And so he will be.

Full Circle

Posted by Lisa

"I saw the stringy-haired girl one time.In a bowling alley in New Hampshire. It was raining out. The drizzle woke me and stayed for the day, a guest my parents never invited to our Lake Winnipesaukee cottage.That day my dad drove the five of us to Wolfeboro, to give us something to do. My sister, brother, our neighbors, Kathy and Scott. I was twelve, I think. Or thirteen. My dad gave us money, for snacks, sodas, shoe rentals, and three straight hours of strings.


The girl in the bowling alley was my age, thereabouts. She watched me, the whole time. I wondered what she saw. I glanced at her often, wondering why her dad looked so young and why her mom never spoke to her. She was someone lonely, with sad eyes that even a day of bowling wouldn't change. She was longing for a friend, longing for a lot of things. I think she would have liked a Coke. I sipped mine through two skinny straws.

Like any writer, anywhere, images stay with me. I have a picture of that girl – in my mind. It's next to a little boy I once saw trying to surf on washed up driftwood. We all have those photo albums. Sometimes I flip through the pictures. They tell snippets of stories. Things that never sat right with me. Things I didn't understand. I worried about those people. I write about them now, giving them names, and circumstances. I make up worlds for them to live in. I need to fill in the answers for the questions I had about them.”

The above was from a blog entry I made aver a year ago, and for over a year, I have been trying to complete a YA novel. It’s changed, tremendously, as my writer’s group can attest, but the story, the plot, has never been clear to me. This has made it hard, torturous, really. Plot, I’ve discovered, is my weakness in writing. Why did I choose to set my story in New Hampshire? It was all because of that stringy-haired girl. Only, where was she in my novel? Believe it or not, nowhere.

Over the last few days, I have been struggling with plot (arrgggh! No great shock in that). Like a mouse in a maze, I keep hitting dead ends. Today, I realized, I must listen to that stringy-haired girl; she’s in my novel, finally(with hair not so stringy anymore), but she is why I started this novel, and she must help me finish it. I have to listen to her. Will she give me the answers I need?

I certainly hope so.

Never Say Never

Posted by Lynne

When my now eighteen-year-old daughter was a little girl, getting her face wet while playing in water was traumatic. Every summer, whether at the beach down the street or at the lake where we vacation, I'd play games with her aimed at getting her comfortable near water.

"No matter how big I get, I am never going to swim under water," she said.

I didn't tell her then what I knew, which was that some day she'd be completely comfortable with the idea. She would learn that there is little to fear when you trust that you can do it. And last summer she laughed when I reminded her of what she'd believed with every fiber of her being when she was five.

I reminded her after she did a hand stand off the dock--in her clothes.

"I'll never change my title." "I'll never kill off a character." "I'll never read my reviews."

It's fine to have convictions. In fact where would any writer be without them? Yet playing with the word never closes a mind. And a closed mind simply can't be open to new possibilities. Friend of our blog, Judy Merrill Larson wrote a wonderful blog entry about revision this week. She reminds us that every time we dip into our work truly open minded, we have an opportunity to re-vision our work in new and creative ways.

I've been thinking about this a lot during the last few weeks. My novel has been edited and submitted to my editor and I am deep into crafting my work-in-progress. I've come a long way over the last few years in terms of keeping an open mind about my work. I think we become more narrow minded when we're afraid. Fear of feedback. Fear of rejection. Fear of acceptance. These are the things that lock us on to our convictions. Arbitrary yet comfortable thinking that may or may not be in our best interest, or in the best interest of our work.

Now that I am entrenched in writing my second novel, I realize that the beauty of the first draft is its limitless possibilities. I'm not tied to any one conviction, because each day I put my characters in circumstances that allow their transformations to begin. I'm not married to any one situation or scenario, I just want to create scenes that show the reader what I know about a mother struggling to connect with her children because of the distant relationship she had with her own mother. I want readers to feel the breadth of another woman's love for one man, and why this love had the power to lock her in the past.

To show this, to truly convey it, I'll need to listen to my characters tell me their stories. I'll need to let them show me the way. Their journey, and mine, will have its twists and turns, there will be days when together we'll be lost and days when the way is made clear. Now that I've completed one novel, one that has changed along its way, I'll trust the process.

I've decided to leave the word never out of my vocabulary, and like my daughter take the plunge. I'm comfortable submerging myself in writing this story, letting it take me to places I've yet to imagine. It is with an open mind that I'll get to the end of the story.

Staying True

By Amy

After I finish writing this, I intend to print it out and tuck it away in my Tethered binder. Hannah gave me the idea for the binder about a year ago as a way to organize both my thoughts and voluminous amounts of paper. Contained within the plastic covers are: various drafts of the manuscript; all correspondence having to do with what I hoped would someday become a book; and a title page slipped through the plastic cover with a black and white photo of daisies. I indulged myself with that one.

Next, I'll place this in it. It's a promise to myself to stay true to my writing. Not to let external pressures influence what should be an internal experience. How many times have we said to ourselves and each other, his earlier work was so much better. I think what happens with a lot of authors is they begin writing with an eye toward the market, and the passion, what initally compelled the reader to fall in love, falls by the wayside.

So here are my goals for my future self:

- I will always trust my gut. This applies to all areas of my life and has so far served me well in both my writing life and beyond. Unless you've proven otherwise, this is good advice for each of us.

- I will not write for a deadline. Though this is something others can do with aplomb, I know myself well enough not to try. The moment I write with a date in mind, I will write for it instead of for the story.

- I will allow the story as much time as it needs. I sometimes grow frustrated with myself because I don't write quickly. Some days, just a good paragraph, others an entire page and a half. Though twice I've written entire chapters in just a single morning -- chapters that remain largely untouched -- I must be patient with myself and the story. It will come in time.

- I will listen to all who voice an opinion, but no voice will be louder than my own. It is ultimately my story, one I need to stand behind with vigor and confidence. I must believe in it and shape it honestly. Yes, I will listen and take what rings true, but I must remain faithful at all times to the story.

- I will write the best book I can at this point in my life. Years from now, I'm sure I'll look back on Tethered and think of ways to improve upon it. No point in that, is there? I haven't yet become that person. All I can do is the best I can do today.

- I won't read my reviews. Many will disagree with me on this point, but hear me out. To what end? If they're horrible, it will devastate me and if they're glowing, it might paralyze me. Could I learn from a terrible review? It depends. There are few book editors whose opinions I know and trust. I can name them on three fingers. If one of them hated my book, I would be crushed to bits and then how to pick-up the pieces? If it were a reviewer I'm not familiar with, then there's no established trust. Worse would be a fabulous review. It's a fool's folly to believe one's own press. And save me from the middle-of-the-road reviews; mediocrity is the bane of my existence and to be labelled as such would plunge me into an existential funk. Understand now?

- I will work with the best editor available. Having had the opportunity to be edited by a variety of newspaper editors, I know how invaluable a good editor is -- not only to the work itself, but to the psyche. A good editor pushes and pulls forth the very best from a writer, all the while giving encouragement. It's fun and the work is so much better for it. A poor editor dictates and bullies, undermining the writer's confidence in the work. This scenario leaves the author embarassed by the work once it's in print. I allowed that to happen once, years ago. Never again.

- It's not about the money. No matter how much is on the table, if you don't respect the people offering, if the editorial suggestions don't ring true, if the enthusiasm is geared more toward sales than it is toward a passion for the work, then walk away. The price is too high. I've been poor most of my life, I can live with it. I'm pretty sure I can't live with bankrupting my literary aspirations.

- The only competition is my best self. About a month ago, a book in my genre with a striking hook sold at auction in a major deal and then some. Worse, it's due out the same month as my novel. I'll be honest, for a few days I was obsessed with it. And then I realized, not only was I powerless over it, but it didn't make me any less pleased with my own situation. There's nothing I would trade with that author: not my agent, not my editor, definitely not my book. Though others may see our novels as competing titles, I don't. As Lynne always says, each will have its own journey. I wish that author the best of luck.

- Be kind. It's a small world, as is my place in it. Be gracious to everyone, thankful to those who help, and helpful to those who need it.

Hopefully I will remain faithful to these goals, though I imagine I will stumble along the way. Some will be harder to aspire to, others will remain easy. Will I stay true? We shall see.

Inside Outside

Posted by Lynne

When my daughter began college twelve weeks ago, she began meeting new people, making new friends. Friends I would learn about, but not meet for weeks.

She's exactly like me, Mom, we love the same music and we like all the same foods. Except she's taller and has long hair. And he is the funniest person; his sense of humor is dry and talks with an accent.

In order to picture in my mind's eye her new friends, I listened for details. I fit their names to their unique characteristics. When I finally met them, putting names with faces, they didn't look exactly as I'd imagined them, but that was okay. Think read the book, see the movie. Actors cast never look like the characters imagined. More often than not, you get used to them in the role eventually.

Character traits and details. Do you paint them from the outside in or the inside out? In a workshop all four members of the writers' group went to, given by the esteemed Margot Livesey, we learned that creating memorable characters involves helping a character stand out yet it doesn't matter where you start as long as you do both.

Sitting at the metal table with his hands folded was an officer with one of those spiky GQ haircuts and one day’s growth of beard; he looked almost excited to be there. Before we took our seats, he blurted out that he was the detective taking over the investigation.

He cut right to the chase without all the usual Wenonah Falls Police formality we’d come to know and hate.

“I don't mean to be rude. Or maybe I do," I said. "But Jack, you don’t look old enough to tie your shoes, never mind lead an investigation.”

The character described above was drawn with only a few physical descriptors and through his behavior. Outside in. I painted him young because I wanted him to care so deeply about solving a crime because he needed to prove himself. Inside out.

Characters in a novel should not be a jumble of different facial features, eye colors or statures. Traits, quirky and distinct, along with inner motivations set characters apart, making them your own. Making them stand out.

Here are a few of Ms. Livesey's other tips for creating memorable characters that have helped me enormously with character development.

• Good characters must have some failure or vice--bad characters some strength or virtue
• Every character should have something he or she shares with you--every character something he or she doesn't
• Give every character some attitude

What are your tips for creating memorable characters? Or who are your favorite characters from other novels that you look to for inspiration?

Go Character!

Posted by Lisa

Before I moved to California, my writers' group gave me presents. Not good-bye gifts - I saw them just last night online – rather we’ll-miss-you-in-person presents. One of the books they handed me in that Starbucks in Cohasset, was To Kill a Mockingbird. Like many writers, I have favorite books. This has become one. As a jumpstart to your writing week, here’s some brilliant character descriptions written by the author, Harper Lee.

(Thanks again, Amy, Hannah, and Lynne!)

Jem and I found our father satisfactory; he played with us, read to us, and treated us with courteous detachment.
Calpurnia was something else again. She was all angles and bones; she was near sighted; she squinted; her hand was as wide as a bedslat and twice as hard….Our battles were epic and one-sided. Calpurnia always won, mainly because Atticus always took her side. She had been with us ever since Jem was born, and I had felt her tyrannical presence as long as I could remember.

and this...

Miss Caroline was no more than twenty-one. She had bright auburn hair, pink cheeks, and wore crimson fingernail polish. She also wore high-heeled pumps and a red-and-white striped dress. She looked and smelled like a peppermint drop. She boarded across the street one door down from us in Miss Maudie Atkinson’s upstairs front room, and when Miss Maudie introduced us to her, Jem was in a haze for days.

and this...

Walter Cunningham’s face told everyone in the first grade he had hookworms. His absence of shoes told everyone how he got them. People caught hookworms by going barefooted in barnyards and hog wallows. If Walter had owned any shoes, he would have worn them the first day of school and then discarded them until mid-winter. HE did have on a clean shirt and neatly mended overalls.

Now go and write this well!

The Characters Are Dead, Long Live the Characters

by Hannah

The Land of Revision is Disney meets Hunter S. Thompson: fun-scary with the belief that eventually the story will live happily ever after, blended with surreal, bitter truth-telling moments. When I presented Draft One to the Group earlier this year, I knew before it left my fingers it needed real work. (Draft One, by the way, was in turn the culmination of several versions along the way.) What I wanted from them was confirmation of my gut instincts on what was strong, what could be dumped; they did not disappoint, for which I am forever grateful.

Understanding a work’s weaknesses doesn’t mean one can plunge back in right away wielding a pen or ink cartridge. I spent several weeks in thought, walking around the house, driving the car, lying in bed, standing in the grocery store, and yes, with my head in the dryer. I read with no particular agenda and listened to writers.

Ideas swirled in my head like Disney bluebirds on Thompson acid. Just when I thought I'd never corral them into anything useful, they landed and I knew what I had to do. Kill Jill. Kill Aunt Pat. The problem was, I didn't know why.

As I played with the text, picking out what Jill and Pat scenes were important and considering how to keep them, other existing but weak characters stepped to the plate. One minor player appeared only in the beginning in Draft One, and the Group suggested she be dropped into backstory. By taking one of Jill's scenes from the middle and giving it to this other woman right up front, everything began to change.

Another Jill scene was taken by, of all people, an elderly gentleman merely mentioned once or twice in the first draft. I moved him from Boston to Chicago, where he stretched out and proceeded to make himself quite at home. He became more integral both to backstory and action, extending them, making them better.

Finally, without strong Aunt Pat, the weaker aunt became clearer, and -- amazingly -- her weakness was important. Again, opportunities appeared to tighten the original story and simultaneously give it more depth.

Changing this all took me quite a bit of time, as I learned not only what needed to be revised, but how to be more organized as I write and revise. I was an outliner before, but never a 3x5 card person. Now my entire story is jotted onto a stack of cards tucked into a funky plastic box from Staples. Bits and notes of my next story are already on 3x5s, ready to shuffle and roll.

Last week, Completed Draft Two went to the Group. Could it use another massage before it goes to an agent? Sure. I already have a few ideas. This time, though, it could be a matter of edits and tweaks. Rather than jumping into the fray immediately, I'm content to wait for comments. The changes I make will happen far faster, far more efficiently this time.

For the moment, I am happy to scribble down more whispers from my next protagonist, and I already have a sharper take on the key supporting characters than I did at this stage last time. I have time as well to do projects around the house I’ve been ignoring. To perhaps, for once, get ahead of the holiday shopping. For the first time in months, I'm sensing less Fear and Loathing, and more that a Happy Ending may be in sight after all.

Missing Details

Posted by Lynne

Take a look at the following tidbits from my novel.

His office looked and smelled yellow, a combination of a bad paint job and cigarettes. Before I sat down, I noticed two empty packages in his wastebasket. Nicotine gum and Good-and-Plenty.

**

I breast-fed him on demand. I dressed him in well-washed clothing, everything had snaps. Nothing with zippers for fear I’d catch his tender skin in their teeth. Harry badgered me, saying I was overprotective, but I made safe choices, controlled every variable I could. When I look back, I need to believe I did that.

Writing details that capture our characters' personalities, their motivations, is essential. Yet only some of these details will make it into the finished novel; that's up to you. Both of the passages above captured important information I needed to know to draw authentic characters. But only one of these passages remains in my novel today, the other passage was cut in the revision process.

Even though the snipped out passage remains in a document file I call snippets and keeps, I will never use it again. Sitting in that file are several treasured phrases and paragraphs of mine no one will ever read; I killed them in revision.

While there are those of us who underwrite and those who overwrite early drafts, each of us in the end must make difficult choices to remove certain details that tell the reader the specific traits, quirks and desires that round out our characters. Amy and I call this word-by-word examination, the painful revision.

Your readers may never learn that your antagonist was bullied by a much smaller boy when he was growing up, or know that your protagonist once stole a candy bar from a convenience store when she was hypoglycemic and broke, but you know these things and each detail informs your writing; whether or not your readers will ever find these details on the page is irrelevant.

And though it hurts at first to let go, these fine distinctions of character are never truly lost. They stay in your mind, and because of this your characters embody them. Whether in the story or in your imagination, each facet helps your characters to shimmer. In this way, less is more.

So do you wonder which of the above passages lives on the page in Life Without Summer? Take a guess. And while you're at it, do you care to share with us how you feel about killing your own little darlings?

Majoring in Minors

By Amy

My favorite part of writing fiction -- well, one of my favorites, there are many -- is discovering minor characters. When they introduce themselves, I need to know them wholly: feel the texture of their hair, smell the layers of cigarette smoke dulling their nylon windbreakers, understand what it means when they dance in place or are stilled by the grace of death. A minor character's life needs to be bigger than the short turn each has on the page.

The great Michael Lowenthal (really, he's that good, read his books) did a workshop at Grub Street's Muse and the Marketplace conference this past May and spoke to this very issue. If I had Michael's eloquence, I could explain it better, how to make what could easily and certainly should be a two-dimensional character three-full-D. Lynne was there, she'll probably remember the short story he gave as an example (was it a Flannery O'Connor?) that included a large woman, a woman whose bulk and personality filled a doctor's waiting room. She was lush with ego, the characters around her wilted under her disdain -- in a few carefully chosen words. Michael's examples truly did astonish.

The fleshing out of minor characters is crucial because they're able to reveal much about a protagonist. William H. Macy believes a good actor reacts to other actors. I believe a good character reacts to other characters. After all, in life don't we find much of our behavior to be a reaction to those around us? Minor characters reveal to readers both how our protagonists are perceived by the world and how our protagonists perceive their worlds to be. Only a fully-formed minor character can execute both duties well.

I didn't know this when I set out to write my book. It wasn't until it was my turn to have a passage critiqued by Lisa, Hannah, and Lynne that they said they fell in love with a character who appeared for two brief pages. To me, he was only a means to an end. They assumed he would have a recurring role. That night, they set the bar much higher for me. Every one of the people who appeared in my book needed to have a backstory that was hinted at, a presence that was tangible. Though it meant revising, it hardly seemed a challenge it was so much fun.

Writing this now, processing what the other three women of my group have taught me, I suppose it's somehow misleading to use the term "minor character." For the truth of the story, each needs to fill the proverbial waiting room.

Perspective

Posted by Lisa

To be honest, I was astounded. I have been exposed to money, and people with money - I rode horses as a child, the sport of kings and queens. But someone, I recently met, floored me.

His name - he never told me actually. I didn't ask. I met him in a playground, a casual conversation because we both have kids and we were both standing around. He was well-groomed, certainly. Neater than my husband would be at ten AM on a Saturday morning. He did pull away when my dalmation lab mix tried to say hello. Okay, maybe he was bitten as a child. Cut him some slack, I said to myself.

It was when his five- year-old daughter came up to him screaming, "My crocs are dirty. My crocs are dirty," that my jaw dropped to the ground. Why? Because he said, "Ew, they are. Just throw them in the trash. Mom can get you a new pair."

What struck me was his perspective. Is he THAT wealthy, THAT wasteful?

Later that day, I met Manuel, a maintainance man at the Marriott Hotel where I was staying. He came to my room to fix the air conditioner. We got to talking as he needed to wait ten minutes to see if it got cool. Money, wealth, or lack thereof, was the subject of our conversation. Manuel is solid, short, with eyes a warm brown that probably sparkle when he's happy. He has two teenagers. His wife cleans houses. "When I first arrived from Mexico, I made $5.25 an hour," he told me. "I hope to make $22,000 next year."

I probably gulped, my perspective is somewhere in the middle of these two characters, and characters, they are.

Since, I have certainly thought of these two people as characters. Goes with the territory of being a writer, I suppose. One character I liked a whole lot more than the other. I could spend a few hundred pages with that one. The other, well, I'd lose my patience by the third chapter - maybe the second, actually.

So much of writing is trying to write what intrigues you. Write, in fact, what fascinates you to no end. Then it will be fresh, alive, lively, and delicious to read. This, I have always thought of in terms of genre. You like romance? Then write the best darn romance you can write. I've thought of it in terms of plot, as well. I never thought of this in terms of character. Interestingly, as the masterminds of the writing process, we are in CHARGE of characters.

This whole character revelation I had, made me rethink my characters. Do I love them - even the cheeky, mean, impatient ones? If I don't love them, who will? So, if a character is dull, afraid to try something, make them the most outspoken, ill-tempered, agoraphobic dull person you ever wanted to meet. THAT will make unforgettable characters - who your readers (or agents and editors) will adore.

The Muse on Line One

by Hannah

I had my head in the dryer when the answer came to me. The dryer thing was not an act of desperation, although reaching for a white sock with pink flowers that has to be worn immediately is crisis resolution of a type. There we were, the sock and I, inside the white barrel of my dryer when I knew what would make Aunt Bets pop.

As you know from the profile on the side of the blog, I have been revising my novel for some weeks. Months, technically, but we're not going to get too technical.

Some of the changes needed were screamingly loud, and as I sat down and organized the rewrite, those slid right into place. Don't be afraid. Push it. I soon had enough to start to rewrite, so was able to ignore small pieces still missing from the puzzle. For example, Aunt Bets. She was rather blah, extremely minor, and yet I was certain she couldn't be cut. This bothered me a great deal.

Margot Livesey says that even brief, two-dimensional characters should have the potential to become three-dimensional. They need not actually pop into life at any point, but the reader should have the sense they could.

I twisted Aunt Bets every which way, but she refused to tell me what about her sweet nothingness was important. She didn't want to be mean, or snippy, or competitive, all things the plot certainly would have allowed. She didn't want a vice, hard as I tried to put a smoke or a glass in her hand.

As I stretched to reach that silly sock, it occurred to me that Bets' insistence on being perfect is precisely what rounds her out. A touch of the holier than thou makes her the perfect tool, then, through which the antagonist will reveal himself publicly, much to my protagonist's delight. I held that sock high with a huge grin.

The Muse chooses strange means of communication. It's understandable that I should receive part of my answer by sitting at the feet of Margot Livesey. That the Muse should use my dryer as a telephone, well, she's more creative than I'd imagined.

Quirks

Posted by Lisa

If you don't happen to read Therese Fowler's blog, you should. Not only is it entertaining (American Idol prophesizing, indeed!), it's also like an online writing seminar - a nearly daily dose of what works/what doesn't.

In Thursday's blog, Therese talked about some of her own quirks, and frankly, they're pretty darn quirky. I won't repeat them - you'll have to check out her blog for yourself. But she got me thinking. About writing. About characters. About what we love about our characters. About how we fall in love with them.

Writing 101: A reader must care about a character.

Otherwise, why bother?

You, a writer, are the first reader who will ever see your story. Do you care? Why? Let's see...Think of this as a writing exercise:

Take one character from something you are working on, and say one quirk you love about that character. (If you can't think of a quirk, think of a characteristic or gesture). The character from my writing that jumps to mind is Laura, a girl from a short story I wrote last year. I love that she hates pop-tarts. Hates their smell, their taste, their cardboard consistency.

Next, ask yourself why you love that quirk. I love that Laura hates pop-tarts because her best friend's mom makes them every morning. And, Laura hates this lazy woman for many reasons.

You see, I love that Laura will hate pop-tarts the rest of her life. I love Laura. I love my quirky character.

And I wonder, Therese, if any of your characters love chasing lobsters on the beach, or mix grape jelly with various meat products, because a lobster-chasing character who's got a thing for grape jelly, now that's a character I could fall in love with. She's quirky. She's human.