Character Development

Jul 02

Photo by: yukatafish (flickr username) - http://www.flickr.com/photos/yukatafish/

Writing with an authentic voice is a difficult thing to learn, but lately I’ve been honing in on writers who do it well in an attempt to understand what makes a good voice. The writer I’ve been spending a lot of time with lately (through his books, not in person) is Scott Westerfeld. His books are compelling not just because of his ability to emerse the reader in a wonderfully built world, but also because of his amazing use of voice (which contributes to the world building, but more on that later).

Voice in the Uglies series

In the Uglies series, the main character, Tally, goes through a series of transformations. In each book, the reader can feel these transformations because of Westerfeld’s use of voice. Although told in third person, Westerfeld uses words and thoughts that Tally would use/have. He utilizes slang from his world (e.g. “bubbly” and “icy”) but also gets into the heart of the story. And because the voice is so authentic, he seemlessly transports the reader into Tally’s world. His use of voice wraps around the world, snuggling the reader inside; it is completely devoid of influences from our own world which keeps the illusion from being shattered.

Not only does his use of voice help to make the world real, but he also does a great job portraying many of the things that teenagers and adults alike face – wanting to fit in, insecurities about one’s appearance, never being good enough, etc. While he does this through the plot, these internal struggles would not be nearly as successful without the addition of a believable voice.

Voice in the Leviathan series

The other series of Westerfeld’s I’ve been reading is the Leviathan series. In this series, Westerfeld switches POV between Alek, the properly raised aristocrat fleeing for his life, and Deryn, the spunky Englander pretending to be a boy so she can be an airman. Again told in third person, Westerfeld switches the voice between the chapters. The reader can tell without thinking which POV belongs to which chapter. As with the Uglies series, Westerfeld is successful not just because of word choice and his addition of slang, but he brings out the thoughts and internal struggles of each main character in a believable way.

Other examples of good use of voice

If you are looking for other good examples of voice, Suzanne Collins’ the Hunger Games series uses great voice and is told in first person. In Ally Condie’s Matched, as in the Ugly series, the voice changes as the main character evolves. M.T. Anderson’s Feed, like Westerfeld’s books, incorporates rich dialog into the narration to aid the voice. Another book I recently read is Megan McCafferty’s Bumped, which, like the Leviathan series, uses two POVs. It’s not done to the same degree as what Westerfeld has done, but it’s still a good example of using two narrators within one book.

Do you have any other examples of authors/books that make good use of voice? What other skills can we learn from reading works by other authors?

Dec 17

Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment, by James Patterson, tells the story of a group of genetically altered kids on a mission to save the world. This concept probably sounds similar to things you’ve read before.

But what makes this book (and the series) different is that Max and her ‘family’s’ DNA was spliced with bird DNA, giving them bird bones, a fast metabolism, and wings. In addition, extra ‘talents’ show up every so often, just to keep things interesting and add a bit of aid to the Bird Kids when things get tough.

I’m not going to lie. It took me a while to get into this book. I started reading it about this time last year but kept putting it down. Once I got past the first couple of chapters, I found myself wanting to know what was going on behind the scenes, how the mystery would play out. And I wasn’t all-together disappointed.

Where I was disappointed was in the main character, Max. She seemed to fit too neatly into the hardcore heroine mold that, in my opinion anyway, has been a bit overdone. Whereas Katniss in The Hunger Games managed to merge her hard edge with a realistic vulnerability, Max’s vulnerabilities felt a bit forced; she lacked the honesty found in some of the more memorable characters I’ve encountered in my reading life.

Another problem I had with the book was that sometimes the action became a bit confusing and, at times, forced. I don’t want to go into specifics and give away important scenes, but, like with Max’s character, the writing was not as honest as I would have liked.

All that being said, I read the second and third books in the series and, while I did not find that my general issues with the writing and character development improved with the series, I still found the books to be an entertaining read. If you are in need of airplane or beach reading, give this book (and the series) a try. If you want to recapture the feeling you got reading The Hunger Games, you may want to try something else.

Nov 04

I often hear writers say that you should allow your character to surprise you, or let your characters think for themselves. When I was first starting out, I had no clue what this meant. I remember thinking ‘how is a fictional character that lives inside my head going to surprise me?’

Little Surprises Lead to Realistic Characters

And then it happened. At first it started with little things. A character choosing to go left instead of right, or saying no instead of yes, things that helped move the story along while also sharing something about how the character thinks. And then it moved on to bigger things, like a character ending up in a room he most definitely did not belong in, making an appearance when, in fact, he was supposed to remain unseen until the very end. Tuesday, it went so far as a character creating an entire back story for another character through a memory she had that I never intended her to have. She created a connection different but better than the one I planned. So how does this happen?

Character Surprises are a Good Thing

When you are engrossed in your writing, things fall into place. You get in the zone and the story makes sense. Things you forgot to plan out beforehand jump out at you and they just happen. And this is a good thing. It helps your characters become real. No human is 1-dimensional. These surprises help move your character from 1-D to 3-D; they help make that character real.

Example:

Yesterday I discovered that my character has a fear of blood. Here’s what happened. I decided that the best way to create a sinister environment was to add in the scent of blood. This smell then triggered a memory in the MC and through that memory, I discovered that she has really bad associations with blood, having seen a man killed when she was only 6. Not only does this provide insight into both the character’s past and the nature of her world, but it also makes her a little vulnerable. People like characters that are a little vulnerable.

I’m sure there are many experienced writers who plan things out down to those tiny details before ever starting chapter 1. I’m not yet at that level. But if my characters keep speaking to me, keep throwing out little surprises, that’s OK with me. After all, doesn’t everyone love a good surprise?

Do your characters surprise you? Are there downfalls to this? Do you think this goes away when you become a more experienced writer?

For more on character’s thinking for themselves, check out this post from YA Highway

Oct 29

I decided to reread Roald Dahl’s Matilda so that I could pinpoint what it was that I loved so much about this book when I was younger. So here goes:

Matilda is a know-it-all, but she is so humble about her intelligence that you can’t help but to love her. The unjust situations she finds herself in – being called a cheat for being able to do complex arithmetic in her head, being accused of the newt in the water incident, etc. – make you instantly feel for her. Everyone feels that they have been unjustly accused at some point or another, which makes it all the more easy to relate to these situations in the book. Matilda becomes real. Life is not easy for her, despite her high level of intelligence. She has to make due with what talents she was born with.

The over-exaggerated cruelty of Miss Trunchbull makes you feel like things could be worse while also showing you that no matter how bad things get, you can always find a way to make them better. Despite how cruel and evil Miss Trunchbull is, a young child is still able to best her. If this isn’t inspiring, I don’t know what is. Of course, kids also like things that are over the top. Example: my almost 4-year-old nephew is obsessed with a picture of my cat looking at a computer box. He keeps saying that it is so silly because cats don’t like computer. And so he wants to look at it all the time because it is so silly.

Another thing I love about this book is Roald Dahl’s word choice. He uses words I would be too timid to put in a children’s book out of fear of them not understanding the words. But isn’t that part of why children read? They want to learn knew words. And a book with some big words in it makes you feel like you have accomplished something, like you are a grownup. And in the case of Matilda, big words go perfectly with her character.

If you want an example of a great children’s book or if you are looking for something easy to read that will also lift your spirits and give you hope that things always right themselves in the end, then this is the book for you.

Writing with an Authentic Voice

Voice in the Uglies series

Voice in the Leviathan series

Other examples of good use of voice

Book Review Friday – Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment

When Characters Have a Mind of their Own

Little Surprises Lead to Realistic Characters

Character Surprises are a Good Thing

Book Review Friday: Matilda