tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post1149127953205991118..comments2024-03-28T10:41:26.999-06:00Comments on Blood-Red Pencil: Push Your Characters Hard—Please!Danihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14471919576687777886noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-32037103120603849172010-04-18T05:07:48.996-06:002010-04-18T05:07:48.996-06:00Another great post!
Thanks for sharing:)Another great post!<br /><br />Thanks for sharing:)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-38296461270377105162010-04-17T06:59:39.161-06:002010-04-17T06:59:39.161-06:00As a writer, I think it becomes boring if you don&...As a writer, I think it becomes boring if you don't challenge your characters. You give them faults not only to make them more believable and interesting, but to provide challenges. Have a drinking problem? Well, here's a good reason for you to drink, so what are you going to do now? Don't like blood? Guess what, you get to wade through it. What are you going to do now? Plots should be focused fairly heavily on these little character foibles, since readers generally love to see how characters will get past ever-more-difficult problems, and while dealing with villains is always a big problem (if you have that kind of story), it's usually the character driven issues that generate the most interest. In my opinion, such that it is.JDuncanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00487305836910594252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-4558497777439712132010-04-16T17:00:48.719-06:002010-04-16T17:00:48.719-06:00Dominique:
Much literary fiction is comprised of c...Dominique:<br />Much literary fiction is comprised of characters driven by or trying to overcome internal forces. I don't know if you remember "Ordinary People," which was made into a movie, in which one of two teenaged brothers dies in a boating accident and one lives. The one brother is ruined by guilt and attempts suicide, and his family relationships are strained by a mother who blames the living son while trying to maintain a facade of respectability and a father who is trying to make nice while struggling with his own depression. The story question: will these characters be able to get beyond their feelings concerning their loss in order to function as a family again? Other than fate, not one external force plays upon these characters, yet the story is rife with tension nonetheless. A character's own fear, shame, guilt, grief, or insecurity can create a powerful antagonist in a story.Kathryn Crafthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08371458857187160425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-5509367507863992142010-04-16T15:07:43.024-06:002010-04-16T15:07:43.024-06:00Dominique, the force does not have to be external....Dominique, the force does not have to be external. The character can have a moral or ethical dilemma that forces some of the suspense and drama. In my book, One Small Victory, the central character is driven by two forces -- the real danger and her reluctance to kill anybody. I think combining the external and internal adds another dimension to a story.<br /><br />Great post, Katherine.Maryannwriteshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09479027709233807149noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-31983197219162590112010-04-16T08:25:47.367-06:002010-04-16T08:25:47.367-06:00Great post Kathryn. I think sometimes writers don&...Great post Kathryn. I think sometimes writers don't push their characters because they're worried how they would get them out of trouble. It's not that they don't trust their characters to overcome; they don't trust themselves as writers. That trust will come if they let go of their own fears and see what their characters do.<br /><br />Helen<br /><a href="http://straightfromhel.blogspot.com" rel="nofollow">Straight From Hel</a>Helen Gingerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09794759602654727110noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-40539550691169266312010-04-16T07:11:50.604-06:002010-04-16T07:11:50.604-06:00In my most recent post, I referred to the action (...In my most recent post, I referred to the action (which pushes characters to maximum capacity) as the "external force". I've been tormenting myself over this, though. Is it always external? Does it have to be external? What are some examples of an internal force pushing the character's action?<br /><br />-- Dominique<br /><br />Latest Post: <a href="http://dooblabox.wordpress.com/2010/04/15/character-come-to-my-johari-window/" rel="nofollow">Character: Come to My Johari Window</a><br /><br />To find the paragraph on external force, press Ctrl+ F, type "external force", and click enter.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-42109355629410749202010-04-16T07:04:25.026-06:002010-04-16T07:04:25.026-06:00Thanks for the reminder Kathryn. I hate reading bo...Thanks for the reminder Kathryn. I hate reading books where the protagonist just floats through life. Who has such a life? Bring on the challenges!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-49286895058809324902010-04-16T05:47:37.184-06:002010-04-16T05:47:37.184-06:00Thank you! I was having a character issue and this...Thank you! I was having a character issue and this post gave me what I call my "Well, Dummy look at this" moment.<br /><br /><br /><br />Maribeth<br /><a href="http://gigglesandguns.blogspot.com" rel="nofollow">Giggles and Guns</a>Mary@GigglesandGunshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07350818228268801008noreply@blogger.com