By Mary Connealy.
Today I’m going to talk about developing three-dimensional characters.
I’m going to point out three distinct things I need to do to make my characters come to life.
I give them a backstory (which should NEVER BE EXPLAINED IN ONE SCENE).
I give them a goal (which is the heart of the story I plan to tell).
I give them a quirk.
About a year ago I listened to Angela Hunt say she wanting to get married very young, her parents told her no. I remember Angela saying, “They were my spiritual leaders so I did as they asked.” And I thought, “But what if (when you're a writer it’s always ‘what if’ isn’t it?) What if your spiritual leaders weren’t trustworthy? At what point would you have to defy those leaders?
This was my starting point. I made Annette a ‘good girl’. She’s been working with a traveling mission group, singing. New leaders take over the mission group. These leaders act like Christians at first, but they press Annette to act more and more against her faith. Nothing big at first. Wear brighter colors. Sing patriotic songs, not strictly Christian songs. Inch by inch they ask her to step farther from her belief system. And then comes the day when they ask too much. They finally ask something of her she cannot do. And they’ve set the stage so there is no safety for her. To defy them will put her in terrible danger.
That’s where the book begins. I don’t give you any of that backstory in my book at the outset. Instead, my book begins with a defiant, terrified Annette being knocked down by the villain.
Why she’s being beaten isn’t important in that first scene. Annette’s fighting for her life. WHY just doesn’t matter. And enough of the WHY is revealed by a description of the shameful dress Claude Leveque wants her to wear to that night’s performance and Annette shouting, “No, I’ll die first.”
Actually, I just re-read this scene. It came out pretty good if I do say so myself. I got a little weepy.
So Annette gets away but, trouble is pursuing her. Her goal, to get to her father for safety. Her worthless rejecting father who sent her away from home to school back east after Annette’s mother died (I'm weaving in the backstory. By the end of chapter three the reader knows the bare bones of this). And along the way Annette meets Elijah Walker. The cranky man who doesn’t trust women.
I could write what all brought Elijah’s crankiness on but I’ll let you find out yourself.
Annette has her backstory.
Now she needs a goal.
Her goal is to live fearlessly for God and bear the crosses God gives her. She’s not real good at it. She keeps fumbling the crosses, usually dropping them on poor Elijah’s head. But she keeps trying and Elijah keeps rescuing her and Claude keeps coming.
There’s our story.
Except to me, the thing that brings a character to life fully is quirks. Annette's quirk is that she sings when she’s emotional. When she’s happy, sad, scared, excited; her reaction is to sing. A second quirk is that she's practicing being brave with poor Elijah. Snipping at him makes her feel courageous.
That's it, that's my character for Annette Talbot in Cowboy Christmas:
Annette’s got backstory, goal and quirks.
Her backstory that makes her who she is. The good girl who always thought if she’d just been better her father would have kept her with him. So she keeps trying desperately to be good.
Her goal, to learn to live courageously for God, even at the cost of her own life, which amounts to defiance, something she sees as the opposite of being good.
Her quirks, that singing, that sass.
Now I want you to think of a character in your book and tell me those three things.
Backstory, goal, quirks. And do it in once sentence-each. I don't want a chapter long backstory dump showing up in the comment section. BOIL IT DOWN.
~~~This post first appeared in Seekerville September 1, 2009. Comments are closed today so we can catch up on our writing and reading. We hope you enjoy the post.
The 12 Brides of Summer Collection: 12 Historical Brides Find Love in the Good Old Summertime
Meet 12 adventurous Victorian era women—a beekeeper who is afraid of bees, a music teacher whose dog has dug up a treasure, a baker who enters a faux courtship, and six more—along with the men they encounter while making summertime memories. Will these loves sown during summer be strengthened by faith and able to endure a lifetime
A city slicker on the run from a powerful family that wants his son.
A beautiful ranch woman who wants the boy and may have to take the father to get him.
A little boy who needs a home
No Way Up
Excerpt!
When Cimarron ranch patriarch Chance Boden is caught in an avalanche, the quick actions of hired hand Heath Kincaid save him. Badly injured, Chance Excerpt!
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| Coming July 3rd |
Without anyone else to serve as a witness, Heath is pressed into reading the will. If Justin, Sadie, and Cole Boden don't live and work at home for the entire year, the ranch will go to their low-down cousin Mike.
Then Heath discovers the avalanche was a murder attempt, and more danger might follow. Deeply involved with the family, Heath's desire to protect Sadie goes far beyond friendship. The danger keeps them close together, and their feelings grow until being apart is the last thing on their minds.
Long Time Gone
The Boden clan thought their troubles were over with the death of a
dangerous enemy. But with new  |
| Click to Pre-Order |
The trouble is Justin sort of saved Angelique's life (well probably not really, she'd have lived, but still... he caught her when she fainted and carried her around for a while) So now he can't quite forget how perfect she felt in his arms. And the bad part of that is, finally a woman had come to the Cimarron Ranch who is perfect for....his big brother Cole.
http://www.maryconnealy.com
I've updated my website to include excerpts for some books!
I've updated my website to include excerpts for some books!
