Developing characters with great voice can be difficult. As writers, we know that our characters make the difference between a middling story and a fantastic one. But how do you do it? How do you write characters that readers don’t simply like or dislike, but that they fall in love with, want to be friends with, or loathe with every fiber of their being?
The reality is, there’s no writerly pill you can take (even if American Horror Story tries to tell you there is). There’s no elixir that will make everything you write turn to gold plated manuscripts. If there is, someone tell me about it. But until then, we have to fight for our writing.
So one of the best places to start when talking about writing is character. And one trick to help might be in treating your characters like actors. Because, like I said, not everything you write will turn to gold. So you might as well churn out a few options. Writing like this might be tedious at times, but you’re not going to need it all the time. Let me explain…
In a recent interview, I spoke to Bennett Pellington, an award winning filmmaker. He expressed how he likes to work with actors. And as he was explaining his process, something clicked in my head. What if writers treated characters like actors? Especially in those scenes where we just don’t feel as confident.
How many times have you written a scene between to characters only go to back an read it later. And, much to your surprise, it sucks. There’s no shame. We’ve all been there. I can attest to writing, rewriting, and rewriting scenes only to completely overhaul them because I was never actually happy with the result.
The reality is, we’re all figuring this writing thing out. Whether this is your first manuscript or you’ve been writing for years.
There’s a stigma around writing where we believe best-selling authors and literary giants just churn out great words day after day almost without trying. Like they reluctantly stroll up to the keyboard and sigh deeply, almost agitated by their genius. But in the end, dutifully write their magnum opus.
But that’s just not the case. Listen to any writer interview and you’ll hear about how they struggled and continue to struggle with the craft.
Imagine having multiple ‘takes’ for each scene you write. One in which you get what you want out of the scene, but then you let the characters do the acting.
“So there’s areas in writing I feel really confident…I guess not areas mainly it’s just like certain scenes I feel really confident. And like that scene right, but 9 times out of 10 when you kind of just let the actor do their thing, if you’ve cast it well, then it’s going to be better than what you wrote anyway. So, I think it’s more of like a development thing you kind of find what works for you. For me, I found that I like to make sure that we have what we have on the page, and then let the actors have a couple takes where they can play with it.” –Bennett Pellington
If we don’t figure this out, we might never be able to point to our book on a shelf. So if you find yourself writing scene after scene after scene and it’s just not coming together, think about letting your actors take over. If you have a goal for the scene, you might just be surprised at what comes out. Sure, your characters aren’t unique, sentient individuals like an actor is. But if you have a good sense of who your characters are, let them move around the scene if you’re not confident in what you have so far.
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Articulate most important problem
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What would life look like without the problem?
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How will you benefit when the problem is gone?
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Cast your story well
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Have a goal
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Get what’s in the script
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Let your characters explore the space
1. Cast your story well
This almost goes without saying, but the reality is that I see far too many writers attempting to write a book without taking careful stock of their characters. Your characters are the key to the story. Sure, plot your little heart out. But people don’t stick around if you don’t have strong characters.
So do your research. Build a cast of characters that feel real, fit your narrative, and readers will root for.
That being said, I’m not a huge proponent of overdoing it with characterization. And I’ve been there. I can tell you what some of my characters like to have for breakfast. But in the end, it’s much more about knowing what they want and need. You can find some good characterization techniques out there so I’m not going to dive into them here. But my suggestion is to be wary of any that don’t serve your story.
2. Have a goal in mind
When you’re writing a scene, your character should have a goal. What does the character want? Why do they want it? What are they willing to do to get it? My first novel was about a guy walking around aimlessly, actively avoiding conflict. It’s been put away in the dark recesses of my computer and, if history is kind to me, it’ll stay there like a monstrous child born only to be hidden away in my basement like a plot from American Horror Story.
In Kurt Vonnegut’s famous rules for short stories, he said something that always stuck with me: “Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water.”
So I try to have a clear goal for every scene and every character. Doing this helps me move the story forward and in the right direction. And it helps ensure you don’t end up liek I did, writing a 100,000 word novel only to find it doesn’t do anything. No one wants to read about a guy doing nothing. Even I got bored.
3. Get what’s in the script
For your first go around, just get what you need. Whatever you need from the characters to get from point A to point B. Get that first. It’s important that, above all, scenes are necessary and utilitarian. If you can cut a scene and get to the same place in your narrative, then the scene isn’t useful and you should probably cut it.
That being said, we’ve all been in that place where your scene just doesn’t come along like it’s supposed to. It just doesn’t quite work the way you want it to.
4. Let your characters explore the space
If you’re not happy with what you’ve gotten so far from your characters, then treat them like actors. Again, if you have a fully fleshed out character in your story, then let that character loose on your scene. This isn’t to say that they should do something out of the ordinary (unless your character calls for that) but instead, consider letting your characters roam around a bit.
By allowing your characters free range to say whatever they want, instead of sticking to your script, you might find something there, even a kernel of something, that can be flipped and used. But this will only happen if you do your best to step behind the camera.
As writers, we work like puppet masters. Our job is to provide movement and life to something that is, otherwise, lifeless. But what if you could put your characters in a scene and let them make the choices (as best you can). At the very least, this exercise should yield you some fun ‘takes’ on your scene!
