A surly antihero...

Indy Tarquinson · Aug 17, 2008

I have a surly sort of antihero character in my novel and I'm just not sure that I'm developing him correctly.

Every time I write him he gets soft about halfway through and becomes talkative and cheerful. I know that he's a good guy underneath and I keep forgetting he's putting on a facade. Then I have to go back and correct this...I'd rather have him sullen and surly UNTIL he opens up to my main characters and then we get to see who he really is. So I've currently tried to fix this...

Except that I'm nearly halfway in my novel and he hasn't opened up yet and I'm itching and aching to show everyone that he really isn't such a bad person after all. Two extremes...T__T

I've made him so quiet as of late he comes off as passive and reacting to things everyone else is doing. But I feel that if he's that kind of guy he's going to keep quiet until circumstances forces him to do otherwise. Think Batman in DK--he doesn't talk much but he's not passive and he talks quite a bit to those closest to him.

Anyway does anyone have any suggestions or am I doing this convincingly? T___T

scribbler1382 · Aug 17, 2008

It seems like you're asking two questions. In the beginning of your post, you want to know how to keep him surly. Later, you seem to want to know how to draw out the fact that he's all squishy on the inside.

For your first question, make sure you know WHY he's surly. If you keep those events in mind, keeping him in character will be a lot easier.

For drawing his inner nice guy out, let your other characters and situations do it. If the writer is the one instigating things in a story, things can appear contrived and unreal. Maybe have one of your other characters tell her friends she's sure Mr. Surly is a nice guy. When they rebuff her, have her become determined to prove it. That kind of thing.

Just my 2 cents.

Cheers,

Indy Tarquinson · Aug 17, 2008

Yeah basically I'm bouncing back and forth between the two sides and not developing either correctly...

I think I simply haven't been getting in his head enough like you said to think about the reason why he's like the way he is...if I think about the reason why he would react to situation A instead of just writing him stereotypically it would be a lot better.

And, you've given me a wonderful idea on that last bit, I know just who can play that part as well. Thanks!

Karen Duvall · Aug 17, 2008

Actions always speak louder than words. And you want Mr. Surly to give clues he's a nice guy so you can keep readers guessing. I don't know what kind of a character he plays, but he obviously would never kick a puppy. He might roll up a newspaper, but only slap it against his palm and give the little scamp a biscuit when he thinks no one is looking.

My point is that it's not a good idea to suddenly spring on readers that he's a great guy when they've been led to believe he's a grumpy asshat all this time. Drop clues. Keep readers guessing. One of my favorite antiheroes of all time is Angel from the Buffy inspired TV series of the same name. Angel is a brooding devil with a heart of gold. You can watch the first season for free on hulu.com.

RainyDayNinja · Aug 17, 2008

You might also want to pick out a specific soft spot that he has. For instance, if you're ever seen the movie Hellboy, while he is for the most part gruff, he also really likes cats. Maybe your character could secretly listen to Phil Collins on his iPod, or something like that.

JeanneTGC · Aug 17, 2008

The concern that raises a fin when you discuss this is that you might be writing this character off the entire way.

I'd suggest a read-through. Pay attention to what the others have said -- do you give clues to the fact that your hero isn't a total jerk to the reader, and do you give them often? If you're waiting until the middle of the book to show he's a nice guy, that's going to come off as bad writing. But if the clues are sprinkled in along the way, it'll come off more as a confession/the removal of the facade.

Also, it sounds like the character is fighting to come out, so to speak. You might also try just letting go and letting the character flow out as he wants to. I find that the characters are usually right.

Mr Flibble · Aug 17, 2008

My point is that it's not a good idea to suddenly spring on readers that he's a great guy when they've been led to believe he's a grumpy asshat all this time. Drop clues. Keep readers guessing.

Indeed. I've got an antihero type, who's a big old softy really. I showed it by the fact he's a complete arse to everyone ( including his best mate) - except one person. For some (to him) bizarre reason she likes him, so he tries his best not to be too much of a git in front of her. As the story progresses he lets other little things slip, and just before the climax he shows that actually he's a git to cover up the softy part, because he's afraid of getting hurt. You just have to be subtle about it until The Moment arrives - and then your reader might, if your lucky, say I KNEW it, even though they only knew it in the back of their minds.

katiemac · Aug 17, 2008

It's also possible that your character is being cheerful if there is one character who he can trust, and so he doesn't have to be surly when around them. Or, at the very least, that character is unbelievably understanding when he is in a surly mood and they can play off each other some (i.e., an Alfred to your Bruce). Even if the relationship isn't explained, you've got an anchor for the readers to keep saying, "Okay, I like this guy, and he likes our main character, so I must be missing something." Is he cheerful around one character in particular in your novel? Maybe it's telling you something.

A surly antihero...

Indy Tarquinson

scribbler1382

Write For You, Edit For The Reader

Indy Tarquinson

Karen Duvall

Chalice the Hatchet Knight

RainyDayNinja

JeanneTGC

I am Catwoman...and Gini Koch

Mr Flibble

They've been very bad, Mr Flibble

katiemac

Five by Five

A surly antihero...

Write For You, Edit For The Reader

Chalice the Hatchet Knight

I *am* Catwoman...and Gini Koch

They've been very bad, Mr Flibble

Five by Five

I am Catwoman...and Gini Koch