Do you love your characters?

Judg · Sep 9, 2008

As I grind my way through my revisions, and especially today, when one of my characters enters the book for the first time, I realized that I like these people. OK, not ALL of them. But I honestly like most of the major characters, even when I disagree with them. It's kind of fun to be spending this time with them. It's like being in a meeting all day with people you actually like.

Sure helps the revision process along. But I suspect that this could help readers like the story too.

Do you like your characters? Do you think that's an important factor in a successful novel?

JoNightshade · Sep 9, 2008

The only reason I write about my characters in the first place is because I love them. Half the time I'm IN love with them.

It's also the reason I don't give up after 8 total rewrites. As I told the agent who suggested I move on to the "next" novel - no, I am not ready to give up on these characters. NO.

heyjude · Sep 9, 2008

No, I don't like my MC, and that disturbs me. It didn't occur to me until you asked the question. Thanks a lot! :tongue

But if I could just wean her off the drugs, I think she could be a good character. So I'm invested in her. I believe she can do it!

Fenika · Sep 9, 2008

I love my characters, and I still killed one of 'em at the end. The funny thing is it forced me to get to know her better before she got snuffed.

C.bronco · Sep 9, 2008

I do love many of them, but some I don't. Some characters have to be unlikeable, or there's no cheering for the hero.

e.g. I don't like Snake B. Bauer, yet his obsession with his manly chest hair amuses me.

In my other work, I imagine W. Carl Jorgen as Donald Sutherland (in present times). Though easy on the eyes and ears, Donald does have the ability to play a scoundrel, and that's what Jorgen is, a self-important and powerful villian who has his priorities out of order.

brokenfingers · Sep 9, 2008

I love my characters.

Except when I hate them.

ccarver30 · Sep 9, 2008

Unquestionably.

Judg · Sep 9, 2008

I didn't consciously set out to create characters I like. It just kind of happened. And now that I think about it, it's probably a good thing. I have stopped watching movies or put aside books because I got sick of spending time with those people. It stands to reason that if I like my characters, there's a better chance other people will and a better chance they'll want to stick with the book.

Of course, something I truly admire is an author who can get me to love a character who starts out rather unsympathetic.

windyrdg · Sep 9, 2008

Yeah, I love most of my characters. I think it's a parental thing. Even while they're marching Johnny down that green mile to the electric chair his mother is saying, "Johnny always a good boy at heart. He's just been misunderstood."

You see, I understand that the philandering shyster who took advantage of my MC is like that because his aunt abused him as a boy while his mother was in a mental hospital.

It's hard not to love your own creation, real or imagined.

bsolah · Sep 9, 2008

I kind of don't like my main character at the moment. He's a bit of a self-obsessed individualist. He hurts some people around him and loses them. So he develops as the story goes, but I think my readers won't like him at the start.

Is this ok? I'm asking because I've been told you're meant to like and identify with the MC.

jmarz01 · Sep 9, 2008

Yes. I dallied around for two days, resisting writing the end of my novel, because I wasn't ready to say good-bye to my characters yet.

Judg · Sep 9, 2008

Bsolah, I'm not an expert, but my thinking is that if you're not giving the reader a character to love, you'll have to draw them in with something else. Some villains are fun to hate, for instance. Or he could have some attractive aspects anyway. Or the story itself could be really captivating. Or your prose could be too wonderful to put down...

But you do have to give them something to make them want to read.

My main character doesn't even get born till Chapter Three. So far, no one's taken me to task for it.

Oddsocks · Sep 9, 2008

Of course I like my characters!

They aren't the only reason I write - I often write because of plots.

But I only have plots because I watch characters in my head.

And I only watch characters in my head because I like them.

That's not strictly true. I also have plots because sometimes plot ideas come to me - but they come with characters that I like.

There are probably some that I don't like, but I think any character that's a fairly major character has to be in some way likable for me to write them. This is probalby one of the resons I write sympathetic bad guys - I'm just not motivated to write someone I think is purely evil. It's actually kind of frustrating, because when reading, I love it when I discover that I really hate a character. I'd like to be able to write someone I'm genuinely scared of.

bsolah · Sep 9, 2008

Yeah, I actually liked this character when this idea first came about, but coming back to it four years later because the concept is fascinating and the main character just isn't likable at all, but I want to make him change.

He's similar to the old guy from Jurassic Park in that his obsession with discovering something new and becoming famous takes priority over everything else...

ChaosTitan · Sep 9, 2008

Definitely. Hell, I still love the characters from the first novel I wrote...er, nine years ago (or thereabouts). My very favorite character I've ever written will probably never see the light of publication, but that doesn't mean I can't indulge in reading those old stories over and over again.

I write about my MC's, because I care. Something about them interests me, or I wouldn't give a damn about their struggles to achieve their goals. One of the best things about starting a new book (whether writing it or reading) is getting to know the characters. I'm very quickly falling in love with a new secondary character in my WIP.

Mad Queen · Sep 9, 2008

I don't like my MC as an actual person. He's not totally evil, but he's the villain and he's got an ice cube in place of a heart. And I love him as a character. I love him more than I love any of the good guys. If I hadn't thought about him, I wouldn't even be writing a novel.

Diana W. · Sep 9, 2008

I do like my main characters but I don't know if they're fleshed out properly. They seem a bit flat at the moment. Of course I'm still on my first write and I'm sure it'll improve in time. I hope so anyway. The story started from plot not from character. I have a lot of ideas for them I just have to find their voice yet. I know it'll come.

bsolah · Sep 9, 2008

Mad Queen said:
I don't like my MC as an actual person....And I love him as a character.

Is that the difference? So if I like my character because he's interesting, even if I met him in real life at a pub, I'd want to punch him in the face, that's all cool?

Mad Queen · Sep 9, 2008

A lot of novels have unlikable, but interesting, protagonists; novels that have actually been published and become best sellers. I'm sure your character must be special if you think he is fascinating even though you don't like him. Let's create a club: 'I'm attracted to creepy, unlikable characters.'

ccarver30 · Sep 9, 2008

JoNightshade said:
The only reason I write about my characters in the first place is because I love them. Half the time I'm IN love with them.

co-sign

ishtar'sgate · Sep 9, 2008

Judg said:
But I honestly like most of the major characters, even when I disagree with them. It's kind of fun to be spending this time with them. It's like being in a meeting all day with people you actually like.

Do you like your characters? Do you think that's an important factor in a successful novel?

I like most of them and others I love to hate. I'm not sure how important it is to the success of a novel for the writer to like their characters but I don't think it would be much fun to write my story if I didn't like the major characters and most of the minors. Sometimes you have to kill them off and that's sad but - I'm ruthless.
Linnea

AyJay · Sep 9, 2008

I like all of my characters and the ones I love, I try to hold back on for fear that my bias will lead or possibly bore my readers. I tend to route for the underdog, so even my villains touch my heart due to the tragic past that explains their actions. Interestingly, one of the biggest villains in one of my stories tends to get the most positive response from my readers. I can't create a one-dimensional villain. I guess I just have too much faith in humanity. There's nothing more interesting to me than a misunderstood villain.

JoNightshade · Sep 9, 2008

I'd like to qualify my initial response by saying that even though I love my characters, I do not think they are all "loveable" or even "likeable" people. But like someone else pointed out, I as the author understand why they are that way. I have one character who, as everyone else continuously points out, is a complete asshole. He really is. What I see that they don't - and what I have to convey, in a peripheral way, to the reader - is that he would be SO MUCH MORE of an asshole if he wasn't trying SO HARD to be a better person.

Writing really is like being in God's place. I always try to think of that when I interact with real life people - yes, this individual is being a complete jerk, but maybe from God's perspective, it's progress!

KC Sunshine · Sep 9, 2008

I love them all- even the seriously messed up ones. I'm so excited I get to introduce them to the world, and that readers will have a chance to connect with them.

Phoebe H · Sep 9, 2008

I love all of my *viewpoint* characters.

All those other characters who mess with them and get in their way...not so much.

Do you love your characters?

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