I'm sure this has been talked about before but I was thinking about making myself a character in the book I'm about to start. I was just wondering if anyone has ever been told that it's a terrible idea or if anyone has had good feedback about it. Thanks.
Making yourself a character
- Thread starter cwilliard
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I personally think it's a bad idea. But then, I think mixing fiction and real life is generally a bad idea.
The problem with making yourself a character is that, even if it is unconciously, you protect yourself. You don't want to make yourelf do embarrassing or stupid things. But if is the failing of characters that tend to endear readers. Also, if your are a character in your book then rejection (or even constructive criticism) becomes very very personal. Rejection of any kind is hard to take anyway; why make it harder?
Just my $.02
Maprilynne
The problem with making yourself a character is that, even if it is unconciously, you protect yourself. You don't want to make yourelf do embarrassing or stupid things. But if is the failing of characters that tend to endear readers. Also, if your are a character in your book then rejection (or even constructive criticism) becomes very very personal. Rejection of any kind is hard to take anyway; why make it harder?
Just my $.02
Maprilynne
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yourself
Like everything else, it comes down to how well you do it. It can be a disaster, or it can work wonderfully.
cwilliard said:
Like everything else, it comes down to how well you do it. It can be a disaster, or it can work wonderfully.
cwilliard said:
Agatha Christie did it with her character Ariadne Oliver, and it worked beautifully - but that was because she was utterly brutal with herself. Nothing was spared, from the chubby knees and disastrous hair-styling experiments to the borderline senile dementia and 'formula' writing. If you're going to make yourself a character, you have to play by the rules, and not go easy on on 'John' just because he happens to be you.
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Don't forget Philip K. Dick, in one of my favorite novels -- VALIS.
He had several of himself in that one, if I recall.
-Gabe
He had several of himself in that one, if I recall.
-Gabe
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