Ask the Author: David J. Thirteen
Answered Questions (8)
David J. Thirteen
Top on my list for this summer is Stephen King's 'Salem's Lot. This is a book that I've long meant to read and I decided this is the year. I remember seeing the miniseries on television over a few hot July nights as a kid, so it feels right to dig into the novel in the same atmosphere. Next up is Matt Ruff's Lovecraft country. I've been dying to read it since I first started seeing the reviews. Finally Dan Simmons' Summer of Night. I came across this book in a list of books with a similar vibe to Stranger Things. Looks like the perfect thing to read during the dog days.
David J. Thirteen
That's a wonderful question and one I've been thinking a lot about recently. I think there really are two sides to this: main characters and minor characters.
With main characters there is lots of time to explore them and define them. There's a big tool box available. They interact with other characters, drive action, and react to events. As a writer, you can delve into the minutia of their psyche, flashback to their childhood, and display their inner thoughts. I find, the big trick with them is to not rely to heavily on narration--let events reveal their true character. This can be the big moments of the novel--how they deal with the major hardships of the plot or it can be almost subliminal. As an example: in Mr. 8, Denton very carefully avoid physical touch with everyone except his wife. It's not something I ever focus in on. It is just there in half a dozen little interactions throughout the book. My hope was that through repetition readers would feel it and feel closer to the character.
This also brings up another point I think is important with main characters: complexity. Foibles are a wonderfully humanizing thing. The saying is that nobody is perfect and readers sense when a character is too perfect. People identify with people with problems--people with quirks. They're a great way to add complexity.
With minor characters things are different. You don't have the same opportunities. You don't have very much time to define them. You have to make the first impression pop. This is something I'm just starting to understand. You almost have to introduce them and make the reader think they know them in a single breath, which is no easy task and one I can't say I fully understand how to do. One good method is to introduce a defining incident as early as possible. The character should do something which the narration can use to show how this is the heart of the character. I recently read a wonderful example of this in an Ian Rankin novel where he had a character react to something with a childish pout. In the following three sentences he related it to her entire life and revealed her to be sheltered and spoiled by her parents. It was about as masterful of a minor character definition as I've ever seen.
I hope this helps.
With main characters there is lots of time to explore them and define them. There's a big tool box available. They interact with other characters, drive action, and react to events. As a writer, you can delve into the minutia of their psyche, flashback to their childhood, and display their inner thoughts. I find, the big trick with them is to not rely to heavily on narration--let events reveal their true character. This can be the big moments of the novel--how they deal with the major hardships of the plot or it can be almost subliminal. As an example: in Mr. 8, Denton very carefully avoid physical touch with everyone except his wife. It's not something I ever focus in on. It is just there in half a dozen little interactions throughout the book. My hope was that through repetition readers would feel it and feel closer to the character.
This also brings up another point I think is important with main characters: complexity. Foibles are a wonderfully humanizing thing. The saying is that nobody is perfect and readers sense when a character is too perfect. People identify with people with problems--people with quirks. They're a great way to add complexity.
With minor characters things are different. You don't have the same opportunities. You don't have very much time to define them. You have to make the first impression pop. This is something I'm just starting to understand. You almost have to introduce them and make the reader think they know them in a single breath, which is no easy task and one I can't say I fully understand how to do. One good method is to introduce a defining incident as early as possible. The character should do something which the narration can use to show how this is the heart of the character. I recently read a wonderful example of this in an Ian Rankin novel where he had a character react to something with a childish pout. In the following three sentences he related it to her entire life and revealed her to be sheltered and spoiled by her parents. It was about as masterful of a minor character definition as I've ever seen.
I hope this helps.
David J. Thirteen
The only things I've found that help writer's block is perseverance. It's sitting down and trudging through. The worst thing I can do is walk away for a while to get inspired. I walk away and I'm likely to never come back to it.
David J. Thirteen
The best part about being a writer is getting to enjoy the stories you make up twice. Once when you put it on the page, and then again when a reader says they've enjoyed it.
David J. Thirteen
I'm currently working on a serialized novel on Wattpad called The Things We Bury. It's a mash up of sci-fi, horror, mystery, you name it. At its core it is a story about a bunch of misfits working at a secret government facility that is studying a mythical creature.
David J. Thirteen
Writing is a process. And every writer has their own. So learn yours. Try things out, take notes on what works and what doesn't.
Starting out I read tons of blogs with all sorts of advice, and what I learned was the thing the writer was suggesting was fantastic advice for her or him. Writing isn't cabinet building. You can't follow instructions in a manual, you need to create your own guide.
Starting out I read tons of blogs with all sorts of advice, and what I learned was the thing the writer was suggesting was fantastic advice for her or him. Writing isn't cabinet building. You can't follow instructions in a manual, you need to create your own guide.
David J. Thirteen
Usually it's a line in my head or a vivid action that brings me inspiration. If I can sit down to write with something I am eager to set down on the page, even if it is only one line in the book, I can often type away for hours.
David J. Thirteen
Mr. 8 came from a dream--or more specifically a nightmare. The dream was incredibly vivid with many of the stranger aspects of the story fully formed. I woke up with my heart pounding still lost in the reality of the dreamworld. To calm myself as I lay in bed, I started to fill in the gaps and see how I could turn it into a story. By the time I got up I knew i would have to write it.
About Goodreads Q&A
Ask and answer questions about books!
You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.
See Featured Authors Answering Questions
Learn more