If You Confuse Them, You Lose Them
A common mistake made by many writers is allowing characters to step OUT of character. Whether it’s a book, a film, a play, or any other creative work, if it involves characters, they need to be consistent.
A well-known author who wrote many good books in the past has recently begun irritating her readers by turning out novels in which the characters start out one way, but along the line morph into something completely different.
I won’t say the author’s name, but the pattern has been quite repetitive of late: the leading character starts out as a strong, independent, intelligent woman who knows her own mind, but after meeting a man– a man who is not even all that likable – she becomes…well…a ditz. She becomes a woman who has no self-confidence, who is emotionally lost and unable to make up her mind about the smallest things and does not seem to realize that if a man is abusive, she should probably leave the relationship. WHAT?
In real life, people don’t suddenly lose IQ points or undergo a complete metamorphosis of personality after a few dates with a new man. When you change characters that radically, you greatly annoy your readers, and your book is at risk for the dreaded DNF. (Did Not Finish…as in did not finish the book.)
Character development is one of the most important aspects of writing a good novel, so pay very close attention to exactly who your character is and what is in line with his or her personality. It’s not that you can’t make someone in your novel do something that’s uncharacteristic for him or her, but you need to explain why it happened in some kind of way.
However, if you confuse your readers with too much uncharacteristic behavior, and they don’t know who the person is anymore, they probably won’t care what happens to him or her, and that is the kiss of death when you want them to continue with the story.
Ask yourself this as you go along: “is that what (fill in your character’s name) would really say or do?” If it seems out of line with the personality you've given him or her, scrap that part and start over. Consistency is key where characters are concerned! Write on!
A well-known author who wrote many good books in the past has recently begun irritating her readers by turning out novels in which the characters start out one way, but along the line morph into something completely different.
I won’t say the author’s name, but the pattern has been quite repetitive of late: the leading character starts out as a strong, independent, intelligent woman who knows her own mind, but after meeting a man– a man who is not even all that likable – she becomes…well…a ditz. She becomes a woman who has no self-confidence, who is emotionally lost and unable to make up her mind about the smallest things and does not seem to realize that if a man is abusive, she should probably leave the relationship. WHAT?
In real life, people don’t suddenly lose IQ points or undergo a complete metamorphosis of personality after a few dates with a new man. When you change characters that radically, you greatly annoy your readers, and your book is at risk for the dreaded DNF. (Did Not Finish…as in did not finish the book.)
Character development is one of the most important aspects of writing a good novel, so pay very close attention to exactly who your character is and what is in line with his or her personality. It’s not that you can’t make someone in your novel do something that’s uncharacteristic for him or her, but you need to explain why it happened in some kind of way.
However, if you confuse your readers with too much uncharacteristic behavior, and they don’t know who the person is anymore, they probably won’t care what happens to him or her, and that is the kiss of death when you want them to continue with the story.
Ask yourself this as you go along: “is that what (fill in your character’s name) would really say or do?” If it seems out of line with the personality you've given him or her, scrap that part and start over. Consistency is key where characters are concerned! Write on!
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