Personal Investment in Characters

[MelissaBaby]

When I participate in these threads, it is to give my thoughts about writing and my perspective based on my own process. I do not tell other writers that the way they do things is wrong, or that they should do things the way I do them. If they find my comments helpful, I am pleased, if they don't, that's fine as well.

The stories I have written here have been well received by readers and praised frequently by my peers. They are not naive, shallow or lacking in complexity. Clearly, my approach works well for me. But I respect other writers enough to not sneer at and belittle them for expressing views contrary to my own.

 

[Andrew1968]

I have a personal connection with the characters when I'm writing the story. They do exist as real people. Once the story is done it's done though. I think I, like many writers, spend a lot of time editing/re-reading/re-writing my stuff, so I'm really just sick and tired of my characters by the time I submit the thing for Laurel to approve and put up on the site. I burn out all the energy I have for a story by the time it's done. There's nothing left in the tank by the end. I'm just running on fumes as I crawl over the line. I no longer have any interest in the characters at all when a story is finished. They are out there gallivanting around and good for them. I can't imagine writing a series of stories, where the same characters continue on, from story to story. Going back and re-reading my stuff later on is interesting - the people I have written about do hold my attention and I am impressed by them, at least for a while.

 

[Rustyoznail]

Some characters I care a lot about. Others I couldn't care less what happens to them after the story is published.

Funny thing is, I can't predict which character will go in which category.

 

[Duleigh]

I respect other writers enough to not sneer at and belittle them for expressing views contrary to my own

And I thank you for that! A writer's nerves can get pretty frayed for a myriad of reasons, and then to come here and be trolled by fellow writers is beyond the pale. While it would be nice for all writers to be cheer leaders for each other, we still compete against each other, so the cheerleader thing probably isn't going to happen, but showing good old-fashioned respect is refreshing.

 

[GrantBricksly]

I have a personal connection with the characters when I'm writing the story. They do exist as real people. Once the story is done it's done though. I think I, like many writers, spend a lot of time editing/re-reading/re-writing my stuff, so I'm really just sick and tired of my characters by the time I submit the thing for Laurel to approve and put up on the site. I burn out all the energy I have for a story by the time it's done. There's nothing left in the tank by the end. I'm just running on fumes as I crawl over the line. I no longer have any interest in the characters at all when a story is finished. They are out there gallivanting around and good for them. I can't imagine writing a series of stories, where the same characters continue on, from story to story. Going back and re-reading my stuff later on is interesting - the people I have written about do hold my attention and I am impressed by them, at least for a while.

I know I do not have a lot of stories under my belt...but I have never experienced this...that is an interesting take on it. Ignoring my first series of stories (which is being deleted until I can re-write, as it was poorly written almost 10 years ago) all of my stories are simply single scenes or events in my character's lives.

Now, I may not always continue writing more about those characters. Some of them will stay One and Done. But for some, such as Grant and Isabelle, they are such interesting characters, I can't help but want to write more about their lives. They lead such interesting lives, and exciting. Each story is just a glimpse into who they are and what they have done in their storied past.

Even after several edits, and read throughs..I've never felt "sick and tired" or burnt out on them. It is very interesting to hear that some authors do. I never would have thought of that. Thank you for your input on this topic.

 

[KeithD]

but showing good old-fashioned respect is refreshing.

This is certainly something Melissa should hear herself.

And whenever someone posts on the discussion board guidance to be limited in writing fiction, you can count on me exploding that notion. I have as much a right to express an opinion on the art of writing (and probably more experience in doing so) than others here do.

But, yes, respect is a good thing to give another writer here--better than ganging up with others to attack and razz another writer. Something Melissa does need to hear.

 

[MelissaBaby]

This is certainly something Melissa should hear herself.

And whenever someone posts on the discussion board guidance to be limited in writing fiction, you can count on me exploding that notion. I have as much a right to express an opinion on the art of writing (and probably more experience in doing so) than others here do.

But, yes, respect is a good thing to give another writer here--better than ganging up with others to attack and razz another writer. Something Melissa does need to hear.

When have I joined in any sort of "gang up" against you or anyone else? For the most part I just ignore your pontificating.

You don't want respect, you want deference.

 

[Cagivagurl]

My own writing process starts with an idea... Nothing more than that, maybe it was an overheard conversation, an article in a newspaper....
Then, as I develop it into a story, the characters emerge, develop lives of their own.
At the start of writing, they were ghosts, nothing more...
As the story unfolds, the characters react... speak.... take on different attitudes.
They then lead me, all I am doing is collating their actions... I am nothing more than their voice.
For me (And it is nothing more than my opinion) It is impossible to write a story that involves love found, love lost sexual desire, list, betrayal. Without becoming invested in these people you have created. Lets not forget they came from within our brains, we gave birth to them. If they did the wrong thing, it's because we told them too.
Yes, we are those characters, we live and breathe them as our stories unfold....
Loke actors playing a part, at some point we have to take on that role....
My thoughts, on how my process works.
I'm not clever enough to develop it from the start... One of the characters has to tell me which door to open.

 

[oneagainst]

I'm not clever enough to develop it from the start... One of the characters has to tell me which door to open.

Exactly that. I've had a block on a story because I couldn't flesh a character out. Solved it by starting writing and then by the end of the scene, he'd not only come to life, but he turned out to have very definite plans for the MC. It's awesome when that happens

 

[Djmac1031]

Exactly that. I've had a block on a story because I couldn't flesh a character out. Solved it by starting writing and then by the end of the scene, he'd not only come to life, but he turned out to have very definite plans for the MC. It's awesome when that happens

I recently struggled with the latest chapter in my long running series because I was suddenly at a loss as to how far my female lead Jenna would go in the scenario I'd just created for her and her boyfriend interacting with a new couple.

I found the answer in previous chapters; she enjoys teasing, and flashing. But she's told me before, she's not interested in sex swapping or orgies, and while she's fantasized about having sex in front of others, she's not there yet.

Once I listened to her, my path forward was easy: she wound up instigating some topless swimming, but saved the sex with her boyfriend for later, after they went home.

Could I have MADE her have sex in the pool around the other couple, or even WITH the other couple?

Sure. But then she'd no longer be Jenna. She'd simply be a different character with the same name.

And that's not fair to her, nor the readers who've come to love her.

 

[PastMaster]

I have had stories, where i have tried to write a scene in a certain way, and the characters wouldnt let me, and the outcome I had desired from the particular chapter i was writing was not only not achieved, i actlually ended up with the opposite of what i had wanted.
I get way too involved in my characters, and sometimes have to write what i call rabbit hole stories - to allow a character to 'get something out of their system' before i go back to writing my actual story. These rabbit holes are never published, and sit on my PC gathering electronic dust, but they are as much a part of my process as the stuff i publish.

 

[Voboy]

I… sometimes have to write what i call rabbit hole stories - to allow a character to 'get something out of their system' before i go back to writing my actual story. These rabbit holes are never published, and sit on my PC gathering electronic dust, but they are as much a part of my process as the stuff i publish.

I do this too.

From a “shared universe” perspective, I think the existence of unpublished precursor material, backstories, and the like all add depth and verisimilitude to published stories.

Once I write it, it’s canon whether it gets published or not. I’ll occasionally provide oblique references to (or inside jokes about) prior events in different stories, both published and un-, which some readers do pick up on.

Tolkien did this. He once claimed that every single reference in LOTR had its fleshed-out precursor material, except his reference to the cats of Queen Beruthiel. But his son later found a scrap of writing about even that, proving that even the best writers sometimes forget what they set down.

I’ve always felt that depth gives LOTR a particular resonance.

 

[EmilyMiller]

Ever spent so much time developing characters, and their environment that you become so comfortable with them they are like real living people? Like old friends?

I’m highly invested in my main protagonist .

Having said that, I am about 25% of the way into my first story in which I don’t appear. It feels weird TBH, but hopefully helps me to grow a bit as a writer.

Em

 

[Duleigh]

Oh yeah, my characters crack me up sometimes
"Why did you take your blouse off?"
"I might get something on it."
"What would get on your blouse?"
"Your hands."

 

[Lifestyle66]

I get way too involved in my characters, and sometimes have to write what i call rabbit hole stories - to allow a character to 'get something out of their system' before i go back to writing my actual story. These rabbit holes are never published, and sit on my PC gathering electronic dust, but they are as much a part of my process as the stuff i publish.

I have the same side story (or rabbit hole story) ideas which don't necessarily fit into the series I'm writing. But I've taken some of those rabbit hole ideas to create stand-alone stories with the same characters for some of the author challenges.

My story last year "On the Job - Trusted Employees" was one such story of the swinger couple having fun at the wife's company Christmas Party. And "Amorous Goods - The Anklet Pair" was a short side story (I toyed with that idea for two years) of the swinger husband giving his wife a hall pass to play alone, which I fleshed out making it three times as long for the published story.

 

[PastMaster]

I have the same side story (or rabbit hole story) ideas which don't necessarily fit into the series I'm writing. But I've taken some of those rabbit hole ideas to create stand-alone stories with the same characters for some of the author challenges.

My story last year "On the Job - Trusted Employees" was one such story of the swinger couple having fun at the wife's company Christmas Party. And "Amorous Goods - The Anklet Pair" was a short side story (I toyed with that idea for two years) of the swinger husband giving his wife a hall pass to play alone, which I fleshed out making it three times as long for the published story.

I think its my involvement with the characters that make cheating/swapping/sharing stories so problematic for me. IRL if i found out my wife had cheated on me, it would be devastating, and the thought of 'sharing' makes my stomach churn. That is why the only stories in that ilk i can read or write are in the genre of btb.

I dont say that those stories are bad in any way - but they are just something I cannot, personally, read.

 

[Lifestyle66]

I think its my involvement with the characters that make cheating/swapping/sharing stories so problematic for me. IRL if i found out my wife had cheated on me, it would be devastating, and the thought of 'sharing' makes my stomach churn. That is why the only stories in that ilk i can read or write are in the genre of btb.

I dont say that those stories are bad in any way - but they are just something I cannot, personally, read.

I think your attitude is normal for most men. I don't care much for the stories of wives (or husbands) cheating on their spouse. While I read BTB stories, I never really LOVE them and at best rate them a 4.

But IRL I know several women trapped in marriages with husbands who have become impotent due to declining health. That is not something most people think about when marrying young, that "in sickness and in health" might mean someday they'll find they're forbidden to have any sex for the rest of their life. One woman I know was in her early 30's when her husband's blood pressure issues made him impotent. Such experiences prompted me to explore the idea that couples can sometimes separate sex and love in their lives.

IRL, if I found my wife cheated on me, it would depend on her attitude and motivations. Was it a one-off, spur of the moment desire? Did she need reinforcement of her own self-image that she's still attractive? Or has her attitude toward ME change since marriage, and she's no longer the same woman I married?

So, I've tried to write characters who recognize such changing issues as their family status (empty nesters with changing friends, or health concerns), the wife's flirting nature as she seeks feedback that she's still appealing, and both of them evolving into a more "let's both have fun" relationship. My next chapter (I clicked "publish" yesterday, so within days) has the husband experiencing knee pains which affects his performance. And they discuss the fact the wife is having more fun and is more active at swinger parties.

 

[YANKEE DAN]

I'm having an issue atm where I need something bad to happen to a character I've written a lot about and I can't stand it lol, it has slowed progress.

 

[Duleigh]

I'm having an issue atm where I need something bad to happen to a character I've written a lot about and I can't stand it lol, it has slowed progress.

I've been there! I wrote a Winter Holiday story where a character had to die to advance the narrative. It didn't bother me until I decided to write the back story and release that as a lead up to the contest story. As I got closer and closer to her death I made myself physically ill, I couldn't sleep, I couldn't eat... I was happy to catch COVID so I had something different to worry about. Finally a reader sent me a comment about how my back story was treating that character and I said "That's it! I can't kill her!" I sat down and re-wrote the contest story in a way that allowed the character to live. The change took the "umph" out of the Winter Holiday story, maybe even cost me the win, but I felt so much better about it. And as for my character... she just got back from a cruise to a private island in the Bahamas with her husband.

 

[ronde]

My characters take over when I'm writing. Some, probably more than others. I get quite invested in the individuals in my longer stories, and I hope that the readers do, too.

I don't understand how a writer can write a believable story without becoming very comfortable with the characters. Without understanding how the character thinks, how would it be possible to write their reaction to a particular situation? I find the same thing. Once I know my characters and the basic plot, the story writes itself.

 

[32aa]

I don't understand how a writer can write a believable story without becoming very comfortable with the characters. Without understanding how the character thinks, how would it be possible to write their reaction to a particular situation? I find the same thing. Once I know my characters and the basic plot, the story writes itself.

Agree totally!!

I have 'fallen in love', through the MC in my story "You're not a serial rapist", with the two female characters who were part of the entire 29-chapter series. Even as i reread some of my favorite chapters from that series, which I enjoy doing, I can still feel the emotions that were poured into the original writing.

Like it has been said many times here, "We write for out own pleasure and then choose to share with others."