This month's Round Robin Topic: Describe a flawed character you might use in a story. What part will they play in the story, and what will happen to them? How did they become so flawed?
Thank you, Rhobin, for this month's topic.
I'd like to begin my post by stating that everyone is flawed--including an author's story characters.
The flaw may be physical, or a character may have a 'fatal flaw': a temper, stubbornness, act-with-out-thinking, or lack of self-esteem-all of which can lead to your story character's doom.
The flaw is part of the character arc, the path to self-growth. And, in a romantic novel, the way the main characters, and often the secondary characters, close the story with a HEA (happily ever after).
Yet the path is always bumpy and uncertain for the Hero and Heroine. It is often a secondary character or a 'villain' who usually has the most interesting/unexpected backstory.
I take full advantage of secondary characters and villains who reveal, little by little, unexpected details of their past.
This is especially so in my YA novel, Tanayia--Whisper Upon the Water.
Of course, that is all I can say because I never print 'spoilers' for my novels; or any books I review.
What Is an Example of a Character Flaw?
This is an extreme character flaw but also an excellent example.
Though you may have not read the novel, most are familiar with the movie or the storyline of the Thomas Harris novel The Silence of the Lambs (and its subsequent film adaptation by director Jonathan Demme). Hannibal Lecter has a personality disorder: A cannibal and a sadomasochist. Lecter's character flaws, however, are somewhat offset by his brilliant mind, which he uses to help the main character, Clarice Starling, apprehend a serial killer tormenting Appalachia.
Lecter is an example of how in fiction, even characters with the most severe personality flaws can embody a degree of three-dimensionality.
The opening to my novel, Brede, Rodeo Romance, Book 2:
Thunder rumbled across the remote New Mexico sky as unforgiving wind shoved low gray clouds against a craggy mountaintop. Brede Kristensen tugged the brim of his Stetson lower on his forehead. The threat of a storm didn't faze him; nothing fazed him anymore. The worst had already happened.
(the elements can also take on a life of their own--evolving and changing, influencing and affecting the characters in your story).
Thank you for stopping by,
Visit the talented authors participating in this month's Round Robin Blog Hop.
Connie
XOXO
Skye Taylor http://www.skye-writer.com/blogging_by_the_sea
Dr. Bob Rich https://wp.me/p3Xihq-2yB
Marci Baun http://www.marcibaun.com/blog/
Connie Vines http://mizging.blogspot.com/
Anne Stenhouse http://annestenhousenovelist.wordpress.com
Diane Bator http://dbator.blogspot.ca/
Rhobin L Courtright http://www.rhobincourtright.com
Fiona McGier http://www.fionamcgier.com/
Aw Connie, you stopped the sample too soon! I wanna read on!
ReplyDelete:)
Bob
Your statements about people and characters are correct. We can all be unpredictable which can cause both good and bad results. I'd forgotten about Hannibal, but just the mention of his name brings back movie memories.
ReplyDeleteHi Connie, Yes, 'the flaw is part of the character arc' and don't we just love working through them as readers? Anne
ReplyDeleteSo true - even the villains can add to the story. As the Crow Flies by Jeffrey Archer has just such a character. The hero grows from a boy pushing a barrow with his grandfather to the owner of a large wealthy emporium, but the villainess, a woman you just love to hate makes that journey compelling.
ReplyDeleteIt’s definitely challenging to share information about characters without giving everything away. You have to give enough so people want to read more, but not so much that you give it all away.
ReplyDeleteI was going to say that my stories don’t have villains, but, ahahaha, they absolutely do. I’ve only delved into a few of the villains back stories. Did you write any of the scenes from the villain’s POV? I’m just curious. I wonder if I had if I’d know more about them.
Interesting post.
I made one of the villains in a story, the heroine of the next novel! That allows the reader to delve more deeply into her back story, and realize that she doesn't see herself as a villain (do they ever?), and as you keep reading, you realize she isn't. That's just the part she played in the first book.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great topic! I like how everyone has their spin, but we mostly agree.