If someone tells you the minor characters aren’t as important as
the main characters – step back and listen. When the person is done speaking, I
would like you to respond by saying, “In ways you are correct. But the reality of it is that supporting
characters better our understanding of the main character and his/her
circumstances. Without them, our stories
would fall flat.
Having said that, it boils down to one realization. If your supporting characters aren’t working
toward the support, awareness, perception, tolerance, and even support of the
main character or situation in some way, you should ask yourself, “What they’re
really doing there?”
We call them ‘supporting characters’ for a reason. If they aren’t supporting your story – they
don’t belong there. Everything you spend
time on must be for a reason, including those minor characters who appear to be
simply passing through.
Having said that, supporting characters shouldn’t appear like
they’re only hanging around to provide evidence, material, news, knowledge or
further the plot. All supporting
characters, even those who appear in the book for only a couple of paragraphs
and then are gone forever, must be there because they belong there with behaviors,
motivations and needs of their own.
Remember, these characters much unobtrusively achieve their purpose in
just a few choice words or lines.
Know your supporting characters – When writers send in a supporting character without thought
to who they are – it will show. You must
get to know every character in your book, no matter how minor. What is their purpose? At the end of the book did their achieve
their goal?
For each supporting character ask these questions:
- What is his/her internal motivation? Goal? What does he/she want?
- Personal traits to make him/her fit-in?
- What makes character right for this part of book? Experience, relationship to main character(s), situation?
- What does he/she have at stake?
- Is supporting character friend or foe?
- His/her motivation?
Watch for those characters that try to take over a scene or even
the book. Ask them why and decide if
they should stay or leave. Ask why are
they there? Is the story stronger without them?
Don’t get too attached to supporting characters or you might not
want to get rid of them. If you find yourself trying to justify why they should
stay/go, take a good look why. Who stays
and who goes is ultimately up to you as the author. When in doubt, listen to what the story is
telling you. Never ignore your
instincts, they are almost always right.
Nice post, Rita, and oh so true.
ReplyDeleteThis is a lesson we should all pound into our heads.
Thanks for posting it.