The Confabulator Cafe

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  • Characters Grow in Fertile Soil

    Stories are built, but characters are grown. That’s the best way I can explain it. A story, to me, is a series of events which can be shuffled around to achieve the greatest impact and the most effective rise and fall of tension.

    Characters, especially the main characters, must be nurtured and coaxed into revealing themselves a little at a time. If you met someone at a party, and the first thing they did was tell you their entire life story, their likes and dislikes, and their motivation for being at the party, you’d make a beeline for the exit. Thanks for the martini and the canapés, love what you’ve done with the place, see you at work on Monday.

    Main characters start as a picture in my head, a piece of dialogue, or part of a scene already in progress. From there, I start asking questions. Who is this person stripping naked in a bar and hurling her clothes at a round little man in glasses? Why are there flames in her eyes, and why was she dressed like a pirate before she threw her eye patch at him?

    I’m not much for filling out character sheets. Yes, I have an obsession for writing out scenes and events on note cards. Yes, I outline before I start writing. But characters have to grow organically.

    Sometimes I know far more about my characters than I will ever have the need to share. Other times, I’m flying by the seat of my pants and don’t realize until many chapters later that I have an entire cast of unrelated, hostile characters who are extremely short in stature.

    Every last one of them.

    But physical characteristics are easy. They’re scene dressing. If they don’t work, I can change them out. Short and fat becomes tall and lean with a few keystrokes. But the hostility of the character, that’s a permanent fixture. The why of the hostility, however, is what may stop me in my tracks to go for a long drive. I will mutter and wave my arms behind the wheel, questioning the motives and back story, until wham. Oh my God. That’s what happened? No wonder he’s so pissed off at her.

    In the end, the reader only needs to know what’s important. And most of that should come from observing how the character acts, speaks, and interacts with other characters.

    Build the scene with a box of Lego. Grow a character like a hothouse orchid. Nobody wants a description of the flower or how the orchid was grown. People want to hold it in their hands. Smell it.

    They want to see it for themselves and form their own opinions.

  • Unusual Bedroom

    I'm sure there's an explanation for this…

    Almost all of my stories start with a character. Even when I only have the vaguest idea of what the story is about, or where it takes place, some loudmouthed character starts telling me what’s up. “This is my story. This is what happens to me. You’re gonna tell it right now.”

    Why do my characters always have an attitude?

    Before I start a new story, I have a variety of character worksheets I like to fill out. It helps me nail down the particulars of my protagonist. This character is a person with a whole life from birth to present, and I’m only telling a small section of it. Knowing that person’s history, even if it never makes it into the story, helps turn a character into a real person.

    When I’m actually writing a story, it’s a whole different experience, the way characters develop. They tend to crop up out of nowhere. Some character my protagonist meets in passing – a barista, a cop at a crime scene, a random coworker – ends up turning into an important supporting character. I never worry about developing them too much. They know their place in the story better than I do, since I didn’t expect them in the first place. I learn about them in how they interact with my protagonist (or antagonist), and they reveal their own backstory as I write them.

    As far as the reader? They don’t get to know everything. They get to know what I tell them. What I let them see. I get to pick and choose what traits best portray my character. They do get a firsthand look into the character’s mind, and everything that is going on from the time the story starts til when it ends, but as the writer, I have to put that character in context without writing the character’s entire life story. I try not to get too bogged down in character details in the telling of their story.

    The reader wants to know what happens next, not what the protagonist’s bedroom looks like.

    Unless it is somehow significant to the plot. Or unless it’s an unusual bedroom which illustrates something important about the character’s personality.

    Besides, I think I am obligated to uphold something like a doctor/patient confidentiality agreement. Author/character confidentiality. Some stuff my characters tell me in confidence.

  • Lying on the couch: A conversation with myself

    Character interviewBefore I begin to set pen to paper (metaphorically) on my stories, I like to have several conversations with my main character.

    As with any job interview, questions help me consider whether or not he/she can get the job done. But in truth, these conversations sound more like a prolonged therapy session with a psychiatrist.

    Me: So, tell me a little about yourself.

    Main Character: Well, I have this weird problem with perception. I can’t read words as they appear. I see words, and I can read them, but they make no sense. The sign at McDonald’s may say “Over one billion served” but I see the words “Dolphin spatula green sycamore.”

    Me: I see. So, how long has this problem been going on?

    MC: Since my accident, I think. I don’t remember anything about my life before that. My doctor says I must have learned to read at some point, because I can associate words and pictures in my head. I just can’t read them correctly.

    Me: And how is this going to make for an interesting story?

    MC: Well, lately I’ve been able to read a sign on the side of the road. It seems to be directed at me. It says, “Turn here, Martin.”

    Me: That’s rather specific.

    MC: Yeah. My doctor thinks it’s a good sign, that my brain is trying to repair itself.

    Me: What do you think?

    MC: I think it’s kinda creepy. My wife thinks I should ignore it. But I feel like someone’s calling to me. I want to follow the sign.

    Once I have a good understanding of what makes my main character unique, I can begin to build a story around him. I need to know some things, but not everything about him before I start. For instance, how did he meet his wife? What kind of life did he have before the accident? Answers to these questions may (or may not) come out in the story. There will be time for additional discovery later.

    Depending on the story, I may want to have a similar conversation with my Main Adversary. The MA can be as important as the hero in a story. Think of Lex Luthor in Superman, or Darth Vader in The Empire Strikes Back. Good villains are a counterpoint to heroes. And they have their own reasons, their own motivations, for doing what other people consider “evil.” The trick to writing a villain is to make him/her believable. If they can justify what they’re doing in terms that seem realistic, you probably have someone worth writing about.

    Secondary characters don’t need this kind of detail before I begin writing. Often, I will have characters with descriptions like “love interest,” “best friend,” or “receptionist.” They can be fleshed out later, but sometimes not until the second or third draft.

    The key is to listen: to my characters, myself, and — probably — to a good shrink to sort out all the voices in my head.

  • I Hate You! Please Hang Out with Me.

    Hard truth here: I freaking HATE my characters.  And not just the current batch either.  I’m talking all of them.

    Now before you get all judgmental, hear me out.  Your characters are not your friends.  They are lazy, needy little bitches who expect you to do all the heavy lifting.  I, for one, am tired of it.  So I’ve started fighting back.

    When I’m setting up a scene, or even a story for that matter, I usually start with a goal.  What is the overall story question of the book?  In this particular scene, what is the protagonist trying to accomplish?  Does he or she get it done?  Regardless of the answer, what are the consequences of the outcome?

    I put a lot of thought into the architecture of the story, and along those same lines, I have very specific ideas about what roles the characters will play in each of these scenes.  Ideally, you could add a face and a name to each of these roles, and then wind ‘em up and let ‘em go.  But ideally makes for a shitty read, and this is where characters really start to piss me off.

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  • A Living Hobby

    “When writing a novel a writer should create living people; people not characters. A character is a caricature.” – Ernest Hemingway

    As a short fiction writer, I have never concerned myself with character development. I start writing, and the character comes out subconsciously. When the first draft is complete, I have gotten to know my character.  I’ve spent time with him and know who he is. During the second draft, I bring him more into focus in the early parts of the story.

    The good side of this is that it is very organic and spontaneous. It is beautiful, like watching a flower bud bloom before me in time-lapse vision. The bad side is that I am flying blind, and significant parts of the story will have to be re-written.

    When I wrote my novel, I felt I needed to do a little more planning. I decided to utilize something closer to my method when writing screenplays. The way I was taught, in order to write a screenplay, you need to do a lot of preparation. You have to know your character before you start the first page because you don’t have the luxury of finding him in that format.  Instead, you write character biographies, as in depth as you can, about the character and his life.

    This is written as quickly as you can write it, much like laying down a short story. You don’t want to over-think the biography. Let it flow.  Let the character speak through you. Don’t speak for him. If you think too much, you run the risk of making your character seem to convenient, or too stock.  Don’t concentrate on the character’s actions within your conflict.  Look at his characteristics away from it.  What was your character like before his life went to Hell?  You may not use it all, but you never know what may become important later.

    If you are a writer, chances are you are a people-watcher, as well. Your mind has picked up various ways of speak, mannerisms, habits, and all sorts of character traits that you aren’t even aware you saw. As you work, these will flow through you. (more…)

  • Character Development (Week of 20 February 2012)

    Characters walk in and out of the cafe all the time. Some are interesting, some merely background players in a larger story, but all of them get some time on the stage here. Guitar-slingers, demon hunters, chrononauts and closet monsters alike mingle with main characters running gauntlets that real people would quail at. The Confabulators paint every character in our stories with the same care but to varying degrees of completion.

    Some of us need to know more about some characters and some a little less. This week we’re going to share our process of learning about people we create out of thin air and then do horrible things to. Bear with us if it seems as though we’re enjoying our godlike powers of creation. It’s one of the things that makes us what we are: storytellers. Come on in, rub elbows with our characters. The coffee is hot and your table is right here. Maybe you’ll recognize yourself in something we write.

  • Whose Brain Would You Pick If You Had the Chance?

    Every week we ask the Confabulators to answer a question that will enlighten or illuminate the darker corners of their brains. We force them to think about things they might not otherwise and sometimes we get some really interesting answers. This week’s question is one that usually comes up over drinks or late in the evening at a party where a group of writers are hanging out. Read on for some insights.

    Kevin Wohler

    I nearly freeze up at the idea of getting advice from any of my writing idols. I like the idea of poking through someone’s brain for insights without the vulnerability of asking them to read my work. It’s the stalker in me, I suppose. While I would love to pick the brains of Stephen King or Ray Bradbury, I feel that I’ve done that to some extent, by reading their books (On Writing and Zen in The Art of Writing, respectively). But I would love to have access to the part of their brains where they keep story ideas so I could steal them.

    Sara Lundberg:

    Am I allowed to choose a fellow Confabulator? I’d have to pick R.L. Naquin for this one. Just give me five minutes in her brain, and I’d be set life with story ideas. I’d love to see the world from her perspective. She tells us it’s a scary place in there, and that we might not survive a minute, let alone five. Besides, if I am totally honest, I do plan on picking her brain quite thoroughly once I’m ready to query a novel; her success has been an inspiration to all of us!

    Jack Campbell, Jr.:

    Ray Bradbury. His book Zen in the Art of Writing was a huge influence on my love of writing. He is perhaps my favorite author, and is one of the living legends of letters. The guy is 91 and has been writing since age 12. I can only imagine the value of his insight.

    Larry Jenkins:

    I’d like to spend about a day hanging out with Christopher Moore.  I want to know if he is as goofy in person as he seems in his writing.  Is he funny in real life, or is he just an asshole?  There’s a fine line, and I’d like to know how well he walks it.  I’d also be curious to see if he’s as OCD about his writing process as other authors appear to be.

    Jason Arnett:

    I think I’d want to have a storyteller’s dinner party and invite the authors who have influenced me the most, who have affected me the most and then just listen to the conversation. Absorbing by osmosis their genius, their points of view and observe their interactions and reactions to one another. If I had to pick one person at the party to talk storytelling with, it might be China Mieville.

    Ted Boone:

    John Scalzi. He’s prolific, his stories are clever and funny and exciting, and he seems to know everyone that’s anyone in the industry.

    Muriel Green:

    I would love to hang out with Ursula K. LeGuinn. She has a chapter in How to Become a Famous Writer Before You’re Dead that stands head and shoulders above other ‘how to write’ articles I’ve read.

    R.L. Naquin:

    Piers Anthony. He’s prolific, helpful to writers, engages with his fans, and yet is a grumpy old ogre who lives deep in the woods on a private tree farm in Florida. He’s a strange mixture. I’d love to find out what he’s really like.

  • Self-publication for Professionals

    Everything I have ever written for money has been self-published, one way or another, but then the economics of copywriting-for-hire are not nearly the same as commercial fiction.

    The first book I ever wrote was “published” via a photocopier and a stack of three-ring binders [0].  This was back in the early 1990s, when desktop publishing was still in its infancy and producing our graphics was only one step up from Zip-a-tone [1]. After that I spent a couple of years writing responses to Requests for Proposals [2] and we thought a $10,000 color laser printer was the height of affordable sophistication. Proposals were still submitted as bound booklets, and you had to schedule at least one full day for printing, final quality control checks, reprinting, binding, and making a 3:00 Fed-Ex pickup deadline. In its way it was ghastly work, but I cut my anal-retentive copyediting teeth on it [3].

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  • Self-publishing

    I’ve e-published six YA novels myself so far. I’ve purchased a few printed self-published books and downloaded several e-books. And my thoughts as I read most of the self-published books ran mostly to ‘hasn’t this writer ever heard of editing?’

    At the bottom end, many e-books are simply gawdawful (and I’m not talking about 2,000-word wonders uploaded by seventh-graders; I’m talking about novels that never should have been placed where the public can see them!). At the other extreme you can find well-written novels, including those that have been brought back into print by their authors.

    I hope that the e-book industry would soon find some kind of filter, other than low or no sales for crap. My guess is that everyone who thinks he’s an author has been glutting Smashwords, Amazon, et al, with “stuff” that no one would otherwise pick up, so that the effective agent filtering-out process of junk has been bypassed. Sooner or later, however, those who cannot spell or punctuate will grow tired of uploading and seeing few, if any downloads after readers reject their offerings, and those of us who do have a command of the English language will be able to “rise above” the current flow of trash so that readers will not have to wade through the glut to make reading choices.

    I’ve actually experienced fair sales of my six novels (well, five out of six – the new High School Series novel was placed on Smashwords and Amazon 1-1-12). My current market strategy is to offer the first title in the series for free and charge minimally for the others. I can’t say that the technique is a raging success, but I can say that downloads of the titles are steady, if slow.

  • Too Vain for Vanity

    Growing up, the only form of self-publishing I was aware of was vanity publishing and that only because it was the route my great-grandfather had taken. Up until very recently, whenever I thought of self-publishing my immediate thought was, “You mean I have to pay someone to publish my work?”

    After all, wasn’t the whole point to being a published author that somebody else paid you to write? Having to self-publish at a vanity press was like admitting that my work wasn’t good enough to be accepted by a real publisher. Maybe that was the case, maybe it wasn’t.

    Self-published books weren’t widely available when I was growing up, especially not since I did the majority of my book shopping at a used bookstore and the rest of my reading from a various selection of libraries. My opinion on self-publishing never had the opportunity to change. Even now, I don’t go out of my way to read something self-published. Most of my reading is done off of recommendation or by pulling books off of shelves and oohing over the cover. Well, that and fanatically following authors from one series to the next. (more…)