This month Norma Howell returns as the guest columnist for Up From Down Under.

 

 

Whose Story is it?

 

by  Norma Howell

 

 

Writers sometimes get caught up in the joy of creation.  If it's fun to create one character, why not make six of them?

 

Wait!  Slow down!  First, decide on the story.  Let's say you want to write a fantasy.  What sort of human characters do you need in fantasy beyond the hero and the villain?  Some potential supporting characters or villains are witches, warlocks, monks, a best friend or faithful servant, a love interest, and family members of the main characters. In addition, there will be walk-on characters such as the boy who held the hero's horse at the tavern, the serving wench who brought his ale, or the beggar who said, "The castle's down this road."

 

Don't try to introduce all the characters and their relationships at once.  First, decide whose story this will be and why the reader should care about him or her.

 

Sounds easy, but who should have the starring role?  It should be the person who hurts the most, the one with the most to lose if his goal isn't reached. Why?  Because you want your reader to be sympathetic, to care what happens to this character. If there's no connection between reader and character, the story is tossed aside unread.

 

Let's assume you've decided the hero has the most to lose.  He has to have a name and a title, so how about Prince Eric?  (Avoid unpronounceable names or names that sound alike. Don't confuse your reader.)

 

Eric's goal is to rescue his brother, Olaf, whose life is in danger. A villain is bearing down on Olaf's castle, and Eric's worried because his only surviving brother is ill, and the castle cannot withstand the villain's siege.  Don't make it easy on Eric and Olaf.  You want the reader to worry, stay up at night, and turn pages. Give Eric some trouble as he tries to reach his brother. Maybe bandits assault and wound him, or his horse goes lame.  Will he make it?  Show his concerns and emotions, keep the tension high.

 

How do you help the reader bond with Eric?  Make Eric likeable, someone you'd want for a friend. If the prince kicks dogs, beats women, and steals money from his friends, nobody is going to care whether he reaches the castle in time. A likeable male may be adventurous, tough, and worldly, but he should also be gentle and compassionate.  Like a knight, he should be a defender of the weak and helpless, and a faithful friend. If he has to kill, he shouldn't enjoy doing it.

  

Develop his personality so you can get inside his skin, and then get your reader in there.  What does he do for fun? What skills does he have? Does he like falconry, jousting or swordplay? Or does he hate falconry because he's allergic to feathers, or because he thinks birds should fly free? Does he love figs, but hate grapes because he has to spit out the seeds? Is he better with his fists than he is with a sword?  That would be odd, because he's a prince, but you might think of a reason.

  

Like all of us, he must have flaws.  Maybe he's got a bad temper, or he can't stand heights.  Since this fantasy takes place in the Middle Ages, when superstition was rampant, it's all right if he's a little superstitious.  He could be worried about cats because they might be a witch's familiar, but he shouldn't be truly afraid of them.

 

His intelligence should be above average, and he can be handsome, particularly if there's a love interest.. It doesn't hurt if he's clever, shrewd, or witty, but he cannot be conceited, so if you use the old mirror trick to show what he looks like, have him dislike one or two of his features. He cannot just think of himself as handsome and a charmer. That information needs to come from a supporting character, possibly the love interest or an adoring mother or sister. You'll need to describe his clothing and his sword, but don't have him prance about in finery, or he'll seem vain.

 

Show your reader this fellow from the inside out, don't just tell the reader about him.  If Eric loves animals, let him rescue one, using the scene to show both his love of animals and his gentleness and compassion. The reader will get it, and will like him without you saying, "Prince Eric loved dogs."

 

Now that he has a personality and looks, give him a background.  As his creator, you need to know a lot of things. Did he have an enjoyable or hard childhood? Was he raised in a single-parent home?  Does he have siblings, and if so how many, what ages are they now, and what are their occupations? What was he doing before the present story? You, as the writer, need to know all this stuff, and a lot more besides -- BUT your reader may not need to know any of it. 

 

Backstory, what happened before this story began, can get your story put down quicker than a fly can buzz past your ear. It stops the action just when the reader has developed an interest in the hero and his predicament. Who cares if Prince Eric had twelve brothers and sisters, four of whom died in infancy, that there's a family history of insanity, or that his father was an alcoholic brute who beat him?  Bring in only what the reader needs to know, nothing else. Use dialogue and flashback as much as you can to get it all in, and take your time.  Backstory should be slipped in quietly, a sentence or paragraph at a time.  Try not to write long paragraphs of backstory. Such paragraphs tell but do not show unless you've managed to write a flashback.

 

Earlier, I used the terms supporting characters and walk-ons. Now, I'll tell you more about them. Think of your story as a movie.  There's the good guy (hero/protagonist) on his way to the castle, and the bad guy (villain, antagonist) who plans to stop him. They are engaged in a personal struggle, good against evil. The other characters are either supporting, or they are walk-ons.  Supporters, sometimes called subordinates, are important to your story. They are the hero's (or villain's) helpers, but they are not as vital as the hero or the villain. It is these supporting characters  who hear the hero's ideas, counsel him, argue with him, warn him, pick him up if he starts to fall and treat him if he's injured.  They should have backgrounds and descriptions, but not as detailed as those of the hero.  The chief supporter might be a sidekick, a buddy. Think of Holmes and Watson, Cisco and Pancho, The Lone Ranger and Tonto, or Batman and Robin.

 

You've determined that this is Eric's story because he has the most to lose if he doesn't reach his brother in time.  Keep the frisky supporters in Eric's shadow, but if one of them turns out to be a real scene-stealer, you're lucky.  You've got a ready-made hero for your next story.

 

Walk-ons have a smaller role and are only seen once or twice.  They are part of the wallpaper in the background. The reader doesn't care about them, and it isn't necessary to name them. A walk-on is the boy who was cleaning the stable when the prince brought in his horse, or the tavern wench who served his wine. Walk-ons  need to be described, but not in detail.  Referring to the redheaded boy of about twelve, or the buxom wench with the torn right sleeve tells as much as the reader cares to know.

 

Your hero is your viewpoint character, and the story revolves around him. It’s his story!