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Part 2: CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT
Believe it or not, when I sit down and prepare to start another novel, I don't begin with the plot. I begin with the hero. By telling you that, I am by no means claiming that character is more important than plot. However, for me, if the hero isn't interesting, no plot can save the story. Without interesting and endearing characters, all the action, plot twists, and explosion scenes you can think of won't save your writing. Your audience has to care about your characters, and in order to do that, they are going to have to get to know them fairly intimately.
RPGs
When it comes to developing characters, Derek and I have borrowed from our experiences playing RPGs (Role Playing Games). Yes, that's right. We played the likes of Dungeons & Dragons, Champions, the Marvel Super Heroes RPG, Cyberpunk, and a few others.
Don't Make Snap Judgements
Okay, believe it or not, I can hear some of your thoughts right now. So let's press the pause button for just a second . . .
For some people, the very mention of "D&D" conjurs thoughts of demon worship. For others, you're starting to picture a group of guys with too much acne while they sit around a table giggling about +10 swords of cleaving, while everyone else from their school is at the prom having the time of their lives. If you struggle getting past those stigmas, I'm going to ask you to set that baggage down for a few minutes. Trust me when I tell you that I'm not here to advocate on the behalf of RPGs, debate whether or not they are inheritantly evil, or will turn you into a nerd if you play them. But . . . I do think we can borrow a critical tool from RPG mechanics that will help us in our own character development.
Are you still with me? Good. Now we're ready to push play and get back to developing some fun characters.
MERP
Our RPG of choice was called MERP. That stood for Middle Earth Role Playing Game, which was produced by Iron Crown Enterprises. What can I say? We're Tolkien fanatics! The gist of the game went like this: a group of friends would get together and assume the roles of fictional characters. In our case, those characters came from Middle Earth. One person would act as the Game Master (GM). That person was the omniscent force that would guide the entire game -- from coming up with scenarios and quests, to controlling the villains, animals, and weather, etc. You could even say in many cases that the GM was the author, and we simply reacted to his story. Then, whevener required, we would role D10 (ten-sided) dice to see if we were successful in slaying a dragon, picking a lock, or haggling over the price of a vendor's merchandise. If we roled high, there was a good chance we'd be successful. But if we fumbled and rolled horribly, we'd fail.
However, as fun as playing an RPG can be, nothing compared to the creation of the characters. We had dozens! In fact, that's where the magic of storytelling was first kindled for us.
Character Sheets
To create characters in an RPG, you begin the process with a character sheet. It's basically a chart outling different skill sets, and you roll your D10 dice to see how proficient you are in each skill. You even roll to see how attractive you are (let's just say we had quite a few "do-overs". If you want to see what one of the original MERP character sheets looks like, you can click here. For an Excel spreadsheet that you can edit digitally, click here.
The first thing we would do is fill in the name, race, height, weight, hair and eye color, general demeanor (kind, grumpy, etc.), any special traits (a scar across one eye), and our profession of choice. The we would role the dice to discover how strong, agile, inteligent, etc. that we were. Next came weapons and skill proficiency. Then we would figure out what languages we spoke and what resources we would start with (weapons, food, clothes, rope, etc.). After that, we were ready to start playing.
Applying Character Sheets to Your Own Writing
I use that same technique to develop characters before I sit down to I write. I've taken those general principles and have developed chacter sheets that help me in the creative process. Personally, I think it's important to know as much about your character as you can BEFORE you write a single word. That way you have a better understanding of how your characters will to react in a given situaiton. You won't have to stop and think, but rather your writing will feel natural and flow -- almost as if by magic.
The truth is that a good deal of what I write down during my prep time doesn't ever make it to the book, but that doesn't mean it isn't important. If you get all of that out of your system BEFORE you start writing, you won't bore your readers with too much unnecessary detail in your text. More importantly, an early character study will help you develop subtle nuances in your characters, and that will make each of them more interesting.
Springing to Life
If you have taken the time to develop those subtleties -- as trivial as they may seem -- what you'll find is that your characters will somehow take over. In fact, they'll start writing the story for you (as crazy as that may sound). You'll shift from your role as author to become a reporter, recording your character's exciting adventures. Once that happens, you'll know that you've hit the groove. Then you sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride.
Tools of the Trade
I have two different sheets that I use, and I am very happy to share them with you. Use them as is, or modify them to create your own, but I promise it will be worth the time investment. The one I use most is a complex Excel spreadsheet. I have also developed a simplified Word document for elementary and junior high school students.
I break my character development into five categories:
* General Information: Just like those old RPG character sheets, I start with: name, nicknames, height, weight, etc. I also know a character's birthday, birthplace, current residence, education, occupation, and any oddities or habits.
* Physical Makeup (Facial Features, Body Dimensions, Medical History): Let's face it, most of us tend to judge a book by its cover, and just the same, we tend to judge people on their personal appearance. If someone is overweight and dresses slovenly, we might automatically assume they are lazy. Likewise, if someone is trim and dresses impeccably, we might assume they have their life in order. But what if it is the opposite? What if the chubby guy with who hasn't showered for three days is so rich that when a bartender won't serve him, he goes to the bank the next day to buy the entire bar and fires the bartender? What if the beautiful woman with the expensive wardrobe was an "ugly duckling" growing up, and she is deeply in debt because she hires personal trainers and buys clothes she can't afford just to prove to the world that she isn't worthless? She's beautiful on the outside, but she still feels empty inside.
Now you've taken stereotypes and made them interesting. That's where physical appearance can really come to play.
* Hobbies: If we could create a chart that shows where we spend most of our time and money, we could pinpoint what matters most to us. That's where hobbies and interests come to play.
* Friends: Though not always the case, who you hang out with can be a strong reflection on who you are. And it can work both ways. If you spend a great deal of time with known criminals, one could surmise that you might be a thug as well. Or, perhaps people assume you spend time with hooligans because you are trying to help them reform. Either way, who you spend time with reflects the type of person you are.
* Family History (Parents, Siblings, Grandparents): A great deal of who we are is defined by where we come from. Knowing our parents, siblings, and grandparents can, and often does, give us insights into why we are who we are. The same is true for our characters. That's why an in-depth knowledge of your character's genetic past will help you understand a portion of why they behave the way they do.
Then, once I have all of that information filled out, I'm ready to develop the plot. And that's where we'll pick up next month . . .
DOWNLOADS
Jon's Complex Character Sheet (.xls)
Jon's Simplified Character Sheet (.doc)
Original MERP Character Sheet (.jpg)
Updated MERP Charater Sheet (.xls)
How to Guide for creating MERP characters (.doc)
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