Character and Arc

I've always had an easy time creating plot. In fact, my stories tend to be plot driven. I understand that's often the way guys think--especially guys who write SF&F.

For me, it's a natural outgrowth of daydreaming, of simply imagining fun, fantastic, dangerous, supernatural things that take place and being a part of it.

Like many writers, I often imagine myself in the middle of my own stories. It's part of what makes the creative outlet so enjoyable. I get to be there doing those amazing things with magic, swords, dragons, you name it. And it's a lot of fun.

But plot is only part of what makes a story work. Ultimately, stories are about people. I've read this a gazillion times. Everyone has something to say about how character must drive story, about how it's their struggle that ultimately is what makes a story good.

That's not the most intrinsically easy thing for me to understand. But I think I've finally begun to understand this process a little better--for two reasons:

1. Characters are what make a story, deep down, interesting to readers. They of course love the action and imagery and movement of plot and setting. But within they have to relate to the characters, be able to see themselves in the role or near the role somehow. That's why even the bad guys have to have good qualities, and why the good guys, if they are too good and perfect, don't engage readers the way they need to. It's something about us doing things and being part of things that speaks to us on a deeper level.

Thus, the character drives the story. That's because a character with no real emotion, with no arc, no sense of becoming something different or more or evolving in some way, seeing the world differently by the end, or gaining hidden strength, or some such, that's part of the human process. Our lives are mundane and boring if nothing ever changes. And stories where the character is cookie cutter, exactly the same person in all reasonable senses, in terms of how they think, act, or do on all levels, from page one to the end, feels just like that: a non character. Our lives may get mundane, but usually things happen that cause us to answer deep questions about what we believe and feel or do--and not too infrequently, really.

2. I want to enjoy the story, so I don't have to decide from the beginning: the character must change, therefore make it happen. Rather, I think about what their motivations are and what causes those motivations to be in jeopardy. Then I think about what kind of message their responses will send. Some have taught that their responses will flow naturally from the situation. But I find that only partially true. Most of us are complicated enough that Sherlock Holmes would fail--that we are not always predictable in how we respond to life. Thus, I have to weigh how the characters respond because that will ultimately mean something, as well as determine the flow, weight, feeling, tone, and result of the novel.

Thus, character for me is becoming deeply important, even essential, to the make up of the story. And that's both refreshing and a bit scary. I still love to just daydream and see what happens!