The Character's Why -- And Why Not Everyone Needs to Know It

 

I’m trying something new with my latest project, The Second Prince. Having never been a plotter and having never rewritten a whole draft from scratch… I’m going to do both with this manuscript. 

via GIPHY

Thanks, Obi

One of the new-to-me pieces in the plot template I’m using is to get to know the character before you even begin to write. This may seem obvious to other writers, but for me, I always just got a one- or two-sentence idea for a person and just ran with it. With this method, however, I’m taking a lot more time with the characters before I dive into (re)writing their story. I have to research them in my mind, so to speak, brainstorming their past, their fears, their lies, their desires, all the deepest nuances that shape them as people and will shape their actions throughout the story. It’s been fun, in a way, because characters are always my favorite part of the writing process. But figuring it out before the writing is also very difficult for me. Now that I know all these deep dark secrets, all the issues and aches that drive them, I feel compelled to include every one, so that the reader gets them and loves them like I do. In thinking that I have to make the reader understand them from the get-go, I’ve been looking for ways to specifically spell out their motivations in the early narrative. Or I get caught up in trying to make their beliefs and their actions always align, forcing the character to always do the thing that follows their stated fear and misbelief.

The simple thing I knew and forgot is this: the character doesn’t have to know the deepest why behind everything they’re doing and even if they do know it, they may not always act on it. Some things, like an old ritual, routine, or purchase at the grocery store, people simply do without ever really questioning it. In more serious instances, like with my MC Laelia, the character may hide the true reasoning from even themselves until an oncoming trial forces them to face the truth.

Additionally, a character might hold to an idea both deeply and consciously—but they still might not always act on that idea. The other MC, Sirion, is afraid of making big decisions because he believes that he cannot make good decisions—yet he’s made the decision to believe that. Also, a decision he does make (he claims for his brother’s own good 😉 ) actually propels a whole section of the story forward. Real people are equally inconsistent; they’ll say one thing (“lying is wrong,” for example), then do something completely the opposite (tell a “little white lie” to keep themselves out of trouble) and never even realize the discrepancy. In our nonsensical way of being human, that behavior actually makes sense.

So, as I was able to recall before I drove myself crazy, as long as the actions follows a form of logic that (1) fits the character’s personality and (2) makes sense for the situation, it’s actually okay if the characters aren’t following absolute logic in their lives. Because, well, that’s humans for you. 😉

What’s something you’ve learned (or relearned) in your writing recently? What type of projects are you working on? Can’t wait to hear from you, and I’ll see you in the comment section! <3