Finding Your Characters

It's not enough to write about people, minions. Oh no. I wish it were, but you see, that's what makes the difference between a mediocre story...and a good one. You have to find your characters. That is, you have to really know them, get inside their heads, understand their motives, and speak in their voice. It's tough. For me, it's the toughest part of writing a new book.

The main character in DEVON'S PLAYGROUND is Stephen (I know you thought it would be Devon, but there you go). Stephen's a good kid. He's got problems (of course...who doesn't have problems?), but he's doing his best to work past them. I like him. He's a smart kid, funny, troubled. But I'm still finding him. Unfortunately, this doesn't tend to happen for me until the second draft...and as I'm still in the first draft, it makes me quite mopey.

I wish I were one of those authors who could spin gold their first try. But oh no, not me. First I spin crap, then I spin yellow crap, then I spin gold. Grr.

So how do we find our characters? The answer seems easy--spend time with them. Thus, a big reason for the blog nothingness as of late. I'm finding Stephen (who's named after my idol, Stephen King--I know, what kind of a dork am I?). So far, it's like a sick game of hide-n-seek, where the hider is invisible and I'm the seeker. Double grr.

But enough moping. I've got to go check under the bed.