tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18571846.post1983975671926228552..comments2023-10-10T12:17:22.817-04:00Comments on My Life, or something like it: Characters - real or fictional?Nienke Hintonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17006405722858209012noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18571846.post-65156420482923568302007-09-11T20:44:00.000-04:002007-09-11T20:44:00.000-04:00Well, even with real people, they sometimes do thi...Well, even with real people, they sometimes do things they wouldnt normally do....its rare but its happenAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18571846.post-82448535798373657432006-12-26T10:44:00.000-05:002006-12-26T10:44:00.000-05:00Shanna is right. It's rather annoying to see one-d...Shanna is right. It's rather annoying to see one-dimensional antagonists. All characters have shades and layers. But if there's a valid reason for someone to behave differently from the way they usually would, it just makes the writing more "real."Bhaswatihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15397144389576029618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18571846.post-65553462564542339792006-12-23T19:19:00.000-05:002006-12-23T19:19:00.000-05:00Giving characters depth can be tricky. Do you ever...Giving characters depth can be tricky. Do you ever feel you've gone too far out-of-character with them and thus have changed the character?IM Cupnjavahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03120808235965232520noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18571846.post-35189483068401907292006-12-22T16:13:00.000-05:002006-12-22T16:13:00.000-05:00Having a character do something unexpected makes t...Having a character do something unexpected makes things interesting ... just make sure it is for a reason, so that your character stays organic. Good luck.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18571846.post-38959982067537853162006-12-21T16:57:00.000-05:002006-12-21T16:57:00.000-05:00I like this, too, Melly. When I write something, a...I like this, too, Melly. When I write something, a shallow character makes the entire work ring hollow to me. The story has a way of taking care of itself once I get the characters up and running.Spilling Inkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13970126156464922867noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18571846.post-92230396083114534672006-12-21T00:28:00.000-05:002006-12-21T00:28:00.000-05:00I agree, I've often thought that if characters are...I agree, I've often thought that if characters are to be believable, they can't behave just one way (even though many people do in real life). Besides most stories are supposed to have some sort of conflict, so people do do things out of character when the pressure is on.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18571846.post-11747102758036979462006-12-20T15:25:00.000-05:002006-12-20T15:25:00.000-05:00Characters acting (supposedly) out of character is...Characters acting (supposedly) out of character is crucial to great stories. These characters are memorable because they inspire — in difficulty, conflict, or under burden, they step out of themselves in order to survive or make their lives better. They become stronger because they've stretched their wings, or just found them for the first time.<br /><br />Isn't it encouraging to read about others who have rebelled against their comfort zones to do the extraordinary?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18571846.post-62563620663213418842006-12-20T12:14:00.000-05:002006-12-20T12:14:00.000-05:00It's OK to have characters do out of character thi...It's OK to have characters do out of character things. But make it be and event filled with internal and external conflict.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18571846.post-72464914816531161932006-12-20T10:25:00.000-05:002006-12-20T10:25:00.000-05:00Then there's the dichotomy of who we try to let pe...Then there's the dichotomy of who we try to let people think we are vs. who we really are. <br />And, like Zinnia says, what is anyone capable of when pushed to the limit? Do we even know what WE are capable of?Nienke Hintonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17006405722858209012noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18571846.post-91401864345639574602006-12-20T02:46:00.000-05:002006-12-20T02:46:00.000-05:00I agree with you (and Nienke, and Sayre) but I'm a...I agree with you (and Nienke, and Sayre) but I'm afraid I disagree with your buddy. I don't think people do 'stay in character' in real life. I have noticed that people prefer to see themselves and others as predictable and consistent, but it seems to me that we are not like that at all. So I too think that reflecting human inconsistency reveals more about a character, and therefore about ourselves: about what we are, or what we might be capable of.Zinnia Cyclamenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04841314997513292477noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18571846.post-81504597080846480892006-12-19T14:04:00.000-05:002006-12-19T14:04:00.000-05:00Even "real" people are more interesting when they ...Even "real" people are more interesting when they do something they wouldn't normally do. That's why the story of Scrooge gets told over and over - maybe not the out-of-character act itself, but the transformation that takes place BECAUSE of the act. Or the lessons learned.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18571846.post-72930156820636813732006-12-19T13:15:00.000-05:002006-12-19T13:15:00.000-05:00And yet, while making them do something totally ou...And yet, while making them do something totally out of character, we reveal their character even more, don't we?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com