Characters

Today on Nathan's blog he asked the question, "Do you own your characters or do your characters own you?"

I thought it was a great question, so I wanted to put my two cents in. Every writer handles their story a different way--we all have different ways of writing. Whether it's outlining or jumping right in, writing chronologically or skipping around, it's our way.

Anyone who knows a writer also knows that if you ask them about a character, they'll go on for hours if you don't shut them up. To us, the characters are alive. While this may make us borderline schizophrenic, it's also a good sign. I know that if I met someone and introduced myself as Jana Darren, they could ask me any question about myself, and I would have an answer for them without having to think about it. Jana is a three dimensional character, which is why I can do that.

Now, to answer Nathan's question.

I like to think of my characters as the Board of Directors for a company, and I'm the CEO. They can tell me what's needed and what direction we should take, but it is ultimately my decision. If I were to slack off and not do my job as CEO, I would get replaced and the company would collapse. That is, letting your characters take control the story and allowing them to take it in any direction they want is asking for a Chapter 11.

Every writer needs to find the delicate balance between the plot and the characters. You have to be there to make the decisions, keep a happy medium between the two.

If successful, you can say hello to Fortune 500 status.