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We’ve all read those books. The ones we were sad to see end because of compelling characters we remembered long after we closed the book. For me that started in grade school after reading Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery and meeting Anne Shirley. In high school I fell a little bit in love with Atticus Finch after reading To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. I was hooked on romance and great heroes after reading Nora Roberts’ Sea Swept and meeting Cameron Quinn. In love with vampires after staying up to read J.R. Wards’ Dark Lover.
“Dark and difficult times lie ahead. Soon we must all face the choice between what is right and what is easy.” Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.
Our most beloved characters have a style of speech and mannerisms all their own. A way to say and do things that gives them a unique personality. I have to walk around in their shoes for a while to get to know them. I want to explore what their instincts tell them to do. Test their reactions to all kinds of different stimuli. Develop a backstory. In Getting into Character: Seven Secrets a Novelist Can Learn From Actors Brandilyn Collins explains that it doesn’t matter how strong the plot is if the reader fails to connect with the characters. It’s important to get it right. Creating strong characters readers will remember after they’ve finished reading is what makes a great reading experiement.
A favorite resource of mine is Suzanne Brockmann’s Tall, Dark & Believable: Creating the “Perfect” Romance Hero Workshop. Because I love her style and her stories, I like to read it over and remind myself what I’m striving to achieve before I start a new project. I’m a great believer in being guided by the subconscious. Hopefully it will steer me in the right direction and help me create that ‘perfect’ flawed hero or heroine as I draft the story. During the editing process I have to ask myself are these characters likeable and engaging? Unlikeable enough to be interesting? Strong enough to know when to quit? Smart enough to stay alive? Flawed enough to be human? Sexy enough to have great chemistry together? Are they the correct balance of all those things?
My romantic suspense, Backlash, is a reunion story. After being separated for a decade the main characters find themselves having to join forces to protect a thirteen year old boy from a vicious gang leader. That’s what came first – the basic plot. The characters evolved over many revisions, aided by character charts, character interviews, beta reads, and critiques. Sometimes, I feel like it took a village to raise these characters. I hope they’re memorable, that they resonate with the reader and create a lasting impression.
Excerpt
“We have to work together, Chase.”
Right. Against one of the most vicious gangs in the country. He caught sight of her pretty pink toenails peeking out from under her blanket. Him and the pretty little small town teacher up against Raphael Tessier. Maybe the bad guys would die laughing.
He meant to back away. To leave. Before her clean scent began absorbing into his skin. But with Lily, things never quite worked out the way he planned. Good intention turned into forward movement. Until they were chest-to-chest and hip-to-hip.
“Chase, be reasonable.”
Reasonable? He could smell her. Her breasts pressed against his chest with every breath. He’d left reasonable so far behind he’d need a map to find it.
Then it was too late anyway. He needed to know if she tasted the same. Felt the same. And she was right there. In front of him. All he had to do was bend his head. Just a fraction of a movement and his self-imposed exile would end.
And he was only human.
So he tipped his head and put his mouth on hers. Ran the tip of his tongue over her bottom lip and got a yes to question number one.
His hands did a slow glide up her arms, over her shoulders to her face. He gently tilted her head and waited. Waited for the slight parting of her lips, the invitation to enter. When it came, it almost brought him to his knees.
He dove in like a man who’d been too long in the desert and she was his first taste of water in years. He needed his tongue in her mouth, tasting, savoring. He needed the warmth pulsing through his system to burn forever.
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Great post! I can't remember the first book I felt this way about. Honestly, I'm not sure I can remember the last.
For some reason, out of all the books I've read, Maureen Johnson's 13 Little Blue Envelopes comes to mind. When the novel was over I wanted more of the characters. Which I think is funny as it's merely a great piece of YA chick lit.
I think that sometimes our desire for MORE MORE MORE is what helps push capitalism in the publishing business. More often books that were never intended to be nor should be part of a series are turning into six or seven book ventures, that slowly but surely decrease in levels of greatness all because WE, the consumer, demand more of that character from that author.
Sorry for my rambling, lol :)
BTW thanks for the giveaway.
mirrormera92 at aol dot com
~Mera