Blog for Bristol Services Intl.

We all know the importance of writing characters who stand out for readers, who make an impact with their personalities and actions. Most writers have marvelously quirky, interesting, evil, angelic, or psychotic characters sprinkled through their stories. Yet the biggest problem I find as a fiction editor is that writers tend to write generic main characters.  I honestly can’t tell you one trait of most main characters of the fiction stories sent to me for editing. Not one personality quirk, flaw, talent or ability. I might assume he (or she) is smart (most seem to function well enough) and that he is well-rounded, pleasant, a basically “good Joe.” But these aren’t distinct personality traits at all.

Why is this such a common problem for fiction writers? Because we all tend to create a main character who reflects ourselves. We “see” a story happening to us and we write “us” as that main character. So it becomes the story of a nice lady or maybe a smart man. My guess is that we don’t have a good handle on our own personalities (although obviously we consider ourselves nice and smart!). Or maybe we don’t want to own up to our desires or fears or flaws—or we think we don’t have them! For whatever reason, often writers present a main character who is a generic man or woman. And things happen to that person.

Instead readers want a character who is, well, a character! A person who has this overwhelming need, that hidden fear, this inner pain or that outer tendency. Readers want someone who propels the story, not a character who lets the story propel him. Not a generic.

All of which deeply influences the entire story. If you develop traits for your main character, those traits can become part of the character’s inner conflict (his need to change, grow, learn, achieve, overcome, etc.).  Then that inner conflict can lead you to a stronger opening, greater conflicts, more drama. So what seems like a fatal flaw in the form of a generic main character is an opportunity to breathe more life into your entire story.  

Probably you already have the framework of a solid plot, filled with tension and drama, nasty guys and intrigue, and the immediate, life-threatening need to solve the problem—that is where most writers concentrate their creative juices. You just need to rethink how to make your main character shine as a all-too-real, not-so-perfect, full-of-inner-baggage, full-fledged person.

Don’t think of your Joe or Jane as someone like you, the author. Think of him or her as your weird neighbor or unbalanced cousin. Someone you don’t mind (sorry neighbor or cousin!) inflicting some problems on. Then the story becomes about how he acts, reacts and takes a pro-active part in the story. You’ll have readers loving to follow that main character in a story that sizzles!