FOOD AND DRINK
What is the character's favorite food? Is there anything that he positively will not eat? Does he like a big breakfast or dinner? Does he like to eat out or eat at home? Does he have a weakness for desserts, hamburgers, hot dogs, freshly baked bread, pasta, peanuts, pancakes, ice cream, chili, Tabasco sauce, or hot peppers? Does he like a glass of wine, a cold beer, a special kind of soft drink, or coffee? Or perhaps a splash of Scotch, bourbon, brandy, or cognac?
HOUSEHOLD CHORES
Your character may despise sewing, ironing, washing clothes, dusting, making soup, frying chicken, balancing the checkbook, vacuuming, scouring the bathtub or sink, baking, cleaning behind the stove or refrigerator, setting mousetraps, killing roaches, gardening, canning, cleaning mirrors, making beds, changing sheets, using mothballs, peeling onions, washing windows, cleaning pots and pans, removing caked-on grease, removing spider webs, polishing the silver, setting the table, washing the dishes, or cleaning the oven. On the other hand, he may like doing one of these things.
MUSIC
Does your character like classical, jazz, rock, gospel, or country and western? Opera or musical comedy? Or barbershop quartets? Does he love the sound of a violin, guitar, banjo, trumpet, tuba, piccolo, harmonica, accordion, piano, or organ? What about drums or bagpipes; or perhaps a music box? Is there something that he can barely tolerate?
NATURE
Is there something in nature that fills. the character with awe or makes him feel peaceful? Would that "something" be, for example, a range of snowcapped mountains? A great lake? A river? Is it the stillness of a desert or a cave? What about an ocean, a forest, an unexpected clearing, the jungle, or a swamp? Does he relish cold or hot weather? Is he still pleased by the sight of clouds, stars, moonlight, or a sunny day? And what's his favorite season: spring, summer, autumn, or winter?
NONATHLETIC COMPETITION
(See also Entertainment; Relaxation; Sports)
Does the character like to engage in a friendly game of cards? If so, does he like poker, gin rummy, bridge, canasta, pinochle? Does he drop quarters into slot machines? Wager his dollars on a game of craps or at the race track? Or does he prefer a board game, such as Scrabble, chess, checkers, backgammon, Monopoly, Chinese checkers, or Parcheesi? Possibly he prefers mah-jongg or dominos. How about horseshoes, shuffleboard, curling, or Ping-Pong? Are there any of these things he doesn't like? And if so, why?
OFFICE STUFF
If your character works in an office, perhaps he likes or dislikes one (or more) of the following: typewriters, computers, filing cabinets, in-boxes, statistics' letters, spreadsheets, budgets, meetings, reports, management directives, photocopying, paper shredding, flight reservations, conference calls, retirement parties, cost studies, supply purchasing, inter-office memos, ringing telephones, e-mail, intercoms, forms, security systems, mail, or Christmas parties. Among some of these possibilities, are there any that the character despises?
Does the character dislike Caucasians, Negroes, Hispanics, Orientals, or immigrants? Has he got something against doctors, cops, organized labor, businessmen, politicians, sports stars, waiters, auto mechanics, bank clerks, repairmen, sales clerks, post office. clerks, answering services, car attendants, doormen, drunks, beggars, hotel clerks, movie stars, dentists, car salesmen, mimes, the upper class, the lower-classes, snitches, cab drivers, neighbors, or meddlers? Is there anything about any of them that he likes?
PEOPLE
Does the character dislike Caucasians, Negroes, Hispanics, Orientals, or immigrants? Has he got something against doctors, cops, organized labor, businessmen, politicians, sports stars, waiters, auto mechanics, bank clerks, repairmen, sales clerks, post office. clerks, answering services, car attendants, doormen, drunks, beggars, hotel clerks, movie stars, dentists, car salesmen, mimes, the upper class, the lower-classes, snitches, cab drivers, neighbors, or meddlers? Is there anything about any of them that he likes?
PHYSICAL APPEARANCE
What if the character sees someone with whiskers, a goatee, a mustache, long hair, short hair, a toupee, a wig, pigtails, dyed hair, eyeglasses, large feet, pigeon toes, big ears, or a big nose? Is it a physical attribute that the character would not like? Does the character have a built-in prejudice against people who are short, tall, thin, overweight, bald, blonde, redheaded, gray-haired, pot bellied, wrinkled, weak-chinned, or disabled?
PLACES
Would it add anything special to the character to know that he has developed a preference for, or animosity toward, a particular kind of place where people live, such as stately mansions, apartment buildings, trailer homes, farmhouses, tract homes, shacks, military barracks, or tenements? How does he feel about city parks, libraries, museums, sport stadiums, or memorials?
If he lives in the city, surely he must like or dislike one of the following: parking garages, government buildings, traffic jams, newspaper stands, delicatessens, tall buildings, escalators, elevators, restaurants, coffee shops, big movie theaters, or subways. But if he lives in the suburbs, there are shopping malls, corner drugstores, and six-lane expressways.
Has he traveled enough to form a strong opinion about motels, hotels, airports, bus terminals, train stations, dining cars, tourist spots, rural roads, or phone booths?
And is he a true character if he does not have strong feelings about gas stations, banks, post offices, waiting rooms, public toilets, and dentists' chairs?
POLITICS
How does your character feel about politics? Has he become a cynic? Is he disgusted by smear campaigns, special-interest groups, influence peddling, wire pulling, and bombastic press conferences? Or does he in fact like all the things that go into electioneering—that is, the primaries, the nomination process, conventions, the newspaper and television editorials? Does he prefer one political party over another? If so, would you say he favors the conservative or liberal line?
RELAXATION
(See also Entertainment; Relaxation; Sports)
To "get away from it all," what does the character like to do to relax himself? Does he, for example, read? Work puzzles or riddles? Play computer games, pinball, pool, or solitaire? Go on camping, fishing, or hunting trips? Does he go walking, dancing, or boating? Are there any of these things he doesn't like? And if so, why?
SMELLS
What some characters find to be a pleasant fragrance, the senses of others may define it as objectionable. Your character might like or dislike any of the following smells: perfume, incense, disinfectant, hay, pipe tobacco, or cigarette smoke; the frying of bacon, sausage, onions, fish, or chicken; turkeys roasting, cakes baking, coffee brewing, peanuts roasting, popcorn popping, pies baking. What about freshly mowed grass? Honeysuckle? Fresh paint, furniture polish, or air freshener?
SPORTS
(See also Entertainment; Non-athletic Competition; Relaxation)
Is the character greatly attracted to some sport? If so, does he like to watch it or participate in it? Among the more obvious spectator sports are baseball, basketball, football, rugby, ice hockey, soccer, auto racing, motorcycle racing, boxing, and horse racing. Or maybe he likes to watch the Olympics.
Some of the athletic activities in which a character may participate include running, tennis, swimming, touch football, softball, handball, racquet ball, squash, golf, skiing, water polo, badminton, cricket, fencing, ice skating, field hockey, wrestling, lacrosse, polo, roller skating, sledding, volleyball, bowling, diving, hang-gliding, and discus throwing. On the other hand, are there sports activities that the character does not like?
5. What Does the Character Fear?
Any novelist, playwright, or screenwriter knows full well the powerful impact that fear can have on a character—indeed, upon an entire population. Fear is one of the devices authors use most frequently, and those who know how to use it well are able to make readers or viewers squirm, or perhaps feel protective toward at least one of the characters. Horror-story writers are particularly adept at employing fear to fri
ghten the living daylights out of their audiences, and there is no comfort in knowing that the hero or heroine in the story is scared witless as well.
However, with no offense intended toward those who (1) write spine-tingling tales filled with dark shadows, echoing footsteps, creaking doors, and screams in the night, or (2) concoct adventure stories that leave heroes dangling from moving airplanes or running down alleyways to escape sword-wielding headhunters, this section focuses instead upon the kinds of fears with which most people can identify. The kinds of fears, for example, that silently creep up on us, begin gnawing away, and make us feel helpless. The kinds of fears that help to build plots around interesting, believable characters.
Character-centered fears may build slowly, but eventually they gain momentum and cause the character to make some kind of a decision. In determining a character-centered fear, first ask yourself this very important question: Is the fear justified? If it isn't, then it is probably self-inflicted. That in turn will introduce a whole new set of circumstances, but it does not make the fear any less important to the character. For example, a woman may fear that her husband doesn't love her anymore, though in fact he may adore her more than ever—but he's a salesman in debt and he must work a great deal just to pay the mortgage and keep food on the table. Obviously this situation presents numerous plot possibilities. If, on the other hand, her fears are justified, the plot will take entirely different avenues—all just as plausible.
After the writer has determined whether the fear is justified, more questions naturally follow. The following list of possible fears suggests the types of questions that each brings to the table.
ABANDONMENT
What would make the character fearful of being abandoned, and who does he think will do it? Has that person threatened to leave him before? Indeed, has the character ever been abandoned by anyone? If so, who did it? What were the circumstances? When and where did it happen?
If his fear is realized, does he know anyone who might come to his assistance? If so, who is it, and would that person actually help? Is the character afraid of being left to fend for himself in an environment that he views as hostile to his safety?
Or is his fear of abandonment not that he will be left alone physically, but rather emotionally? Has he been assured by others that they will stand by him if he decides to challenge someone's authority regarding some issue? Nevertheless, is he afraid that they would go back on their word, leaving him alone to face a serious threat?
What will happen if he is abandoned? What will happen if he is not?
CHANGE
If the threat of change frightens the character, what is its precise nature and why would it threaten him so? Or is he simply afraid that change might take place? If change were indeed to take place, who would gain and who would lose?
Assuming a change is imminent, does it promise to be a sweeping one or just a minor modification? Does change scare the character because he has become comfortable with the way things have been and he does not like the uncertainty that accompanies change? What aspect of the prospective change fills him with the most dread? Is he afraid, for example, that change will cause something to be irretrievably lost? Does he see change as a catapult toward disaster?
Has he always been afraid of change? Is being a holdout a part of his history? Does he cling desperately to vestiges of a time long since past? What will happen if the change takes place over his objections? What if he is successful at preventing it?
DEATH
While it's true that almost everyone fears death, does that fear drive the character to desperately avoid death within the story? In what way does he avoid it? Has the fear of death always been front-and-center within his mind, or has it increased in prominence because of his age or because of a set of unfavorable circumstances in which he now finds himself? In the latter instance, does he perhaps fear execution, or losing his life in some other unnatural way?
Is he afraid of taking his last breath because he is convinced that the body he has will become worm food or because the darkness of "nothingness" is too frightening for words? Does the "great beyond" terrify him because he is afraid he will have to answer for what he has done in this life? Is he afraid that he has the same genetic disorder that killed one of his parents and a grandparent?
Has the fear of death rendered him a coward? Put him in a position where he is in perpetual retreat? Deprived him of peace?
DESTRUCTION
What does the character fear will be destroyed? Is it something he has revered, always tried to protect, been a part of? Is it something with a real dollar value, or does it have an intrinsic value that makes it irreplaceable (or both)? If it is destroyed, what does the character think will be lost? Who or what threatens this destruction, and who will lose if it takes place?
Has the threat of destruction been coming closer, and has the character tried to warn others? Has anything like this ever happened before? Does it portend something that the character fears even more?
What will happen if the destruction occurs?
DISHONOR
Has the character done something that he fears could bring dishonor upon himself? Who has evidence that could undo his reputation and lead to his being held up to public ridicule? Perhaps he has done nothing to be ashamed of, yet someone in the story threatens to tell a lie about him and there is a possibility of it being believed. If so, what will that fear cause the character to do?
On the other hand, is he afraid that he will be dishonored if he does not do something? Will this fear cause him to become involved in something that is contrary to his nature? Is he in a social climate so heated with self-righteousness that he is given no alternative but to act indignantly—and with force? Will he desperately look for a way out, while at the same time, to satisfy onlookers, appear to be heeding honor's call?
Or does he fear dishonor not for himself but for someone who is close to him, such as a dear friend or a member of his immediate family? And what will he do to protect that person's reputation?
But what if he fails to protect his honor, or that of a friend? What exactly will happen?
DISCOVERY
(See also Truth)
What is the character afraid will be discovered? Is it a secret, such as his true identity? A piece of valuable evidence? The missing link? His life savings buried in a box? Love letters that will expose an affair? Who does he fear might find what he prefers to keep hidden, and what steps will he take to try to prevent it?
Or is the fear not about what others might discover, but rather what he himself might find? If this is the case, why must he keep looking? Why not be vanquished by the fear that surrounds him and abandon the search for good? What drives him to find what he is fearful of finding?
In either case, in what way will discovery affect the character? How will it affect those who know him? And would everyone be better off if no discovery occurred?
FAILURE
Why is the character afraid to fail? What will be the consequences if he does? Is it just a matter of his self-esteem, or is it far more serious than that? For example, has he made a promise that he believes he dare not break? Or would failure mean the loss of wealth, the disintegration of fame, a great loss of respect, or perhaps the abandonment of future opportunities? What exactly is on the line if failure should come? To what lengths will he go to ensure that he does not fail? Has the character placed himself in a position where failure is unthinkable? What if failure comes anyway?
HARM
No one, except perhaps a masochist, wants to be harmed. But if your character has a greater-than-average fear of harm, does it mean that he will avoid all kinds of confrontation? Will it then be easy for others to taunt him, or for one character to make him look cowardly or foolish in front of others?
Is he the type that says in all seriousness, "I don't want any trouble"? Does fear of harm make him an appeaser, or perhaps a bootlicker? Does it keep him in a perpetual defensive position?
Is t
he character afraid that someone will harm him by taking his money?
Separate him from possessions or friends? Or is he fearful of becoming ill or disabled, and as a result become a prime target for every health craze that comes down the road? Is he always on the run from something that he thinks may hurt him?
HELL
If the character is fearful of Hell, then he apparently believes there is a place where sinners are sent after they die. What, then, is his conception of it? Is it fire and brimstone? A black bottomless pit from which no one ever returns? A trek over endless fields of wretchedness?
Does his fear of Hell cause him to go to church more than he would like? Is he likely to ask for the Lord's forgiveness for even thinking about sinful things? Does his fear prompt him always to look for signs of the Devil? Is he constantly in a wrestling match with his conscience? Does he frequently find himself in an internal sweat, wanting something that is forbidden and, at the same time, cursing himself for having the desire?
How far will his fear of damnation chase him?
AN IDEA
First of all, why would an abstraction, such as an idea, make the character fearful? If it is only an idea and not yet a reality, why not simply ignore it? Or is it an idea too threatening or significant to ignore? Does it promise to upset the status quo? Get people to talking? Does the idea contain principles or information that directly contradicts almost everything the character has been led to believe is true? Does it undermine the position he holds? Threaten his friendships or family? Contain elements that may affect the whole of his society? And what will happen if others take the new idea seriously?
Creating Characters Page 12