Considering Stories: Characters

I spend a lot of time thinking about writing. By a lot of time, I mean it. I think about writing every day. Even when I am tired, I’m thinking about stories. One topic whose importance I initially underestimated involves characters.

Characters are complex!

For some reason, my characters in both books start off 2D. He loves her. She loves him. They suffer. The suffering ends. They’re happy. The end. And that is a boring story that nobody can relate too.

In Shadows within the Fog, my first version of Katie was a woman who underwent tragedy but was always happy. She would go to therapy with Lewis, and she would be the rock who managed to overcome her trauma like some Hegelian superwoman. She was too happy for my story. Lewis, on the other hand, was broken and depressed. Their attributes did not hold up in the story. As the story changed, so did their personalities. With The Last Train to Milan, I wanted to write a perfect romance story. But it didn’t work out that. Instead, I found something dark in each of the characters and they fed off each other. But in each of those characters, I also found something good in each of them.

Characters can change the storyline.

As much as events shape people, people can shape events. This is true of storylines too!

In my first novel, Shadows within the Fog, I had another outcome in mind. But as I got to know my main character, Lewis, I could not imagine my initial ending fit. In fact, my opinion of it changed. Towards the final half of the book, Lewis took a journey. I almost feel he’d had enough pain and misery and started to act on his own. That was my feeling by the end of the book.

In The Last Train to Milan, both characters changed completely from my first understanding of them. As I got to know both, I saw something dark in each of them. Unlike Lewis, my character, Freddie, is stronger. But he too is trapped in situations out of his control, and he too needs to act. But he does it earlier. The story revolves around his attempts to change his fate.

Characters are human.

In my writing, I look for qualities in my characters that make them relatable to me and my readers. They must be three dimensional. I have no problem if a good person does something terrible in my writing. But their deeds need to fit in the context of their worlds. Up until this point, I have not found something outlandish in my characters. I can see and imagine their actions even if they are disagreeable.

In Shadows within the Fog, Lewis suffers from depression. But it more than suffering. He’s racked by it and tortured by life. I think many people feel the same way. At times, I felt he was floundering in his life. And here too, many people do. In The Last Train to Milan, Lana is a controlling woman who dominates her partners. I can see similar qualities in her that I have seen in parts of some couples I’ve met over the years.

In my works, the characters are as important as the plot. They can even change it.

For more insight into Lewis, Katie, check out my debut work on Amazon.com and Amazon.de. It is also available on the other Amazon sites.