Last weekend I saw yet another visually
stunning science fiction film with lack luster characters. Science fiction
seems to be the home of under developed characters with overblown settings both
in books and film. Technology cannot take the place of artful character
development.
Characters are the soul of any story. They
need to be vivid, relatable.
Let’s look at some good examples:
In Ender’s
Game by Orson Scott Card the reader feels the isolation of Ender. They
experience his loneliness as each successive person he learns to care about is
ripped from his life.
In Born
of Night by Sherrilyn Kenyon the reader is compelled to relive Nykyrian’s
difficult past along with him in order to accomplish his mission. The reader
wants him to succeed. The reader longs for him to be redeemed.
Han Solo in the Star Wars saga stands out as a well developed motion picture
character. He’s one you can sink your teeth into - the rogue who is redeemed in
spite of his past.
Pick a novel, any novel, or a movie. If you
loved it, that love was based on the author’s ability to wrap you up in the
life of their characters. Vivid characters are the soul of a great story. What
makes a character come alive? What gets an audience involved and compels them
to keep reading or watch yet another sequel?
If you search the internet you will find
lists of rules for character development. These are the ones that keep me
reading or shelling out the big bucks for
the blockbusters. As a writer these are the ones I try to make sure my
characters abide by:
- Physical Description. This doesn’t have to be regurgitated in a couple of sentences
when the character is first introduced. It can be handed out in bits and
pieces to link together and fill in the empty spots with your imagination.
Game of Thrones’ author George
R. R. Martin crafts great physical descriptions.
- Mannerisms. They bring a character to life whether they run their hands
through their hair in frustration or bite their lower lip when thinking,
chew on a pencil, or nibble on chocolates. It makes the character come to
life. How creepy was Heath Ledger’s Joker in The Dark Knight with his incessant tongue action?
- Interaction. Seeing the character through someone, or something’s, eyes. What did the love for a dog tell us about Will Smith’s character in I am Legend? As short a part as Chris Hemsworth’s had as George Kirk in Star Trek we felt his sacrifice and his longing through his pregnant wife.
Well written,
snappy dialogue is a must. A book will not be put down or a mind loss interest
in a movie where the characters deliver lines that Zing. Think Avengers or any Joss Whedon script. Ensemble work, whether on stage, in a
movie or in a book is a wonder to behold if well written. The people who
surround the main characters can’t just be stage
props, they need to play off the other characters and give the reader more
of a sense of purpose by their association.
- Inner Voice. Hearing the thoughts of the character enlightens the audience.
How they see the situation they are in. How they feel they can solve it.
Sometimes these are the strongest indications of a character’s soul.
Rector in Cherie Priest’s steampunk novel The Inexplicables
gives the reader insight into his conflicted feelings as an addict forced
to clean up his act due to the influence of his new companions in an
apocalyptic
- Conflict. This is central to both plot and character. When the
character needs to overcome some personal obstacle in order to lay both
their demons and the plot to rest, this is great writing. The character of
Katniss Everdeen in the Hunger
Games trilogy by Suzanne
Collins comes to my mind. She is forced into her role, but then must make
the best of her evolving influence over her tortured world.
- Reaction. Often the plots telegraph where they are leading us and we go willingly. There are only so many storylines out there. We may not be disappointed if the character’s react properly. If the story has given us two characters that are emotionally involved and one is hurt – dies – is driven away, we want the character left behind to feel that loss. Let the character cry. Let them be angry and do something rash. Don’t write them as unfeeling stick figures. And on another side of this point, don’t let a character overlook a solution that is so very, very obvious to the author’s audience. Characters should not be dumb.
With all the above said, I must confess it
was Oblivion that drove me to rail
about better characters. The film was visually stunning. The characters were
flat, paper cut outs. Where is the Reaction
(No. 6 - above) of loss when Jack sees his partner killed in the breathtakingly
beautiful sky house? Where is the wonder of finding his wife still alive? Is it
too much to ask for some rage at the thought that he was fooled, manipulated,
cloned?
I wait in anticipation as the summer
science fiction blockbusters roll out. I bury myself in novels that are better
written and hope for improvement from the studios. I never give up on looking
for characters that will engage me - characters with heart.
THERESA SNYDER is a sci-fi, fantasy and sometimes non-fiction writer with aninternationally read blog. She recently published Vol.
1 of her Star Traveler Series on Kindle,
The Helavite War. Her plan is to post the other five volumes over the next six months. Her non-fiction book based on her years spent as a caregiver to her parents is also available on Kindle.
She spends her free time in quiet contemplation of other worlds and unique characters.
Visit Theresa online on: http://theresasnyder.blogspot.com/
She is also on Twitter: www.twitter.com/TheresaSnyder19
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