I was thinking about Milton who wrote a poem when he was blind and Beethoven who composed when he was death. One cannot possibly imagine how one can execute these most difficult arts. I as a writer find it difficult to write at best times because I write in English and also writing is not as easy as one wants it to be. Glad in an another way that it isn't otherwise it would become boring. I want to go through which characters you find most difficult to portray and which you would never write about because one simply can't. a) I cannot depict violent or a manic depressive/volatile characters because I justhave not got the skills to do so. b) characters with disabilty such as blind/death/on wheel chairs because I am not one and so I cannot imagine how I could. I am guessing I would not use a blinc character as an MC for example because I cannot imagine it. Discuss.
I had a mute in my story once. I found her SO hard to write about that after a chapter or two I ended up just making her the shy and quiet type.
When it come to those kinds of characters i strongly rely on thought, which i find really easy to do.
I am guessing that wouldbe verydiffiicult. really? can you describe or have you one in mind just to show what you mean? Not many can because where there is a difficulty there is a difficulty if you see what I mean.
Once I tried to write a short story about a blind man. It was really hard -- vision is such a primary sense! I found all these visual metaphors slipping into my writing, which of course I had to get rid of. While it was difficult, it was also really interesting to do. I had to totally change my way of looking at the world (I couldn't even look at the world at all! I had to hear and smell and taste and feel it) and while the story wasn't particularly great, I think it was worth it for the practice.
The most difficult characters to portray are those whose presence is essential to the story and yet there's absolutely no inspiration behind their personality.
I understand that perfectly hence why I take all my characters tobe MCs. In other word there is no MC in mystories. They are all crucial/essential to the story. It is all or nothing.
i can't imagine any kind of character i wouldn't be able to depict, since i'm a practicing philosopher who's studied human history for decades and, as i've lived so long [at 73+] and in so many parts of the world, i've experienced/observed/studied/read about every kind of human being there is...
I have a really hard time writing women - which is rather ridiculous since I am one. I find myself giving them all the negative stereotypical traits known, and I do not understand why! I do manage to work it out eventually, but I also tend to keep them out my stories as much as humanly possible. It's going to be very difficult in my current project, because a woman is an integral part of the story, and she has to be a mean piece of work - but I know I have to keep a close eye on her so she doesn't go overboard.
Is there a book you read where the MC was a female? Just trying to work why you keep female characters out.
Actually, I have several favorite authors whose MC is female - Patricia Cornwell, Agatha Christie, Sue Grafton, just as examples. I have no problem reading books with female MCs or supporting characters - I just can't write them without killing myself a hundred times over.
This. I even started writing a reply to this thread yesterday stating this. However, I stopped because on another website it upset a very feminist writer to the point that where she felt a need to alert the administrator to my supposedly sexist opinions.
Tricky...but then i suppose that's where research comes in. If you are writing about a particular character / scene / technology or whatever then it obviously pays to read / watch / talk to people who know about such things. Imagination is good, but if you need a piece to be authentic then you need to do a bit of learning, and any learning is good for the soul. IMO
The protagonists of my side-project are proving to be a bit difficult right now, but I've only been at it for a few days so hopefully that'll clear up as I develop them more. On one hand is Arthur, who's supposed to be a cool, cunning, villain-type. The villainy I don't have a problem with, but writing someone who's supposed to be both brainy and charismatic? How do those people even work? And with my recent Sherlock kick, I'm afraid he'll come off like a ripoff of the BBC version of Moriarty. Then Florence is a hitman (hitwoman?) for the mafia, which is a very unlikely profession for a woman in the 1920s. I'm worried about making her seem too unrealistic for the time period, or turning into a huge Sue. But my love of chicks with guns makes me reluctant to scrap her or swap her gender. I hope to have mammamamia's level of experience with people one day - that'd make things so much easier.
truly that is just silly for someone to complain just because they say they don't enjoy writing up female characters.
I haven't struggled depicting anyone I've tried to write about so far, one of my few good features (although it has its downsides) is that I empathise quite easily so I can get into most characters' heads ok. I know I would struggle like heck to write about someone from the Viking or Ancient Roman era though. Having read history books and been to museums about those times my mind boggles at the societies, how cheap life was, how utterly frightening things like earthquakes and floods would have been and how ordinary folk coped and thrived. I might give something a bash actually, could be interesting!
I have trouble writing non-musicians. It's silly, I know, but music is a heavily influential part of my life and I can't bring myself to write a character that doesn't play music. If I have to make them not play music, then I make them talented in other facets or the love interests of the musicians, and in some cases, both. Nearly everything I've written is laced with musical influence.
I have this problem. However, there is a very good animated series called Daria, which did give me some good pointers for creating strong female characters. I know it's MTV but the series is incredibly well written and the characters are just so relatable. If you have time I would recommend you check it out.
I can't write from the point of view of evil, sadistic characters. I start hating them after a few weeks, then I make the "evil" character reform. That makes me have them even more. Eventually I just cut them out.
Funny you mentioned it because that is one of my strengths. lol. I found that writing a two faced character is about the attitude and actions of the character. Example is in one of the books I am writing. The main character grew up with a military/royalty attitude, following orders without question and getting things done right. It was not until an incident on the battlefield where she transitioned between right and left brained. At certain points she will follow orders and then last minute follow her own. Or say one thing to person A and then betray person A for person B,C,D etc. I think the most difficult character to portray is the MC's friend who in time becomes the relationship/lover/crush. I have a hard time expressing between the two characters at the same time juggling to keep the story line consistent. Does not help that most of the relationships I have were not romantic, I end up writing down what my fiance and I experienced together from how we met to why we are here now. It is still hard to break away from it and create a romantic story unique for the characters.
