Compared to my supporting characters, my female protagonist is a bore (sorry to her, but true!)

Discussion in 'Character Development' started by Brigid, Apr 23, 2017.

  1. Homer Potvin

    Homer Potvin A tombstone hand and a graveyard mind Staff Supporter Contributor

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    Yep, that's pretty much what it's like. And you can't get out of an uncomfortable POV any more than you can jump from a speeding car.
     
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  2. malaupp

    malaupp Active Member

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    Oh, that would be awesome. And other people could bring on their characters, so the wizened wizard from one story is chatting to the 1920s private eye of another.

    Can we make that happen? xD
     
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  3. Simpson17866

    Simpson17866 Contributor Contributor

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    Sounds like a good thread for the Writing Prompts: "Random conversations" :D
     
  4. malaupp

    malaupp Active Member

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    Is that a thing? I have to check that out.

    Because I don't have enough story prompts already. xD
     
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  5. QueenOfPlants

    QueenOfPlants Definitely a hominid

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    Yes, please!
    We need a "Character Chatroom"!!! Either as Subforum or as an actual Chatroom.
    This is an awesome idea.
     
  6. jannert

    jannert Retired Mod Supporter Contributor

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    Northern Exposure! There's a series I really enjoyed, but haven't thought about in years. Yeah, the quirky characters were more or less what the series was based on. It was fun for a while, but I wouldn't want a steady diet of it.
     
  7. Teresa Mendes

    Teresa Mendes Member

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    You're welcome =) Instead of "not always honest", if it was "rarely honest" that would be a major flaw to overcome. Just thinking out loud.
     
  8. Stormburn

    Stormburn Contributor Contributor

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    I wondered if authors handicap their work by trying to be too theme oriented. Northern Exposure, for example, I loved it, but, as it progressed, it shifted focused off of their characters and onto being quirky. I've seen dark theme shows where everyone and everything was so dark that the what really could have been interesting dark characters didn't stand out.
     
  9. Commandante Lemming

    Commandante Lemming Contributor Contributor

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    So, I've read the responses but going back to the original post, this is a problem that a LOT of authors have, and it's hard-wired into the nature of how novels work. Writing Excuses event did and entire episode titled "What Do You Mean My Main Character is Boring?"

    http://www.writingexcuses.com/2015/02/01/writing-excuses-10-5-what-do-you-mean-my-main-character-is-boring/

    The nature of a protagonist is that they're usually the most relatable character in the story, and the one whose mind the reader needs to be able to enter as an analogue for their own experience. This, by definition, usually makes your MC the least crazy person in the cast. Their job is to react to all the craziness going on around them, and in some cases validate the reader by sharing a "WTF?" reaction the plot and side-characters.

    So, don't worry TOO much about them being relatively normal - because that's their JOB.

    That said, it is important to give them enough things that make them unique and fun. This is where the little details from character-bio-sheets (which I hate) can actually come in handy, because with a protagonist the MINOR details can be more important. You're spending a lot of time with this person relative to the others, so it may be more noticeable if - for instance - they have a nail-biting problem, or a sensitivity to strong smells. In my case, my MC Nina has four distinguishing features that keep her engaging

    1) She's the small town idealist in a big-city narrative, so she has a lot of surprised/WTF reactions to things that other people think are normal (and when she tries to be a worldly city-girl, she usually fails spectacularly).
    2) She's extremely perceptive about people's behavioral ticks, so she tends to be the one who notices revealing minor details about how other people behave - and I make sure it's obvious to both the audience and other characters that she's unique in this way.
    3) I've written her as a Star Trek superfan and comic book geek. This, by itself, often affects everything from how she dresses to the cultural references she makes.
    4) Her family owned a diner, so she's a foodie, a very good cook, and can be a real snob about food being cooked properly - which surfaces in some funny ways - especially in the romantic subplot.


    Those four things are all relatively minor, and Nina is still BY FAR the most normal person in my cast - but that's enough to keep her interesting, at least to me as the writer.
     
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  10. QueenOfPlants

    QueenOfPlants Definitely a hominid

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    That sounds like an interesting/fun character. Does she know how to properly prepare Gagh?
     
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  11. Teruzond

    Teruzond New Member

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    Nor does action mean exciting.
     
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  12. Commandante Lemming

    Commandante Lemming Contributor Contributor

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    No, but she does have a tendency tof start spitting Klingon curse words whenever her ex-boyfriend comes up.
     
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  13. EstherMayRose

    EstherMayRose Gay Souffle Contributor

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    Has the"character chatroom" been started?

    Like the others said, characters being boring is certainly not a one-off thing. How far in are you? I find that the more you get to know your character, the less boring they become. Mine tend to gather quirks as they go.

    One thing I will say about the "readers projecting themselves onto the character" thing: I find that it's better to feel that one is with the character, rather than that one is the character. I also read this article:

    http://www.springhole.net/writing/killing-the-blank-slate-character.htm

    And then I found this while looking for the link:
    http://www.springhole.net/writing/reasons-your-character-might-be-boring.htm

    Should be just the ticket! Good luck, and have fun.
     
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  14. Simpson17866

    Simpson17866 Contributor Contributor

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    I had just clicked "Post a new thread" in Writing Prompts to get this started when I saw your Alert :rofl:

    I should have the OP finished in a couple of minutes.
     
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  15. EstherMayRose

    EstherMayRose Gay Souffle Contributor

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    On behalf of anyone who wants to join in: you are fabulous. Thank you.
     
  16. Simpson17866

    Simpson17866 Contributor Contributor

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    Just got it set up :rolleyes:
     
  17. Brigid

    Brigid Active Member

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    These are just my supporting characters, Jannert. No constant NE diet.
     
  18. Brigid

    Brigid Active Member

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    I don't any other writer's forum has a character chatroom, you all.
     
  19. Brigid

    Brigid Active Member

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    Where is the link to the character chatroom????
    True, Teresa. Did you read this below about the Character Chatroom? In which not the writer's the characters chat... Imagine my "rarely honest" girl lying in the faces of all other characters posting there. My, my!
     
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  20. Brigid

    Brigid Active Member

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    I like Nina, CL. Doesn't read even remotely like a Flatly (name I give to flat characters.)

    Having someone more normal in the cast is probably the best contrast the eccentrics that populate my writings.
     
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  21. Brigid

    Brigid Active Member

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    Guess one error a writer can make is not getting enough contrasts or too much of the same good thing, Stormburn.
     
  22. Brigid

    Brigid Active Member

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  23. Teresa Mendes

    Teresa Mendes Member

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    I hadn't! It seems like a lot of fun actually hehe but it could be a bit to confusing for the other participants.
     
  24. EstherMayRose

    EstherMayRose Gay Souffle Contributor

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    About the rarely honest thing, my MC lies her way through the entire book! (Which is why it's currently titled "The Comprehensive Liar".)
     
  25. Phil Mitchell

    Phil Mitchell Banned Contributor

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    Do you really like that "Comprehensive" in there? Sounds more like a textbook about liars than a story title.
     

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