The character is one of the most important parts of a story. He can be a good character, and make the book epic, or he can be rotten, and ruin the book entirely. Here are just a few hints on the characters in a story or novel. As you know, there are no rules to writing, but here are just a few suggestions. You do not have to follow all of them; you may even break them all, if you like.
Part I: An Introduction to the Character
1) The Importance of the Character
i. First of all, if there is no personality character, there is not much to happen. If the hero in Waverly had not had a keen sense of honour and justice, he would never have joined with Prince Charles Edward, and there would never have been much of the action. This works the opposite way as well. Sometimes there is a character flaw; or a downright flawed character. This is generally a book where the subject reforms, or overcomes an issue such as pride, fear, envy, and so on.
* One should use a variety of characters. One does not want to read about 13 scientists who work in their laboratories from three in the morning to twelve at night and are always up in the clouds. Make someone different for a change! Why not a social butterfly scientist who just throws everything together and gets an invention? Or better yet, make him never invent anything at all, and do something else the reader never dreamed of?
iii. If you are in the mood for something new, make a change of pace by adding an off-the-wall character. However, if you add humour, please try it out on the three funniest people you know. (I have come across many authors trying to be funny who are only exasperating. Some writers are just gifted with humour, such as P.G. Wodehouse and Hergé. But don’t worry, it doesn’t take too much to make up a story that will make a ten-year-old laugh.) Be careful, also, not to make your odd-ball too out of place. A Cowboy in China is a little extreme, but done right, it could work, and be funny too. (What do you think about an Indian in Paris?)
2) Types of Characters
i. The Main Character (also known as the hero).
He is the one who makes the story. He must have something change by the end, either in his situation, his personality, his circumstances, or anything. He must not be perfect. That is the greatest flaw I have come across these days. Make your Main Character have at least one major fault. (if you want him to be really life-like, you can make him have more!) However, readers tend to get upset at perfect Main Characters. A reader cannot relate to a perfect person any more than a writer can, and if the writer can’t, the reader never will.
*Another thing, and I will repeat what my colleague once said. Do not always make the hero handsome—or beautiful. Although it is easy to do so, it isn’t necessary. No one really sees him anyway, unless your book is illustrated, and an artist could make him look however he wanted to. If you illustrate your own book, it is much more subtle to draw him handsome or her beautiful than it is to say so in writing. If some day a film is made of your book, leave it to the film-maker to make the actor who-ever he chooses.
*Also, don’t make him too stupid. Everyone likes someone who can think for himself and solve problems, but you shouldn’t make all of your main characters Sherlock Holmeses.
*Depending on the genre of your story, you may have many main characters. In children’s stories or stories about families, there are usually quite a few. (Five Children and It, Rainbow Valley) Even in more grown-up books there can be many main characters, especially in Dickens’. (Bleak House).
*I feel compelled to insert a note here on when to introduce your main character. He generally appears in the first chapter, but sometimes he appears later. Be careful about waiting to insert him, because you have to start with someone, and you generally don’t want people to think someone else is the hero. In fact, there is a story I am working on myself in which the main character does not appear in person until the end.
ii. The Villain
He is one of my personal favourites, because you can do so much with him. He is very important too, although he is not necessary in all stories. I feel it is easier to make up villains’ plots than heroes’. I believe that is a result of sin nature. He usually has many faults, obviously, but they go without being stated. (Or if you’re a good writer, implied.) My favourite kinds are the brilliant villains, but the duller ones are fine too, as long as they aren’t unbelievably stupid. They have to be smart enough to be interesting. The villain also has the special privilege of being allowed to be smarter than the hero.
*Another word from my colleague; don’t always make the villain ugly. Ugly villains are a stereotype, but handsome villains can be interesting, like Mr. Parker in Jack Ballister’s Fortunes. Just be sure you don’t overdo it. (One or Two ugly villains are acceptable generally, but better yet don’t mention the word ugly at all.)
*Don’t introduce the villain in the first chapter if the reader isn’t supposed to know he’s the villain. A good reader can tell a villain at first glance, so better not try to conceal him anyhow. (I actually made this mistake myself, because the character wasn’t going to be a villain when I introduced him, but I let him be anyway. Besides, I got too attached to that part.)
*Special Note: Be careful about getting too attached to anything. It happens to everybody, but it is hard to reverse.
*There are several types of villains. The villain who is bad because he hates the hero,( Messala from Ben Hur) the villain who is bad because he can get something out of it,(Long John Silver from Treasure Island) the villain who is bad for the sake of being bad (Rupert Hentzau from The Prisoner of Zenda), and the villain who is—well, just bad.
*There are many ways to dispose of a villain. Remember that he should always get his just deserts. Killing him off is useful, if you are into that sort of thing. Dickens is very ingenious when coming up with ways to kill people. However, I am always hesitant to get rid of the villain this way. Perhaps it is from my early training in the sixth commandment. Some of the other useful operations to get rid of villains are to
1. Send him to jail. This is probably the easiest thing to do with him. It spares the sharper pang of killing him, but dispenses with him properly.
2. Make him be injured. Bringing back the example of Messala in Ben Hur.
3. Be exiled. An easy way to get rid of him, but not always the best choice, as he suffers little from his wickedness.
4. Run away to return in the sequel. This is one of my particular favourites, although I have not yet used it myself. It adds flavour, only everyone knows who the villain is going to be in the sequel.
5. Have something else bad happen to him. This can include everything from falling into the pond to losing his fortune. It is the simplest form, but it is not always easy to have an original idea.
6. Reform. This is a nice thing to do, but try to be realistic. Not everyone reforms easily.
iii. The Sidekick
This is the chappie who runs around with the hero and helps him out. Sometimes he is just the hero’s friend. Sometimes the hero has multiple sidekicks, but there is generally one main one. The sidekick is useful too, but there are some precautions one must take. You should be cautious not to make the reader like him better than the hero, especially if you mean to kill him or have something bad happen to him. (By the way, I suggest you never kill your sidekick unless you are writing a war story or tragedy.) You should not like him too much yourself, because it generally causes complications later. However, it is fine if you make him just as good as the hero. Some uses for the sidekick are,
*To help the hero in general ways. He can be the extra pair of hands, the help when the hero needs an extra man.
*To save the hero when he gets in a tight spot. When he’s caught in the villain’s castle, who’s to get him out?
*Just to be around when you get bored of the hero. If you have romance in your book, it’s always a nice change of pace if you make the sidekick do something smart while the lovers are mooning.
iv. The Catalyst
This is the type of character who sets the plot spinning. Even though he may not be in the story so very much, he is generally very important. He stays the same but, by his actions, makes others of the characters change. Example: Cinderella’s fairy godmother is a catalyst. She sends Cinderella to the ball where she meets the prince and loses her slipper, etc. Nothing happens to the fairy godmother, but she changes the rest of the story for Cinderella.
v. The Foil
He is the one who is the hero’s opposite. He is generally the one who adds emphasis and colour to the hero’s character by having the opposite personality. For instance, if the hero is proud and talkative, the foil may be very quiet and meek. The foil can be almost anyone in the story, including the catalyst, sidekick or villain. He is often a lot of fun to create, and he adds a new tone to the story.
vi. The Other kinds of Characters
There are several other types of characters, including
*The Little Brother or Sister
Or else the person the hero or someone else in the story has to take care of. In books where the characters are mostly grown-ups, this character can be a new and fresh element.
*The Protector
He is the person who takes care of the hero.
*Girlfriend or Boyfriend
Or Beau. You may not like any of those words, but you know what I’m talking about. Some readers don’t like it if you end the book without them getting married or engaged, so if you don’t want to write a love story, don’t put one in.
*Unpleasant Personage
He is the person who complicates life for other people and makes everyone miserable. He is sometimes the villain, but sometimes he’s just a minor character.
*There are many other types of characters. These are just the most popular ones.
*Make a lot of different kinds of characters in your story. Characters add substance to your story, and different types add flavour. Think of your work as a salad. More isn’t always better, but variety is. You can have the most epic plot ever and ruin it with dull characters. They can be one of the hardest things to create, but one of the most satisfying, too.
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