Interviewing Your Characters

 

I came across this blog post via Twitter, in which author Nat Russo suggested the best way of finding your character’s voice is to interview them.

Eleven books down the line, I figure I know Joe Murray well enough already, but it’s an interesting exercise, so I thought I’d give it a go, and I’m using the set questions Nat suggested. Here it is then, the definitive me interviewing the definitive Joe.

Who are you?

I’m Joe Murray. I own The Lazy Luncheonette the finest truckstop in West Yorkshire. I’m also the best amateur sleuth in the north of England. And don’t let anyone tell you any different.

What do you care about most in the world?

My business. What else? Sanford isn’t the liveliest town in the world. It’s not the liveliest town in Yorkshire, to be honest, so there isn’t really that much to care about. Having said that, there is the Sanford 3rd Age Club, which I happen to run with my two friends Sheila Riley and Brenda Jump. We help keep all those born again, middle aged mods and rockers off the street.

What really cheeses you off?

Everything. Bolshie truckers expecting breakfast to be ready before they’ve even ordered it, suppliers who can’t deliver on time, nosy parkers from the health department accusing me of dumping chip fat in the street bins, and third agers who believe they can run the club better than me.

If you could do one thing, and succeed at it, what would it be?

I’d abolish VAT on the service element of catering. Do you know complicated it is trying to keep my books straight?

What people do you most admire, and why?

Professional detectives. And by detectives I don’t mean private eyes who spend their time chasing up bad debt and divorce evidence. I mean the real sleuths who track down hard line criminals and murderers. They need guts, intelligence and persistence.

What was your childhood like?

Depressing. Work it out for yourself. This town was dominated by the pit and the foundry. That’s enough to depress anyone. To make matters worse, my old man had me working in the café before and after school, and the day after I left school, I started here full time.

What’s the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to you?

Waking up next to Brenda just after Valentine’s Day last year. We were both drunk at the time, and I swear nothing happened, but no one believes us.

What do you look like?

I’m six feet six, and I have muscles in me spit. What do you think I look like? I’m short, wire haired and grouchy. But if you had my life, wouldn’t you be grouchy, too?

***So there you are. A short interview with our Joe.

You can read the original post from Nat Russo here.