Maji
asked
Josh Lanyon:
Yoohoo! Hey, sailor! ;) I have a question: What's your character development process like? And do you find it difficult to create distinct portraits of your characters through dialogue? (Like, do you ever find that they end up sounding too alike or too stunted/not flowy enough and have to rewrite?) Anywho, just finished reading AE again (3rd time, meow?), love your work! They emotionally eviscerate me. T.T <3 Muah
Josh Lanyon
Ahoy there, Maji!
Let's see. For character development, I sketch out a few general thoughts: age, appearance, dilemma (every character needs one), and then I begin asking myself questions about their education, political leanings, religious beliefs, family, romantic history, etc. If it's a character for a series, I'll think about food and friends and music and so forth.
A tool I find really helpful but also kind of fun is filling out a character interview, but I mostly do that for series characters, not standalones.
Then I'll create their romantic foil based on what would be both the best and worst character match for this person. That way there's always plenty of conflict but there's also plenty of room for compromise and caring.
When it comes to dialog, yes, dialog is one of the things I rewrite the most. It has to be true to the character--character voice is something I try to stay conscious of all the time--but dialog also has to move the plot along, AND it has to be entertaining in its own right. So yes, I do rework dialog a lot.
I'm so glad you're enjoying the the books! I mean, assuming evisceration is enjoyable. :-D
Let's see. For character development, I sketch out a few general thoughts: age, appearance, dilemma (every character needs one), and then I begin asking myself questions about their education, political leanings, religious beliefs, family, romantic history, etc. If it's a character for a series, I'll think about food and friends and music and so forth.
A tool I find really helpful but also kind of fun is filling out a character interview, but I mostly do that for series characters, not standalones.
Then I'll create their romantic foil based on what would be both the best and worst character match for this person. That way there's always plenty of conflict but there's also plenty of room for compromise and caring.
When it comes to dialog, yes, dialog is one of the things I rewrite the most. It has to be true to the character--character voice is something I try to stay conscious of all the time--but dialog also has to move the plot along, AND it has to be entertaining in its own right. So yes, I do rework dialog a lot.
I'm so glad you're enjoying the the books! I mean, assuming evisceration is enjoyable. :-D
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