A Goodreads user
asked
Bruce Beckham:
I have more questions for you. Where do you find your inspiration for characters? Are you a note taker during your idea gathering process? Do you, like Virginia Woolf and Dorothy Parker, keep a diary for personal reflections on your writing process?
Bruce Beckham
Aha - some good questions!
1. Inspiration for characters
Mainly people whom I have met and got to know something of! This way I have a good idea how they will act in most circumstances. Between the real person and the page they might switch shape, size, age, gender etc - but at the heart of each is a little spark of personality I can rely on for consistency.
I try to give characters names that are distinctive and perhaps that reflect their nature or profession (to help the reader identify them more easily). A simple example of this is DS Leyton in the 'DI Skelgill' series - he is a 'Cockney' and Leyton is a district of East London.
2. Notes during idea-gathering stage
No - I don't take notes in the beginning. I develop an overall idea for a novel in my head and start writing. I liken this to knitting a tartan scarf (not that I can knit) to a pattern I've seen in a shop. At any stage after commencement there is a neatly finished portion at the front, with a whole array of loose threads to be woven back in, and several untouched balls of varying colours yet to be incorporated!
I do have lots of ideas once I get moving, and sometimes discover a new and better ending halfway through! I record these on whatever is handy and incorporate them into the untidy tail of the scarf as soon as I reach my Mac.
3. Diary - personal reflections on writing
No - I don't keep a diary of this nature - partly due to time pressure - but I do think a lot about the subject while I'm occupied with routine tasks eg. taxiing kids around Edinburgh, loitering at the gym, waiting for the dog to return with the ball - and also while I'm reading - perhaps the best cue for comparison and learning.
1. Inspiration for characters
Mainly people whom I have met and got to know something of! This way I have a good idea how they will act in most circumstances. Between the real person and the page they might switch shape, size, age, gender etc - but at the heart of each is a little spark of personality I can rely on for consistency.
I try to give characters names that are distinctive and perhaps that reflect their nature or profession (to help the reader identify them more easily). A simple example of this is DS Leyton in the 'DI Skelgill' series - he is a 'Cockney' and Leyton is a district of East London.
2. Notes during idea-gathering stage
No - I don't take notes in the beginning. I develop an overall idea for a novel in my head and start writing. I liken this to knitting a tartan scarf (not that I can knit) to a pattern I've seen in a shop. At any stage after commencement there is a neatly finished portion at the front, with a whole array of loose threads to be woven back in, and several untouched balls of varying colours yet to be incorporated!
I do have lots of ideas once I get moving, and sometimes discover a new and better ending halfway through! I record these on whatever is handy and incorporate them into the untidy tail of the scarf as soon as I reach my Mac.
3. Diary - personal reflections on writing
No - I don't keep a diary of this nature - partly due to time pressure - but I do think a lot about the subject while I'm occupied with routine tasks eg. taxiing kids around Edinburgh, loitering at the gym, waiting for the dog to return with the ball - and also while I'm reading - perhaps the best cue for comparison and learning.
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Dec 08, 2014 06:17PM · flag
Dec 09, 2014 05:07AM · flag