“But another great rule for choosing good characters is to simply pick people you would enjoy getting to know better. Remember: You will be spending a lot of time with these people. As you consider a possible character for your story, ask yourself this question: How would you feel about going on a month-long cruise with them? Even the unsavory characters in your book—the black-hearted villains and nine-headed gorgons—should be interesting enough that you wouldn’t mind playing shuffleboard or sharing the lobster buffet with them every day for a month.”