Top 10 Tips to becoming an author
December 18th 2006 02:10
When asked what a book is about, most people will describe the plot. This happens, then this happens, then this happens, and in the end this happens (well, hopefully they stop before revealing what happens in the end, but not all people do!). It’s not surprising then, that when some writers plan their book, plot is foremost on their mind. Things are this way in the beginning, then this, this and this happens, and things are different in the end.
What many new writers fail to understand is that the same rules apply to characters: they are one way at the beginning, then this, this and this happens, and they are different at the end. That’s what they mean by character development.
Character development is important because it makes us, the reader, care. If a character is unchanged or unmoved by the events in the story, how significant must those events have been? When you think about it, it makes sense – events in themselves are pretty dull, it’s how they affect people that is interesting.
So how can you develop characters? One idea is to write two profiles of the one character – one describing them at the beginning of the book, the other at the end of the book. Now, think of your plot. How can what happens in the story change or develop that character’s personality?
A lot of the character development will be organic – you’ll see your character develop as the book does anyway. It can be very helpful, though, to have a solid idea of the end result character. It will give you something to work towards.
Return soon for more tips on becoming an author!
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