So we’re getting ready for NaNo. (Well, I am. Some of you are.) Usually I get to know my characters in the process of writing. I see them act and react to get to know them best. Several people in the comments agreed.
But of course with NaNo, we’re not allowed to write Word One on our novel until November 1. How are we supposed to get to know our characters and see them in action before then? So I was thinking about a fun way for all of us to get to know our characters better.
What you have to do:
Email me at jordan at jordanmccollum.com (spelling counts!) with the following information by the end of Wednesday, October 26, 2011.
- Character’s vitals: name, gender, age, pertinent family info, etc.—as of the start of your novel
- Types of external/internal conflict your character will face in your novel
- Maybe a little about your antagonist: what are his/her good qualities? Why doesn’t s/he like your protagonist?
- Themes of your novel (if you know)
- A little info about you: would you rather collaborate on a project with a small or larger group? Do you prefer Google Docs or email? What time(s) are you typically online?
And we’ll play a little game. (NOT on the blog, or anywhere else public, don’t worry.)
Photo by Tom Olliver
I updated my NaNo page, but I’m pretty sure I’m not going to participate this year. I’m in the middle of something and I don’t want to be rushed with it. My laptop and I are going to be offline for a couple weeks during November, too. I may emerge to post my word counts periodically, but have no expectation of great numbers.
As we’ve discussed before, when I’m starting something new I like to mull over my main character and think about his environment, do a little pre-planning about the goal and some of the potential conflicts, but then I just start writing. It sounds like you have some fun things in the works for your planning period. 🙂
Another good way is to do a little pre-writing. Pick a few scenes in your characters’ backstory and write them out, without any intention to use them in your novel. Character worksheets are good to have, but they’ve never helped me find the character’s voice like actually writing out the critical scenes that made him who he is. 🙂
I’m not a fan of character worksheets, either. This is not a character worksheet—it’s an opportunity to get together with other writers to get to know our characters better.