Do you ever notice that your characters contain bits and pieces of your own personality? If the real me was ever in a book, I’d probably make for quite an eccentric character.
You see that woman at the side of the pool, hunched over and scribbling in a sketchbook while the kids are having their swimming lesson? Or that crazy lady hunting for snails in her front yard while other people in the neighbourhood are sitting on their porches enjoying the evening? She actually rejects watching an episode of Glee to type stuff on the computer. And she drags home huge bags of books from the library every week. Weird.
Luckily, I’m creating the characters in my books, so I can put in a few non-eccentric qualities of my personality and exaggerate the traits I like. You know, like magic. Or super powers. Hmm. I definitely see the appeal of writing fantasy. Of course, sometimes parts of my personality emerge unintentionally. (I swear that mean character is nothing like the real me.)
The character I'm writing about now is most definitely me. (With a good dose of my daughter, too.) Oh, sure, she does things that I wouldn't, but her voice is my own and her story (about being a white belt) is pretty much mine, too. I think with my next book, I'll tap into my inner, teenage rebel and have some real fun!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by today! I'm reading to 100 books, too. Keep me posted on your progress!
ReplyDeleteIt's to be expected but I'm always surprised when I see which bits of myself show up in characters. It makes you realize how little control over your work you have sometimes!
ReplyDeleteSo true. My characters have a lot of me in them or the experiences are often my own experiences. Remember that ski trip episode? Yeah, that was me the whole way through. Sliding down on my bottom... acting like an idiot to impressive the guy who's now my husband!
ReplyDeleteToo funny, Christy. But at least when we write about our embarrasing moments, we have the option to change them!
ReplyDeleteJanet, it is interesting to see what emerges sometimes. Probably those out-of-control bits that slip in are the ones that make the character more authentic.
Carmella, inner teen rebel? I can't wait to see what that will bring.