How I Develop My Characters. . .

A stock image we used for the cover to depict Lucy. She seems delicate, very feminine, and is a good visual fit for my main character.

In every novel there is a protagonist and a number of other personalities to bring the tale to life. No matter what the story is about, it is always the characters acting out the dramas within the pages that will enliven and stimulate the narrative, and make it an attention-grabbing or thought-provoking read.

As an author I have the delightful task of creating characters and fashioning them into the individuals to be written into my book. There are varieties of ways in which to do this and often my characters are based on people I’ve come across in life.

I love to covertly observe people. I’ve found that every one of them is unique and distinctive, and the way they conduct their lives may delight, disgust, puzzle or amuse me. The saying, “There’s nowt so queer as folk” often comes to mind! But these observations provide me with a huge anthology of differing human characteristics that I can use to fashion the individuals in my story.

When preparing to write a book, I have in mind the principal characters; I know what they look like and I know a little about their personalities, but not a lot more. It is only during the writing of the story that I get to know them really well and they can surprise me!

It’s a funny thing, but I think other authors would agree, as you proceed with the writing of your book the people who make up the story come alive and take on their own individual characteristics and personalities–and these may differ from what you had originally intended. The deeper you get into the narrative, the more intimately you get to know the people you’re writing about. It’s a process that takes place naturally without you giving it too much thought, and yes, sometimes they seem to take you in a different direction than the one you had originally determined!