Strong Characters

Let's face it. Character are huge in books. You can have a brilliant plot and an amazing writing style, but if your characters are not strong...your book is doomed.

But what is a strong character? Incredibly muscular?

Uh, no. Actually, a 'strong character' is a character you can imagine to be real. They can be your best friend or your worst enemy. You love them or hate them, respect them or loathe them. On the other end of the spectrum, a 'flat' or 'weak' character is one that you can't image to be real.

Yeah, plot and style are very important. But to really be attached to a book, a reader needs to feel like they know the people in the book. They need to think that a book is a world, and they have friends (or enemies) in that world.

How do you make your characters strong? Here are some tips!

1. Base them on a real person. A lot of times, I base my main character, at least, on someone I know, including me. Ehra in Healing for example (Healing is my long-term project book). She's based on two real people: one friend for personality, and another for looks. I also base my bad guys on unsavory characters I know, or even historical ones (such as Sisera from Judges 4, or Judas Iscariot from Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John). Basing them on real people helps when you aren't quite sure how your character would react in a situation; simply have them act like the person they're based on would.

2. Put some of their background into it. Add something more personal about them, so the reader really feels that they know the character. I added a few pages in Healing when Ehra is talking to her parents, whom she has a very close relationship with. I also added a chapter when Ehra and her sister are chatting with some gossipy village girls, showing how different they are.

3. Make them original. Add little characteristics about them that will endear them to the reader.

4. Can you relate to your character? Do you feel as if your character is real (or could be real)? If you don't, then no one will.

Yours without wax,

Izori