A question I am often asked is how I come up with characters for my books.
Until I started being asked, I hadn’t actually sat down and thought about the
question. The answer is that I look for certain attributes I need in a
character and develop from there. Main characters come first. I have
talked to different writers and they all do things differently. In my case
I decided to start with the Protagonist. It was my intent to write a
series loaded with action. If I was going to do that I needed a strong
lead character to fit that mold. In creating Linvin (my protagonist) I
made him a general who worked his way up the ranks at a young age. I made
him strong and charismatic. He is the kind of person who can inspire
people to achieve beyond what they thought they could simply because he told
them it was possible. Linvin is intelligent and always fights battles
where the odds are against his success. Thus, he must use his intellect to
solve problems and even the odds. He’s the boxer who gets knocked to the
mat but always gets back up to fight on. In short, Linvin is a hero in
every sense of the word. The problem with creating such a man is to avoid
what I like to call “The Superman Effect”. Simply put, it is the creation
of a character that is flawless and cannot lose. The very fact that he CAN
lose is what makes the action so intense. Where’s the drama with a hero
who never loses and cannot possibly be defeated? Perhaps that has an
audience but it never appealed to me. I like strong characters that CAN be
beaten…though not easily. Linvin has flaws. He is still young and
headstrong. When he forgets his teachings or lets his emotions rule his
actions he makes unwise decisions. Most importantly, he lets people get
under his skin and then he loses his edge. It almost always leads to
ruin. That is a character I think readers can root for and associate with
on some level. Once you have a solid Protagonist created, you need the
conflict in the story. You need an Antagonist. For my first book I
decided to do something a little on the different side. Instead of having
one well known antagonist, I chose to have several of varying degrees of
agitation. To have a good Antagonist you need someone who perfectly
exploits the Protagonist’s weaknesses. They must exploit their advantage
and cause great distress and even suffering. I have antagonists in
Linvin’s cousins (Bander and Rander…mostly Rander). They are a constant
source of irritation and routinely press Linvin to his limits of
tolerance. Then there are the Numbers Assassins trailing him. They
are hardly mentioned and yet are always top of mind. Finally there is what
I call the “Invisible Antagonist” This is an enemy set against Linvin from the
start, but not identified. The reader is kept guessing about their name
throughout the book but it is clear the person is powerful and set squarely
against Linvin. The second book, due out in the next couple of months will
finally unmask this villain and bring the conflict full circle. And that
is my method for starting a story. If you write, find one that works for
you.
Until I started being asked, I hadn’t actually sat down and thought about the
question. The answer is that I look for certain attributes I need in a
character and develop from there. Main characters come first. I have
talked to different writers and they all do things differently. In my case
I decided to start with the Protagonist. It was my intent to write a
series loaded with action. If I was going to do that I needed a strong
lead character to fit that mold. In creating Linvin (my protagonist) I
made him a general who worked his way up the ranks at a young age. I made
him strong and charismatic. He is the kind of person who can inspire
people to achieve beyond what they thought they could simply because he told
them it was possible. Linvin is intelligent and always fights battles
where the odds are against his success. Thus, he must use his intellect to
solve problems and even the odds. He’s the boxer who gets knocked to the
mat but always gets back up to fight on. In short, Linvin is a hero in
every sense of the word. The problem with creating such a man is to avoid
what I like to call “The Superman Effect”. Simply put, it is the creation
of a character that is flawless and cannot lose. The very fact that he CAN
lose is what makes the action so intense. Where’s the drama with a hero
who never loses and cannot possibly be defeated? Perhaps that has an
audience but it never appealed to me. I like strong characters that CAN be
beaten…though not easily. Linvin has flaws. He is still young and
headstrong. When he forgets his teachings or lets his emotions rule his
actions he makes unwise decisions. Most importantly, he lets people get
under his skin and then he loses his edge. It almost always leads to
ruin. That is a character I think readers can root for and associate with
on some level. Once you have a solid Protagonist created, you need the
conflict in the story. You need an Antagonist. For my first book I
decided to do something a little on the different side. Instead of having
one well known antagonist, I chose to have several of varying degrees of
agitation. To have a good Antagonist you need someone who perfectly
exploits the Protagonist’s weaknesses. They must exploit their advantage
and cause great distress and even suffering. I have antagonists in
Linvin’s cousins (Bander and Rander…mostly Rander). They are a constant
source of irritation and routinely press Linvin to his limits of
tolerance. Then there are the Numbers Assassins trailing him. They
are hardly mentioned and yet are always top of mind. Finally there is what
I call the “Invisible Antagonist” This is an enemy set against Linvin from the
start, but not identified. The reader is kept guessing about their name
throughout the book but it is clear the person is powerful and set squarely
against Linvin. The second book, due out in the next couple of months will
finally unmask this villain and bring the conflict full circle. And that
is my method for starting a story. If you write, find one that works for
you.
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