If
anything’s 100% guaranteed to put the kick in your story, it’s your fictional
people–your characters.
Story
is important, yes. But somebody once said, Plot
is character. I believe him/her. And you will as well once you see what
this post has to offer.
Your
story is bound to move your readers if it’s populated with compelling
characters
 |
| Will Smith and son in Pursuit of Happyness Photo credit: Flickr |
Readers want characters they
can identify with.
The
protagonist of your story does not necessarily have to be superhuman. They don’t
even have to fit into the prototype Rambo-style hero niche. The single ingredient
which shoves a reader beyond the edge of reality and sends them scrambling into
your fictional world (and if I may add, with great pleasure) is how much you
make your characters partakers in the
fellowship of your reader’s sufferings.
Compelling characters are
often than not, ordinary people going through the motions, having the blues. And especially, characters who attain
the goal of their dreams when they come through. That goal could be anything
from something as other-worldly as superpowers
to one as ordinary as a job. (I’m
thinking of Will Smith in the Pursuit of
Happyness, here.)
What are the things that strike
you about your favorite stories? Who are your favorite characters? There might
be a story there.
Plot
is what your characters do. The bottom line is who your characters are and what
your characters do should be interesting or you end up with a blunt tale in
your hands.
Without compelling characters,
there can be no compelling story.
Let
your pen bleed!
Akpan
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