March 2018: Runaway Characters
~ Crystal-Rain Love ~
CTR asked:
How do you handle characters who change personality without your say so? Or, how do you handle characters whose spontaneous actions change the plot or course of the story?
Crystal-Rain Love said:
I hang on for the ride and see where they take me.
One of my best series (in my opinion) is my Blood Revelation series. It started as a simple “vampire hunter falls for vampire” concept but once I started writing it, the characters snatched my plot away and ran with it. Soon I was writing about witches, shifters, demons, and more, and a whole prophecy popped up in there. I never saw that coming when I started what was supposed to be a very simple, single story.
The heroine of the fourth book in the series, Siren’s Snare, is a character I created as a minor throwaway character in the second book, but every time I attempted to work on book #4, which was supposed to feature a totally different couple, there she was in my head glaring at me and stomping her foot, demanding I find her a man and write their story.
I pictured her in a white room with a man who had his back to me and refused to turn around until I found his name. I worked in a call center at the time and called several people daily. I called a man whose last name was Khiderian. As soon as I read it I knew it was my hero’s name and I swear I saw that man turn around in my head and heard him tell me, “It’s about damn time.”
After that moment I was flooded with scenes and discovered that throwaway character from the 2nd book had a major part to play in the overall story. Marilee and Khiderian are one of my favorite couples and they told their own story. I just typed it for them.
I learned a long time ago to not fight my characters when they decide to take the reins and dictate their own stories. Although I haven’t had any other weird incidences of characters standing in a white room demanding their story and waiting to be given the right name (Seriously, do I sound crazy or what?), I’ve had several characters dig their heels in and refuse to budge when I try to force them to go where I want. Once I quit fighting with them, writing got a lot easier, and my stories got a lot better.
I love when my characters change direction on me. They know their stories better than I do, and I’m just as surprised as my readers by the twists and turns they take.
– Website – http://crystalrainlove.com
– Twitter – @crystalrainlove
Siren’s Snare: Blood Revelation Book #4
[Paranormal Romance]
Marilee hasn’t been the same since vampires invaded her town and killed her grandparents.
The once-innocent country girl, now armed with guns and blades, has left the country life behind to kill as many fanged monsters as she can find.
Along the way, she meets Khiderian, a vampire she must work with in order to rescue the man who taught her everything she knows about slaying.
Khiderian has watched over Marilee for years, recognizing her power to raise demons from hell.
A power he must make sure she doesn’t use … or he’ll have to kill her.
Available in Ebook:
– Kindle – https://www.amazon.com/Sirens-Snare-Blood-Revelation-Novel-ebook/dp/B00GEUDBBU/
– Nook – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sirens-snare-crystal-rain-love/1117377687?ean=2940045409773
– Smashwords – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/374113
More Authors Dish about their runaway characters.
Read them all: https://coffeethoughts.coffeetimeromance.com/welcome-authors-dish/
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