This entry kind of
explains the whole sense of “characterization, reality, relating the character
to the real world.” And here’s how.
I’ve
basically covered the topic of making your character realistic. But now, you
must also relate the setting to the reader. What do I mean by this?
Well,
what I’m getting at is this: I feel like a lot of authors nowadays do this type
of writing. Here’s an example.
So,
let’s say, this character has just gone through a really depressing situation.
And suddenly, they just break down. Instead of describing what the character is
feeling, the author merely states something like “I couldn’t breathe.”
Example:
“When I saw her dead body on the ground, my legs collapsed beneath me. My hands
went numb. I couldn’t feel anything.”
While
some readers, particularly not the hard-core analyzing ones, may find this
phrase acceptable, writers know that this is not very good.
This
paragraph is too dry. It doesn’t say a lot. The whole point of this is to make
the reader relate to what is happening. This doesn’t. It’s very specific to
people who have felt like the character.
Maybe
I’m not making much sense. What I mean is, how many times do you remember ever
feeling so depressed that your feet collapsed under you? Well, personally I
haven’t (knock on wood.) And, I’m sorry, but numb isn’t acceptable.
I
feel like authors nowadays are so lazy with their writing. They don’t take the
time to actually put themselves in the position of their character. Instead,
they use the universal word “numb.”
And
I get that people do feel numb. And I’m sorry. But you can’t use that term all
the time. Many people have never felt that way. You have to describe it to
them.
Don’t
get me wrong, I am not a stranger to this type of writing. I pretty much took
this excerpt from one of my manuscripts and changed up the situation; same
wording, though. It was horrible.
So
basically the lesson here is, use your words. People want to know how the
character feels; even if it’s nothing. Explain nothing. After searching in your
mind, you can find some pretty deep emotions. Use them.
