My Books

Monday, March 7, 2011

Why We Love Characters With Flaws?

I just commented on a blog post by fellow BC writer, Tiffinie Helmer, about character flaws entitled, "Flawed and Fantastic" ~~> . On her blog she discusses plotting character flaws before writing. I definitely recommend reading her fantastic post & will be taking her advice when writing future books.

While writing my comment, I thought about all of the characters I've read about and created in my own books. Particularly, the characters that stayed with me long after I finished the book.

This was my comment on the "Flawed and Fantastic" post...

In order for characters to be interesting and believable, they have to have flaws. No one is perfect. As a writer and reader, I believe the best characters are the ones that make you feel. You may not agree with the character's POV or actions, or even like the character, but this is what creates the most interest, evokes emotion, keeps you engaged, and thinking about the character long after you've finished the book.

I just finished reading Delirium and remember wanting to yell at the main character (Lena), even jump into the book, shake her and say, "What are you thinking?" I loved this book because it has a uniquely fantastic storyline with interesting characters. I'm really looking forward to reading more about Lena in the series.


Who are characters you've created, or read about, that made you angry, passionate, fall in love, etc., long after you finished reading the last page? Please share fantastic books with strong characters that you recommend reading.

5 comments:

  1. Thanks so much for the comments about my blog! Flawed characters make the book. Look at Wuthering Heights. Heathcliff today is a stalker! He's obessed with her to the point of madness. But we love the book and care about these two insane people.

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  2. I can't think of any specific characters right now--that's why I'm no good at pop quizzes. LOL

    But I love to read about characters who have to overcome their internal flaws or issues. For one thing, it's kind of inspirational. It demonstrates that people CAN change, and are willing to change when they care enough about something, or someone.

    Donna

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  3. Thanks Tiffinie for your excellent blog post on character flaws. You are the inspiration for this post. I thank you for getting us thinking about how important characters are in creating a book with long-lasting impact. You rock <3! :)

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  4. Haha, Donna! Sorry for the Monday afternoon pop quiz, lol! :)

    Great comment. Hope for change is very inspirational.

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  5. Great post. And I loved Tiffinie's flawed characters blog, as well. I think the most memorable characters for me are Diana Gabaldon's Claire and Jamie Fraser from the Outlander series. Those characters are lodged in my head forever.

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