Caring about Characters

You may have picked up in a few posts that I bought "Save the Cat" to help me with plotting and to tell you the truth, I've learned a ton. I'm just now starting to actually write my first project that I planned using "Save the Cat," so I'll let you know what it lends to my process and if it was a success.

One thing it's shown me is why there needs to be set-up and moments where we truly see the characters. I want to use an example from TV. With a new baby, I have a lot of time spent in my rocker. Sometimes I read and sometimes I watch TV. The latest series I'm blasting through is "West Wing." I'd seen episodes of it here and there when it first aired on TV and really liked it.

Then I noticed something the other day. There's an episode where the President and his entourage are shot at. The President and one of his staffers are hit. I thought to myself, interesting how that didn't happen until the end of the first season. Wouldn't it have been powerful in the first one or two episodes? Maybe something to keep viewers coming back?

Maybe.

Words to Write By: WriteOnCon Tidbits, Characters by Donna Cooner

Did I ever mention how much I learned at WriteOnCon? A TON. I like my query (for now) and I learned some revision techniques that are changing my life. So. Serious.

Today, I impart another small tidbit of wisdom.

On Characters, from Donna Cooner's post, which you can read in its entirety, here.

QBCD. It meant Quick Brief Character Description (QBCD) and it was one of the most important lessons learned from the years I studied with Professor Kulkarni. Every time a character entered a scene it was an opportunity to make him/her memorable to the reader. Not just the main character, but everyone—the checkout woman, the pilot, the teacher, the policeman—everyone.

I am SO terrible at this. At descriptions in general. I figure everyone can read my mind, not just my husband. (Oh. Wait.)

I saw a quote one twitter or somewhere the other day that said no matter how memorable the plot is, it won't matter if a reader can't care about the characters. Get in there and make them matter.