Where do you get your inspiration and how do you do your research when developing a new character? Is your character based on someone you know, someone you aspire to meet or are they people you have never even imagined? For example, maybe one of your main characters a serial killer that is 12 year old boy and maybe you are a 60 year-old woman writing this person. How do you do it? How do you make your imagination come to life?
Researching a character can be exciting, dangerous and infuriating. For some writers they will raid the local Blockbuster and rent an assortment of movies that portray their character in different lights. Some will interview people with similar characteristics.
And then there are the writers like me, who jump in with both my feet and enter the life style of my character. Currently I am writing a novel with a Gamer as one of the main characters. His life revolves around online gaming, he owns multiple gaming console systems, is creating his own game, and loves all things Star Wars. Well the Star Wars fandom I have, no need for research there. But gaming? I have never played an online multiplayer game. I have only bought video games as gifts, made my purchase and then left my local Game Stop with haste before the teen boy used any more acronyms that I didn’t understand making me feel ancient. But here in this new world I’m creating, I needed all of the dirty details of what the life of a Gamer was all about.
Step one: I signed up for a trial version of World of Warcraft. Step two: play. Oops step two is a bit addictive, with in fifteen minutes I was running my Dark Elf threw Shadowglen with multiple quests. Before I new it, three hours had passed and I might just be in trouble and to add icing to the cake I have to work in a few hours. How do people do this every day?
But through my exploration of the online gaming community I got a new insight into the interactions between players, graphics that will make for beautiful descriptions, and creatures that Gamers might be aware of when reading my novel. Jumping in and becoming a Gamer (even if I’m a newbie) allowed me to see how a day in the life of my character might be. I also get to see what motivates him to do the things he does. Hopefully that knowledge will create a character who is memorable.
So the question is, how far do you go or should you go to create a character that is as realistic as possible? Do you go to jail and interview a murder/ robber/ gang member? Do you take a ride with a cop? Do you go to a bar all alone and people watch until you find a couple flirting for the first time? Do you sit in a cemetery waiting for a widow to visit their lost love? How much better would your character be if you did? If you aren't a writer can you tell when you are reading a book how much effort was put in to making that character real?
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