Character Bibles - Writer's Block Solution...

Courtesy Pixel Curse

On this site, I've touched on character development before — How Long Have You Spent with Your Characters? — but I've not covered the issue enough, as per my experience completing books.

New fiction book writers often feel they are in a race with other writers — their first mistake.

Every book has its own timeframe, and if you create and maintain a writing schedule, that book will get done. If you try to rush through the process, there will be a lack of knowledge on what and how to write that will create undue stress, that will lead to writer's block, often having that writer abandon the project altogether.

Sound familiar, peeps?

There's one, and only one, solution to this problem: STOP writing. START filling out Character Bibles.

• Do you know what they are?
• Have you filled them out?
• Have you taken the time to truly get to know your literary peeps, because in terms of your story, they ARE real people, you know.

Now, I'm NOT talking wasting time, playing with worksheet to avoid writing. I'm talking that before you even write one word, you've allowed yourself TIME to acclimate to/get to know these people, so much so that the prose/dialogue/action virtually writes itself. 

Yes, I'm not kidding here. If you know your characters deeply enough, and the book will write itself.

Returning to that harried newbie scribe scenario...

So, because our newbie writer is worried about keeping up with the literary Jones's, they plunge into the manuscript knowing next to nothing about the people who will carry this tale. Don't let so-called experts fool you. Stories are about people, not about plot. Yes, in action adventure tales, the locales, the events drive the narrative, but even in those books, it's about the unique traits of those characters that give life to the tale.

Ergo... not knowing the characters = not knowing the story = not having the foggiest what to write = Writer's Block. (Don't you just WUV how I'm a genius with literary calculus? Please tell my Grade 11 math teacher, won't you? ;-) )

HOMEWORK No. 1: go online and find yourself a GOOD bible worksheet. 

For my last two novels, I've used story consultant, Lara Willard's worksheet, which I believe is one of the best out there. It's two-sided, and covers all the areas needed to fill out your character's personality (click the link below to send you to her page to download the PDF worksheets). If I have several main characters, I'll research online for a photo that is like what my mind's eye sees in that character, and I'll attach it to Lara's worksheet. Once you've filled out this form, honestly, and completely, and sit with those character traits in your mind for a few weeks/months, there won't be much you won't know about your book peeps. In my last novel, I had SIX main characters, and Lara's worksheet was invaluable to get me to write authentically and uniquely about each one.

Lara's Character Bible Worksheet

HOMEWORK No. 2: Once you've downloaded your favorite worksheet, begin to fill it out. Research for the correct and full answers. Write down what you know now, but don't worry if along the writing process, some details change. It can happen. It's happened with my characters as I get to know them better over time.

TAKE THE TIME NEEDED to know these people, for if you skip this process, your brain will not know what to write. It's as simple as that. If you do take that time, and you know these people inside and out, I guarantee you your fingers won't keep up with your thoughts, and virtually every sentence you write will be legit, authentic, unique and vibrant, needing very little edit at draft end.

Book writing is NOT a race. Please drill that into your self-conscious new writer head.

• Each writer has a speed. 
• Each book has a speed, too. 
• And characters will formulate in front of your eyes at their OWN pace, as well.

Don't skip this process. Don't use it as an excuse not to write, either. But do the work, NOW, to save you writing heartache later. By slowing down and doing the necessary backstory work, you'll actually finish your book sooner. Seriously. Not all you know about your characters will end up in the book, but that knowledge will help you craft rich, deeply moving prose that your readers will appreciate.

Once you've acclimated to their world, then, and only then, begin to write. You do this, and you'll end up saying to me, "Writer's Block? Never heard of it." ;-)

How Long Have You Spent with Your Characters?

 

There are countless Character Bibles online and countless more tips on crafting genuine, wholesome characters, which is all fine and good, but have you ever asked yourself if you've spent enough time with your "people" before you ever sit down to have them speak and act and be?

 

I've yet to see any "expert" spend serious time on this subject.

 

The literary online world is focused on speed and quantity and rarely talks about the quality of a work. Like fine wine, great characters aren't fully formed in an author's mind overnight or by merely filling out a form.

 

If you're writing a book-length piece, you need MONTHS, sometimes years, to acclimate yourself to those characters, as time is the only parameter which allows your subconscious to naturally form those imagined people into unique personas. You have to live and breathe these individuals and allow distinct verbiage and mannerisms to flow from your mind. No form, no fill-in-the-blank answers, will get you there sooner.

 

Again, another reason why I call writing a book work and not fun.

 

Patience is one of the best qualities an author can possess. If you have the patience of a squirrel on Speed, your prose will reflect that, and most especially your dialogue. It will sound flat, or worse, cliché, and all you will present are caricatures, not characters.

 

Look at it like this: you meet somebody new at a cocktail party. You experience this person - their mannerisms, their speech, their motivations, their weaknesses, their strengths - a half dozen times, max. How much do you really know that person? The answer: not at all.

 

HOMEWORK: find ways to "live" better with your characters. 

Cut out photos of people who remind you of them. 

Stick them up on your story board to look at each day. 

Whenever they talk to you, write that verbiage down - day or night. 

Talk to them yourself. Be with them. 

Decide that they are truly real, that this story in which they are involved is real, too. 

Start living this tale yourself!

 

And above all... Slow. The. Heck. Down.

 

Writing a book-length tale is not a race. Don't fall for market competition. A great story is never crafted on anyone else's timeline but your own, and your characters'. Remember that. 

 

This book will finish, and its characters will shine, once all have had the time to properly steep in your mind.

 

Again, this aspect of book writing comes down to psychology. 

 

Be confident in yourself and your artistic ability. Don't fall for group pressure or Group Think in deciding when your mind is prepped to begin to write on your characters. Each book has its own timeline. Each character, too.

 

Ask yourself: Do I want to create a memorable work or do I just want to pump out forgettable pulp fiction? If it's the former, slow down, and marinade in that world and those people living within.

 

Your characters will forever thank you for it.