: Re: How/When to create deliberately boring characters? Among a million other ambitions under the general heading of "Writing," I have this fantasy where I write a major series, several books long

@Debbie451

Vote Up Vote Down

The real question is: boring to the writer, boring to the reader, or boring to the other characters?

If the character bores you as the writer, either change the character or excise him/her. That person has no place in your story. I just had to do this myself two weeks ago, and it made a massive, awesome improvement in the entire book.

If the character is boring to the reader (you're getting notes from your betas reading, "Man, Snodgrass again? This guy is made of cardboard! Why are you giving him so much screen time?" when he's supposed to be a major villain), you have a problem. Even your NPCs and your cameos shouldn't make the reader feel the need to flip to the next page. Not every walk-on needs a full biography, but if your character talks to the same barista every morning, give her a nose-ring with a bell on it or something. Or the main character should notice her green eyes, which make her think of the green scarf her girlfriend gave her ten years ago, and she thinks of the scarf every morning for a split second whenever she sees the kid's green eyes.

If the character is boring to the other characters, that's actually fine. That's drama. Your main character should roll her eyes when Snodgrass trudges into the room. And you don't have to redeem Snodgrass from being boring, either; he can just be the comic relief by being boring. But that makes him interesting in his own way — what boring thing is he going to say next, and can your main character refrain from popping him one in the jaw?

To focus on your question, yes, even the 95% of the elves who don't speak have "personalities," even if they don't get names. They are beautiful, graceful, solemn; trackers, singers, archers; Galadriel's women who weave cloaks, etc. Don't over-focus on the barista with the bell in her nose if she's not the point of the scene, but if there's any interaction beyond "she got coffee on her way to work," then bell the barista.

(0)

Login to post a comment!