If there’s one thing writers like to do, it’s to make characters suffer. We are all about bringing forth pain and crises, whether it be emotional, physical, spiritual, or existential. Is it because we’re a little messed up and we enjoy torturing characters? Or do we create difficult scenarios in our stories to illustrate the fact that life is painful sometimes?Probably both. No matter what our reasons for holding our character’s figurative (and possibly literal) feet to the fire, we need to do a bang up job of describing it. So join us for a deep dive on all things painful, starting with…
Pain & Your Characters: The Three Stages of Awareness Before: Anticipating Pain
Sometimes a character won’t see a threat coming, but if they do, we gain a terrific opportunity to draw readers into the moment and heighten their emotions alongside the character’s. The anticipation of pain is something we all know, and so it’s an effective way to generate empathy for characters experiencing it. When something bad is about to happen, a character may only have a heartbeat or two to steel themselves, tensing their muscles clamping their teeth tight, flinching and squeezing their eyes shut. To try and protect themselves further, they might also try to make themselves small, a full body cringe. Or it could be a natural reaction to duck, jerk back, pull away, or attempt to flee. These are all their instinctual fight-or-flight responses kicking in, doing whatever is necessary to protect them (or those they love) in the few seconds they have.
If the threat is farther out, the character’s brain has more time to churn through what might happen. Their knowledge and experiences will conjure up mental flashes of what will happen and the likely wounds and injuries which could occur. Memories may also assault them, reminding them of painful things that have happened to them, and the inescapable weight of dread hits them. To spur them into action, their adrenaline surges, prompting them to respond in some way – fight, or flee. But if there’s nothing they can do, they may experience a skin crawling sensation in expectation of the painful sensations to come.Pain isn’t always physical, of course. If they see something coming that they know will hurt them emotionally, your character could become depressed, and at a loss over what to do. Or even though they know what’s coming can’t be avoided, they may stay in bed, refuse to go out, avoid people, lie, or do something else that lines up with a flight response. They could also become anxious, obsess about what’s going to happen, and force a confrontation before they’re fully prepared to deal with it (a fight response). The source of pain could be anything – a secret about to be uncovered, a marriage nearing the point of ending, or their own child who is dying in the hospital. While we often think about how to cause characters physical pain, mental and emotional pain are just as debilitating. TIP: Whatever type of pain your character is experiencing, think about their personality, coping methods, and personal fears. This will help you determine how they will respond to threats that bring pain.
During: Physiological and Psychological Processes
When your character feels discomfort, certain things happen.If there’s a physical component, pain receptors pick up on the type of sensory input: heat, friction, tension, cold, pressure, etc. and sends signals to the brain about the area affected, the type of pain, and intensity level. Your character’s instinctual response will be to flee pain, so unless there’s a compelling reason why they must not, you can show your character trying to pull away and escape whatever is hurting them. This is especially the case when they see indicators of damage (a gash, a broken bone, blood, etc.), because the gravity of what’s happening to them hits home.Your character’s emotional state will also influence how much pain they feel. If the source of it is tied to a fear, emotionally wounding experience, or their anxiety is triggered, the discomfort they feel will be intensified. Pain levels can become so excruciating that a character passes out or enters a state of shock. This is where the body systems slow and they become distanced from their agony. Another way to use emotion in these situations is to consider feelings that might help them cope with the pain better: anger, rage, determination, etc. They can also use coping mechanisms to handle discomfort, turning to meditation, breathing exercises, self-distraction, talk therapy, etc. to work through it. Some characters might try to numb it with medications, drugs, or alcohol, but if they are attempting to manage pain through mind over matter, it will only work to a certain point. If the pain is extreme, they will no longer be able to handle it, and their responses will become extreme — screaming, writhing, or even passing out.Characters will also experience a stress reaction to pain, meaning their heart rate and blood pressure can rise, their body becomes increasingly tense, their breathing may change and tears may form. TIP: Using POV visceral sensations to show what they’re experiencing is a great way to communicate the strain they’re under.
After: Recovery and Aftereffects
After an injury or event that causes pain, your character may have a hard time with mobility, balance, and cognitive processing, so keep this in mind when you show readers what happens next. Your character likely will try and protect the injury, meaning they may hunch over as they walk, cradle a broken arm, limp, or do everything with one hand to save more injury to the other. They might have a loss of energy or motor control, have a delayed reaction time, and seek to distance themselves from others so they can process what happened and heal in private. So think about what your character will be doing in the aftermath of a bodily injury.Everyone copes with pain differently, especially pain that scores an emotional hit. Time will be needed to fully process what happened, and if the emotional hurt is far too painful to examine, characters try to bury it rather than work through it in a healthy way, leading to personality and behavioral shifts that change how they interact with the world and those in it. Unresolved emotional wounds are sources of ongoing pain, so a bit of research here on what this looks like for the type of wound is key. If your character suffered a physical injury or illness, the healing process can include different types of pain – tenderness, strain, headaches, itchiness, and the like. They may need to rest or sleep more, and if this is impossible because the danger in ongoing, their energy may drain further. It could slow their healing, and open them to infections and more injuries.
After an injury heals, your character may have scars, less range of movement, or suffer debilitating migraines or other internal reactions. Depending on what they experienced, they may also carry new fears, anxieties, a decreased ability to take risks, and even PTSD or other conditions that they will carry with them. Each new encounter with pain will make your character more wary and watchful for any circumstances where it might reoccur, so remember that as they move forward in the story.
Realistic Fiction Sometimes Means Ignoring Hollywood
Because movies only have so much time to show everything they need to, the stages of pain awareness are sometimes skimmed over. Often there’s a split-second awareness of danger and then the camera focuses on the character being injured, whether it’s a gun shot wound to the thigh or a six-pack of punches to the gut. They falter briefly, then rally to win. But when we see them again after the climax, they are usually not as in bad shape as they should be, or are miraculously fine (I’m looking at you, Jack Ryan, and your ability to be perky and ready to go after several rounds of boiling water-and-salt torture!).
In 1959, Carl Jung first popularized the idea of archetypes—”universal images that have existed since the remotest times.” He posited that every person is a blend of these 12 basic personalities. Ever since then, authors have been applying this idea to fictional characters, combining the different archetypes to come up with interesting new versions. The result is a sizable pool of character tropes that we see from one story to another.
Archetypes and tropes are popular storytelling elements because of their familiarity. Upon seeing them, readers know immediately who they’re dealing with and what role the nerd, dark lord, femme fatale, or monster hunter will play. As authors, we need to recognize the commonalities for each trope so we can write them in a recognizable way and create a rudimentary sketch for any character we want to create.
But when it comes to characters, no one wants just a sketch; we want a vibrant and striking cast full of color, depth, and contrast. Diving deeper into character creation is especially important when starting with tropes because the blessing of their familiarity is also a curse; without differentiation, the characters begin to look the same from story to story.
But no more. The Character Type and Trope Thesaurus allows you to outline the foundational elements of each trope while also exploring how to individualize them. In this way, you’ll be able to use historically tried-and-true character types to create a cast for your story that is anything but traditional.
Pessimist
DESCRIPTION: This doom-and-gloom character believes that if something bad can happen, it will. They tend to focus on flaws and potential pitfalls and see every opportunity as a new way that things can go wrong.
FICTIONAL EXAMPLES: Eeyore (the Winnie the Pooh series), Marvin the Paranoid Android (The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy), George Costanza (Seinfeld), Sadness (Inside Out)
ASSOCIATED ACTIONS, BEHAVIORS, AND TENDENCIES Noticing even the smallest details Identifying problems and risks before they happen Avoiding potential trouble spots others may not see coming Being cautious Easily identifying things that need improvement Planning ahead Being thorough Always seeing the glass as half empty Frequently frustrating others with their constant negativity Having only a small circle of friends
SITUATIONS THAT WILL CHALLENGE THEM Having to share space with an extreme optimist Facing a situation with unknown factors they haven’t had time to prepare for Being complimented for their skills or abilities
TWIST THIS TROPE WITH A CHARACTER WHO… Is empathetic and insightful, supporting others during the crisis the character was able to prepare for Has a witty and dark sense of humor (instead of just being annoying) Has an atypical trait: affectionate, confrontational, persuasive, vain, workaholic, etc.
CLICHÉS TO BE AWARE OF The team member who rains on everyone’s parade, creating a perpetually gloomy atmosphere The cynical best friend who always prophesies doom (and turns out to be right)
In story terms, a villain is a person, entity, or force who is cruel, evil, or malicious enough to wish the protagonist harm. Rather than simply blocking a goal or interfering with the hero’s plan, a villain causes suffering, making it vital for them to be conquered by the protagonist. Clarice must find and defeat Buffalo Bill if she wants to rise above her past and become a great FBI agent (TheSilence of the Lambs); Chief Brody must kill the man-eating shark to preserve his town (Jaws).
Regardless of the form your villain takes, there are certain qualities that will make them formidable and credible—qualities and connections they share with the protagonist. Let’s explore these qualifications through a case study of Dr. Lawrence Myrick, played by Gene Hackman in the movie Extreme Measures.
Villains, Like Heroes, Live By A Moral Code
It’s been said that the best villains don’t know they’re villains; they think they’re the hero of the story. And this is true because a well-crafted baddie has his own moral code. Compared to the protagonist’s, it’s twisted and corrupt, but it still provides guardrails that guide him through the story.
Dr. Myrick is a renowned and brilliant neurosurgeon who has dedicated his life’s work to curing paralysis. It’s a noble cause that he believes in more than anything—not so much for himself but for all the paralyzed people in the world. This cause is so important that when he develops a treatment, he can’t wait decades for it to crawl through the testing process and eventually be approved. So he bypasses the animal testing phase and goes right to human trials. It’s kind of hard to find healthy subjects who are willing to take such a risk, so he kidnaps homeless people and confines them to his secret medical facility, then severs their spinal cords so he can test his treatment on them.
To the rest of the world, this is unconscionable. But to Myrick, the end justifies the means. He’s perfectly okay stealing people, taking away their freedom and mobility, and subjecting them to countless medical cruelties. And if they reach a point of no longer being useful, he’s fine doing away with them because they’re people no one will miss. He actually views them as heroes, sacrificing themselves for the greater good. His morals are deranged, but they’re absolute, guiding his choices and actions. And when you know his code, while you don’t agree with it, you at least understand what’s driving him, and his actions make sense.
When you’re planning your villain, explore their beliefs about right and wrong. Figure out their worldview and ideals. Specifically, see how the villain’s beliefs differ from the protagonist’s. This will show you the framework the villain is willing to work within, steer the conflict they generate, and provide a stark contrast to the hero.
They Have A Story Goal, Too
Like the hero, the villain has an overall objective, and they’re willing to do anything within their moral code to achieve it. When their goal is diametrically opposed to the hero’s, the two become enemies in a situation where only one can succeed.
We know Myrick’s goal: to cure paralysis. And things are progressing nicely until an ER doctor in his hospital discovers homeless patients disappearing from the facility. Dr. Lathan starts nosing around, and when he realizes someone is up to no good, it becomes his mission to stop them. So the two are pitted against each other. If one succeeds, the other must fail. To quote Highlander: there can only be one.
As the author who has spirited the villain out of your own (dare we say twisted?) imagination, you need to know their goal. It should be as clear-cut and obvious as the hero’s objective. Does it put them in opposition to the protagonist? Ideally, both characters’ goals should block each other from getting what they want and need.
Villains Are Well-Rounded
Because villains are typically evil, it’s easy to fill them up with flaws and forget the positive traits. But good guys aren’t all good and bad guys aren’t all bad, and characters written this way have as much substance as the flimsy cardboard they’re made of. Myrick is cruel, unfeeling, and devious. But he’s also intelligent, generous, and absolutely dedicated to curing a devastating malady that afflicts the lives of many.
Positive traits add authenticity for the villain while making them intimidating and harder to defeat. An added bonus is when their strength counters the hero’s.
The villain of Watership Down is General Woundwort, a nasty rabbit whose positive attributes are brute strength and sheer force of will, making him more man than animal. In contrast, hero Hazel embodies what it means to be a rabbit. He’s swift and clever. He knows who he is and embraces what makes him him. In the end, Hazel and his rabbits overcome a seemingly undefeatable enemy by being true to their nature.
When your villain is conceived and begins to grow in the amniotic fluid of your imagination, be sure to give him some positive traits along with the negative ones. Not only will you make him an enemy worthy of your hero, he’ll also be one readers will remember.
They Have A Backstory (And You Know What It Is)
Authors know how important it is to dig into their protagonist’s backstory and have a strong grasp of how it has impacted that character. Yet one of the biggest mistakes we make with villains is not giving them their own origin story. A character who is evil with no real reason behind their actions or motivations isn’t realistic, making them stereotypical and a bit…meh.
To avoid this trap, know your villain’s beginnings. Why are they the way they are? What trauma, genetics, or negative influencers have molded them into their current state? Why are they pursuing their goal—what basic human need is lacking that achieving the goal will satisfy? The planning and research for this kind of character is significant, but it will pay off in the form of a memorable and one-of-a-kind villain who will give your hero a run for his money and intrigue readers.
They Share A Connection With The Protagonist
In real life, we have many adversaries. Some of them are distant—the offensive driver on the highway or that self-serving, flip-flopping politician you foolishly voted for. Those adversaries can create problems for us, but the ones that do the most damage—the ones we find hardest to confront—are those we share a connection with. Parents, siblings, exes, neighbors we see every day, competitors we both admire and envy, people we don’t like who are similar to us in some way…conflicts with these people are complicated because of the emotions they stir up.
The same is true for our protagonists. The most meaningful clashes will be with the people they know. Use this to your advantage. Bring the villain in close and make things personal by engineering a connection between the two characters. Here are a few options for you to work with.
Give Them a Shared History. The more history the two have, the more emotion will be involved. Guilt, rage, grief, fear, jealousy, regret, desire—strong feelings like these will add sparks to their interactions. They’ll cloud the protagonist’s judgment and increase the chances their villain will gain an edge.
Make Them Reflections of Each Other. What happens when the protagonist sees him or herself in the villain? A seed of empathy forms. The hero feels a connection with the person they have to destroy, which complicates things immensely. Personality traits, flaws, vulnerabilities, wounding events, needs and desires—all of these (and more) can be used to forge a bond that will add complexity and depth to this important relationship.
Give Them a Shared Goal. When your hero and your villain are pursuing the same objective, it accomplishes a number of good things. First, it ensures that only one of them can be the victor, pitting them against each other. But they’re also more likely to understand one another. They’ll have different reasons and methods of chasing the dream, but the shared goal can create an emotional connection.
Voice is one of those elements that can make or break a manuscript. If you get it right, the novel will live in the reader’s mind long after they put the book down. Without it, the story won’t quite achieve what you’ve intended even if all the structural elements are in place.
Here’s one thing that doesn’t work: verbal tics. How many times can you have your character repeat certain phrases before it starts to get, well, annoying? Not very many.
Here’s another: sarcasm.
Sarcasm is an easy voice to capture, so it seems to be the one many authors lean toward to make their narrator sound different. Cross it off the list. No one is consistently sarcastic, or angry, or melodramatic. When you make your narrator into a type like this, they come across as one-dimensional and unrealistic.
Who Is This Person?
The idea of voice only being a mood or a way of talking misses the bigger picture. Voice is a way of being in the world. For that reason, I would recommend approaching it from another direction: by exploring who this person is that you’re trying to bring to life.
While I don’t think character questionnaires are the way to nail voice, they can be a good steppingstone in getting to know your character—because I don’t think you can capture a character’s voice until you fully know who they are.
Look at how the answers to a few key questions can change the type of person you’re dealing with.
What does your character do for a living?
A baker will have a different way of viewing the world than a plumber or a doctor. They’ll notice different things, use their own analogies, have unique priorities, behave differently in various situations. You’ll know they’re a baker not because the author has placed them in a kitchen wearing oven mitts but because they see ideas for new pastries in the shapes of flowers. They’ll think like a baker.
If you were to read a story in which all you got was oven mitts and cookie trays, you’d feel like you were reading something generic—because the author would not have captured a baker’s way of navigating the world.
How old is your character? What is their marital status?
A twenty-something single woman will have a different way of dealing with people than a fifty-something woman who’s just left a long, dull marriage. Or maybe the marriage was abusive: that would give her another voice. Or maybe she’s never been married, but her sister is in a happy marriage: different voice again. She’ll have to manage Valentine’s Day; she might get upset by seeing couples at candlelit tables for two in a restaurant.
Voice is all about the lens through which your character views the world. One of the most significant things that clarifies this lens is their goal: what do they want in the story? If someone wants respect, they’re going to act in certain ways and say certain things that will be very different from someone who’s out for revenge.
Where do they come from? What kind of family do they have? Wealthy or poor, loving or abusive? Are they the first-born of a large family, or are they the baby? Are they an only child?
Every answer creates a type of person who will act and react in diverse ways. Many of these actions and reactions won’t be conscious, but they’ll be there, and they’ll cement in place patterns of behavior that will (hopefully) cause that character all sorts of problems.
But answering those questions is only step one.
What Next?
Now, you have to put your characters into action: slip on their shoes and see the world through their eyes. Usually that means writing your way into the story in one form or another: by journaling in their voice, answering interview questions in their voice, or (my preference) simply throwing yourself into the story world and getting them moving.
This is why it’s so important to differentiate the narrative voice from the author’s voice. Unless the author is the narrator, they have no business speaking up. Your reader will have picked up a particular book to experience the world from the point of view of a female scientist in the 1960s (Lessons in Chemistry) or a college student in the classics who becomes enthralled with an eclectic group of students with whom he doesn’t quite fit in (The Secret History). The extent to which the author can deliver on that promise also turns out to be the extent to which they’ve captured the narrator’s way of seeing the world, which is… voice.
Why Voice Is So Important
Voice is not the only thing in a novel. But if you don’t nail it, you won’t have used point of view to its fullest potential, nor will you truly know your story—because you won’t know the main actors who are driving it forward. It won’t feel authentic, and your readers won’t feel the same emotional draw that they’ll experience when a character comes to life on the page and says, Let me show you what the world looks like through my eyes.
Isn’t that why we come to fiction in the first place?
I’m gonna go out on a limb and say you probably became a writer because you like to write. But if you’ve been writing for any time at all, you may have realized that writing isn’t the whole job. There are lots of other things you have to do that you maybe aren’t good at, don’t like, or even dread doing. We’re often the most inefficient when it comes to those responsibilities because we avoid them or rush through them to get them over with. And this impedes our progress and our ability to do our best work.
I’d like to share some strategies you can implement to ensure even the irritating parts of the job get done efficiently. Because we’re all wired differently, some of these ideas may be harder for certain kinds of people, so let’s look at how to make them work for everyone.
Strategy #1: Outsource the Tough or Tedious Jobs
This one is easy: pay someone to do the dirty work so you can focus on the things you like to do. Hate balancing the checkbook? Hire a bookkeeper. Do you suck at book formatting? There are freelancers who will do this for a fee. So if you have the funds, this may be the easiest way to claw back your own time and use it on the things you do best. (If you’re looking for a freelancer, we’ve got a list of recommendations here.)
Personality Blockers: Control Freaks, Perfectionists, and Penny Pinchers
When it comes to outsourcing, the biggest obstacle is simply not having the cash. That’s a legitimate blocker for everyone, regardless of personality. However, there are writers who can afford the expense, but they still resist sharing the load. Some are maybe a bit too thrifty; they’ve got the money, but they’re worried about spending it. Others are afraid to give up control of any part of their project—often because they want it done just so and they can’t trust others with their baby. If any of these personality traits apply to you, outsourcing could be difficult to embrace.
The solution here is to recognize that offloading those tasks can increase your efficiency, resulting in more time and, ideally, more money. Angela and I, because we’re problem children, had to learn this the hard way. For years, we wanted to hire someone to take over the administration of our blog—not because we didn’t enjoy fielding guest post requests, talking to potential contributors, and scheduling posts; we just didn’t have enough time to do everything that needed doing. And because we were so swamped, we didn’t want to spend our precious time on hiring someone. Finally, we just bit the bullet and brought on our blog wizard, Mindy, and suddenly we had a surplus of time to devote to other projects—things that, really, only Angela and I could do.
If you’re able to outsource but are holding back, consider how much more productive you could be if someone else were doing the things you were least proficient at. Just opening up to the possibility can help you loosen the reins or the purse strings enough to pass off some of those duties, saving you buckets of time that can be spent on the stuff you’re really good at.
Strategy #2: Identify the Hard Stuff
Ok, so this seems pretty obvious, but we’re all really good at focusing on what we like and ignoring what we don’t. This results in the boring jobs either getting pushed to the last minute (and not being done well) or not getting done at all. Making note of the things you don’t enjoy doing—the things that maybe you’re doing halfway because you dislike them so much—is the first step in prioritizing them properly so they don’t get left behind.
Personality Blocker: Avoiders
This is a tough one for avoiders who tend to ignore the unpleasant, uncomfortable, or awkward. If avoidance is an issue, hit this head-on and set aside a quick 15 minutes to make a list of the parts of your job you tend to put off or ignore. It might be easier to keep an ongoing list and add to it over time as things occur to you. These difficult duties will differ from person to person, so identify what they are for you and make yourself aware of them.
Strategy #3: Schedule the Hard Stuff
Once you’ve identified the problem areas, set a deadline for when each one needs to be completed. Then add them to your weekly or monthly schedule so they don’t get forgotten.
Personality Blocker: Procrastinators
Procrastinators commonly put off unwanted responsibilities until the very last minute (or indefinitely). If this is you, it’s important to get those duties on the schedule. But you may not be as efficient if they’re scheduled up front, ahead of the jobs that are a bit more rewarding. If this is you, it’s ok to compromise. Schedule the dreaded tasks somewhere in the middle, after you’ve finished some of the fun stuff (but not jammed up against your deadline).
For more information on my favorite tool for planning and scheduling tasks, see this post on Trello.
Strategy #4: Break It Up
Some jobs are unpleasant because of the sheer amount of time they take. One way to make a task like that more palatable is to break it into smaller chunks and complete it over a series of work sessions.
Personality Blocker: All-At-Once’ers
This strategy used to be hard for me because I’m motivated by finishing things; I need a sense of completion, and this drives me to compartmentalize my workday and just hammer away at one project at a time until it’s done.
One of my regular responsibilities is to take the thesaurus posts we’ve published at Writers Helping Writers and move them over to our One Stop for Writers site. This involves a lot of cutting and pasting, HTML stripping, and adding additional content. It’s not the most stimulating work, and when you’re looking at 50 or so entries, it seems to take forever. So instead of trying to do it all at once—say, taking a week and focusing just on that job—I do one or two entries a day. Then I can spend the rest of my time doing other things that are more rewarding. This requires some careful scheduling to make sure I start the job early enough to hit my deadline, but it makes it more doable. It’s a great strategy to employ with long projects, such as editing a novel.
Strategy #5: Make It Fun
Full disclosure: there’s only so much you can do to make analyzing sales data or writing a summary for your story fun. But you can make most jobs more enjoyable. Here are some ideas that work for me:
Break out the “happy” supplies, like a favorite pen, notebook, or planner
Light a specific scented candle that’s only used when you really need a kick in the pants
Work in a new spot, such as a coffee shop, the park, or the library, until the job is done
Outfit your own workspace with things that makes you smile: inspirational notes, pictures of loved ones, knickknacks that hold special meaning, etc.
Put on fun or motivational music
Eat or drink something yummy
Personality Blocker: Being Easily Distracted
One potential issue with this strategy is if you end up wasting precious work time mooning over knickknacks or looking for your special highlighter when you should be working. If you struggle with this, put a limit on how many feel-good items are allowed in your workspace. And if you find yourself using this prep time as an excuse to procrastinate, set a time limit for how long you’ll allow yourself to get prepared before getting to work.
Strategy #6: Reward Yourself
And now for the good stuff! The best way to motivate yourself to do a hard job is with a reward. Once the dirty work is done, get your favorite Starbucks drink, head to the beach at sunset, buy those shoes you’ve been eyeing, or knock off a half-hour early for some pleasure reading. The dangling carrot works well for pretty much everyone; you’ll just need to establish the reward for each project ahead of time so you know what you’re working toward.
Personality Blocker: Over-Indulgers
If each chapter you draft results in a day off, you’re not going to get much done. Remember that efficiency and productivity are the goals, so make sure the reward matches the job.
Strategy: Shift Your Mindset
This is maybe the simplest strategy to make the hard jobs easier, and it has no personality blockers because it can work for literally everyone. Viewing certain jobs as hard, boring, tedious, or a wast
e of time will ensure that you put them off, rush through them, or don’t give them your best effort. Instead, shift to a productive inner voice by looking at those duties through a positive lens:
This is important work.
I can do this.
I’m better at this than I used to be.
Once I’ve mastered this, I’ll have something new to add to my skillset.
I’m saving money by doing this myself.
This job isn’t going to take as much time as I thought.
The time (or money) I’m spending on this task is an investment into my business.
Personality Blocker: Over-Indulgers
If each chapter you draft results in a day off, you’re not going to get much done. Remember that efficiency and productivity are the goals, so make sure the reward matches the job.
Strategy: Shift Your Mindset
This is maybe the simplest strategy to make the hard jobs easier, and it has no personality blockers because it can work for literally everyone. Viewing certain jobs as hard, boring, tedious, or a waste of time will ensure that you put them off, rush through them, or don’t give them your best effort. Instead, shift to a productive inner voice by looking at those duties through a positive lens:
This is important work.
I can do this.
I’m better at this than I used to be.
Once I’ve mastered this, I’ll have something new to add to my skillset.
I’m saving money by doing this myself.
This job isn’t going to take as much time as I thought.
The time (or money) I’m spending on this task is an investment into my business.
In 1959, Carl Jung first popularized the idea of archetypes—”universal images that have existed since the remotest times.” He posited that every person is a blend of these 12 basic personalities. Ever since then, authors have been applying this idea to fictional characters, combining the different archetypes to come up with interesting new versions. The result is a sizable pool of character tropes that we see from one story to another.Archetypes and tropes are popular storytelling elements because of their familiarity. Upon seeing them, readers know immediately who they’re dealing with and what role the nerd, dark lord, femme fatale, or monster hunter will play. As authors, we need to recognize the commonalities for each trope so we can write them in a recognizable way and create a rudimentary sketch for any character we want to create.But when it comes to characters, no one wants just a sketch; we want a vibrant and striking cast full of color, depth, and contrast. Diving deeper into character creation is especially important when starting with tropes because the blessing of their familiarity is also a curse; without differentiation, the characters begin to look the same from story to story.But no more. The Character Type and Trope Thesaurus allows you to outline the foundational elements of each trope while also exploring how to individualize them. In this way, you’ll be able to use historically tried-and-true character types to create a cast for your story that is anything but traditional.
Mad Scientist
DESCRIPTION: Brilliant, eccentric, and often insane, the mad scientist believes his work is vitally important and supersedes conventional morals or ethics.
FICTIONAL EXAMPLES: Dr. Moreau (The Island of Dr. Moreau), Dr. Frankenstein (Frankenstein), Dr. Jekyll (The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde), Doc Brown (Back to the Future), Walter White (Breaking Bad)
ASSOCIATED ACTIONS, BEHAVIORS, AND TENDENCIES Perfectionism Having eccentric habits Obsessing over their work Keeping odd hours Working in long binges Preferring to work alone Difficulty engaging in small talk and other social niceties Rejecting (or ignoring) those in authority Forgetting to do basic life tasks, like cooking, cleaning, grooming, and sleeping Their goals or methods putting them at odds with the establishment
SITUATIONS THAT WILL CHALLENGE THEM An experiment creating unexpected (and bad) results Being forced to work with a strict rule-follower A “hack” achieving success and finding acclaim ahead of the scientist Being prevented from doing the work they dream of
TWIST THIS TROPE WITH A CHARACTER WHO… Isn’t male Is concerned with ethics and the consequences of their work Is an amateur scientist (rather than a professional one) who’s passion is using science to create crazy stuff Has an atypical trait: flirtatious, humble, optimistic, superstitious, proper, etc.
CLICHÉS TO BE AWARE OF The mad scientist with crazy hair and no fashion sense The scientist who creates a creature or monster they can’t control, and it ends up destroying them A scientist with multiple personalities
It took me two and a half years to write and revise my first book to get it to the point it was ready for readers. And then another 2 years to find my publisher and get it out into the world. My next book I wrote in 6 months. I now coach other writers, and I see this pattern of book 2 getting written much faster over and over again. Seems obvious, right?
Well, yes, but not for the reasons you may think. Sure, by your second book, you’ve honed your technique and have developed some (hopefully!) good writing habits. But that’s not it.
Writers’ blogs and forums are riddled with advice for you to write faster, everything from getting your word count in daily, to using templates or formulas to fill in your structure. And following this advice may indeed make writing your first draft faster. But your first draft isn’t the finished product, as much as you may want it to be.
The time between completing a draft and knowing that a manuscript is everything you’d hoped it would be is this murky space few writers talk about, where especially newer writers get lost, losing weeks, months, or years sitting in a doubtful limbo.
Writing a first draft is a huge accomplishment, don’t get me wrong. But you’ll know in your heart it isn’t ready for prime time. The idea of revisions can be daunting. Overwhelming, even.
When I found myself in this unexpected murky place when I was writing my first book more than a decade ago, I had questions like:
I’m being told my book “isn’t ready” yet by agents, editors, and publishers. But how do I know what to work on? Should this be obvious to me?
Some of my favorite writers write books in 3 months or faster. Why can’t I seem to do this?
My gut is telling me I need to rip the whole book apart and then put it back together again to make it what I want. Do I REALLY have to do that?
If my draft isn’t perfect, does this mean I don’t have what it takes to be a writer??
Am I really good enough?
Ugh.
And so, I spun my wheels, and looked for answers. Everything I’d dreamed writing a book would be like was kinda shiny. In my ideal world, words would flow, and accolades would follow. None of the writers I followed glorified the thousands of hours it might take, the deep focus I’d have to learn, or the number of times I might have to tweak my scenes until I got all my ideas on the page the way I wanted them.
I chipped away at what I knew in my heart needed to get done, piece by piece, because I was determined that my book wouldn’t see the light of day until it was ready. The only way to get my messy first draft in shape was to push through, and do the work, as much as I wanted to find a shortcut. I honed my craft. I took courses and workshops. I sought out the best editors I could find, and learned. I was, and still am, immensely proud of that book, which went on to sell thousands of copies and win awards. Most importantly, I heard from my tween and teen readers that the book affected them. That they shared it with their friends. That’s all I ever wanted.
When I sat down to write Book 2 in that series, I assumed it would be much faster. After all, I’d already created the world and its characters. It was going to be a breeze.
But I was wrong.
Because I’d already created the world and its characters, I found I needed much more content for Book 2 than I expected. Huh. So, how did I still write that book muuuuuch faster? This is the secret sauce I wish every first time author could know… and I’ve since dedicated my book coaching practice to help writers get through that murky middle time.
By the time I got to writing book 2, I understood in my bones just how much work I was going to have to put into this book to make it exactly what I wanted. I didn’t look for shortcuts, or worry that I wasn’t a good writer because I couldn’t do it “faster”. I didn’t wonder if I was doing it wrong. I just put down one word at a time, and then tackled one revision task at a time, until it was done. I was able to cut out the murky, wallowing phase that eats up so much time.
I now work with writers on first books all the time. And if there’s one thing I always want to share with them, it’s that all the work has to get done. No beta reader, editor, or publisher is going to do it for you. So, plan for it, and chip away at it until your book is exactly what you want it to be.
So, if you’re writing your first book, keep going and you’ll get there. If you’ve completed a draft, and are stuck in the resistance phase in the murk, here’s some next steps you can take to keep your book moving forward. Once you know what needs to get done, knock off one step at a time until you’ve got a book you’re proud of.
But don’t stop moving, or you’ll land in the time-sucking murk.
Do what you can to skip over the part where you doubt if you’re doing it right, and dive in with full gusto.
Once you’ve written your first book, and gone through this path of resistance, coming out with a book ready to publish on the other side, I’d put money on the fact that you’ll get to the end of your second book… and that you’ll write it faster than you did your first.
Trigger warnings are often debated in the writing world. Some opine that readers should be warned if something potentially harmful is included in a book, and others feel the audience shouldn’t be bubble-wrapped and need to chin up if they want to read fiction. Like most things, the answer probably lies somewhere in the middle.
It can be easy to scoff away the idea of “being triggered” if one has never experienced damaging trauma, or if they have, they were able to process it in a healthy way. The reality is that dealing with emotional trauma is 100% personal. Even people experiencing the exact same event will cope with it differently based on their personality, age, support system, past experiences, education, and a host of other factors. So, assuming everyone should react the same way is ill-informed.
Where does this leave us, the authors? Ironically, in the same place had the trigger debate never occurred: we do our best to respect our readers, and use good judgment as we write.
No matter how dark and gritty our fiction is, we should never be gratuitous, meaning we should only show what we need to, not more. Genres will vary, but even if you’re writing a torture scene, there’s no need to slap every scream, sensation, and sweat drop onto the page. Overdone description will kill the pace and the impact will be lost under a wall of sensory words. Just like any other scene, our description should be balanced, pulling readers in without overwhelming them.
Here are a few ideas on how to handle potentially triggering content.
Use Symbolism and Mood to Seed Hints
The back jacket copy should indicate some of what will unfold in the story and perhaps even allude to trauma your character experienced in the past. But you will still need to show a scene (or several) that portrays these wounding experiences. If you’re worried about triggering, then don’t have this event slam into the reader out of nowhere. Lay a few clues so readers can put emotional safeguards up if they need to.
Mood, for example, is an excellent way to steer reader emotion. Weather, light and shadow, and universal symbolism can all help you nudge the reader toward the dark content about to be shown. Personal symbolism tied to the POV character can also lay the groundwork that something hurtful may be about to unfold: a sound, a smell, an object, a texture, a place that has specific meaning for the character. Including something that triggers their memory can help foreshadow something uncomfortable may be coming.
For example, if your character is about to be assaulted behind the restaurant where she works, take a moment to show her reluctance to take the garbage out. Maybe it’s because of the lack of alley lighting, or a memory surfaces of being surprised by a ranting homeless man who was digging in the trash another time she performed this chore. You could have her ease the door open and try and listen for hidden noises before venturing out to the bin. Or have an unpleasant odor hit her as she enters the dark. Symbolism and mood not only increase tension, they can give a subtle heads up that something significant is about to happen.
Vary Your Narrative Distance
Deep POV is all the rage these days, but there are times when we shouldn’t use it. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting that emotionally difficult scenes should be reported rather than experienced from within the character’s shoes. I’m suggesting that you can pull readers in using deep POV to feel the intimate sensations and horror of the moment for a while and then zoom out to give them a break. A bit of filtering language (she thought, she smelled, he reached, he felt, it seemed, etc.) can achieve this as it adds distance. Or you could occasionally choose to name an emotion rather than show it in depth (NOTE: be careful with these techniques—always have a reason for using them or it will come across as lazy writing).
Weave In Facts (Telling) To Give a Break From Showing
Show, Don’t Tell implies “all or nothing,” but really this rule is meant to convey that writers should knowing WHAT to show (and when), and WHAT to tell. Deeply emotional scenes work best when there’s a good mix of show AND tell. Breaking up painful emotion and sensory detail with a few factual statements creates a balance, and if you need it to, will slide in a touch of distance so readers aren’t overwhelmed.
A good example of this is the Hunger Games, when Peeta and Katniss are on the Cornucopia as a fellow tribute is being torn apart by genetically engineered dogs. Susanne Collins doesn’t describe every gore spray and tear although she could have (the book states this goes on for over an hour, because of course the game makers are all about putting on a show). Describing such a horrific scene in full would be gratuitous and most people would stop reading. As someone attacked by a dog as a child and dragged around in the snow, helpless, I know I would have. But Collins handled it well, using narrative distance, selective show and tell, and information to get the horror across without overdoing it.
Only you can decide how close and personal you want to get with emotionally traumatic situations. It’s your story, your art. If you can justify to yourself what you need to show and why, you are respecting readers. It will feel authentic, not gratuitous, and they should respect your storytelling style in turn.
Are you tired of writing boring and uneventful romance scenes? Do your readers seem disinterested or even put off by the lack of chemistry between your characters? Fear not!
In this post, I am going to explore how to build sizzling sexual tension in your novel that will leave your readers begging for more. Whether you’re a seasoned writer or just starting out, these tips and tricks will help bring heat to your pages and keep readers flipping until the very end. So, buckle up, it’s about to get steamy in here!
What is Sexual Tension?
Sexual tension is a key ingredient in many successful novels. Whilst sexual tension turns up most in romance novels, it can be part of ANY story. For example, I wrote sexual tension in my crime novel, The Other Twin.
Sexual tension is that feeling of excitement and anticipation you get when something hot and heavy is happening between the characters, but they haven’t yet acted on their desires.
Done well, sexual tension can be incredibly addictive for readers. It keeps them turning pages late into the night, eager to see what will happen next.
If you’re hoping to create some sexual tension in your own novel, there are a few key things to keep in mind. Ready? Let’s go!
i) First, don’t rush it
Take your time building up the attraction between your characters. Let them flirt with each other, or exchange longing looks. Maybe they even engage in some light physical contact before they finally give in to their desires.
ii) Make sure the stakes are high
If there’s no risk involved, then there’s no real tension. Will giving in to their feelings ruin their friendship? Threaten their careers? Put them in danger? The more at stake, the higher the tension can be.
iii) Establish what each character wants
What are their goals? What do they want? Why do they want it? This will help create conflict and tension between your characters as they try to achieve their goals while also dealing with their attraction to one another.
iv) Build up the sexual chemistry between your characters gradually
Don’t let them fall into bed together too quickly. Let the reader see the simmering desire between them, the little looks and touches that build up the anticipation.
v) Use body language
A lot of communication is non-verbal. Use this to your advantage by having your characters give each other smouldering looks, brush up against each other accidentally, or engage in subtle flirtation.
When writing sexual tension between your characters, it is important to consider the body language you use. The way your characters stand, sit, or move can amplify the attraction and tension between them.
For example, if two characters are standing close together, their bodies may be angled toward each other in a way that suggests they are eager to be close. Or, if they are sitting next to each other on a couch, their legs may be intertwined in a way that suggests they cannot keep their hands off each other.
vi) Build up the anticipation
Don’t let your characters act on their desires too soon. Make them yearn for each other, wonder what it would be like to touch or be touched by the other person. The longer you can drag this out, the greater the pay-off will be when they finally give in to temptation.
By building up that sense of anticipation, you build up the sexual tension between characters. This means you can create a scene that is truly sizzling with sexual tension.
vii) Establish boundaries early on
Make it clear from the outset that there are certain things your characters will not do. This will heighten the sexual tension as they work around these boundaries.
For example, in the TV series The Rookie, there was sexual tension between Officer Bradford and his rookie Chen from the offset. However, he is her superior and a stand-up guy, so he would never act on this. Similarly, when Chen graduates and becomes an officer herself, she will not act on her feelings and cheat on her boyfriend with Bradford.
When the officers DO finally get together, Bradford has been promoted to sergeant. This prompts him to take a demotion so he can drop out of Chen’s line of command.
vii) Make sure your characters have flaws
No one is perfect, so by giving your characters believable flaws and vulnerabilities, you’ll make them more relatable—and increase the sexual tension as they try to hide those imperfections from each other.
viii) Write sexually charged dialogue
Sexually charged dialogue can be a great way to build sexual tension between characters in a novel. By writing dialogue that is flirty, suggestive, or even graphic, you can create a scene that is full of sexual tension. Erotica novels often do this, but you can utilise this technique in any story you choose.
ix) Don’t forget about the little things
Sexual tension is often created as much by what is NOT said or done. A charged silence, a stolen glance, an accidental touch … These are all things that can ratchet up the tension and leave readers desperate for more.
Concluding …
Sexual tension can be a key ingredient in making your novel sizzle. When it comes to writing romance into ANY story, one of the most important elements is sexual tension. This is what will keep your readers turning the pages, desperate to find out what happens next.
Remember to pay attention to the characters’ emotional states and body language. This will make all the difference between writing a mundane scene or a passionate encounter. If used correctly, creating this type of atmosphere can help readers get deeply invested in your book and its characters.
When you’re creating a well-rounded and realistic character, there are many factors to consider: their backstory, personality traits, fears, desires…the list goes on. Each is important because it plays a part in defining and fleshing out the character for readers. But there’s another aspect of characterization that authors overlook—one single element that can reveal multiple hidden layers about who your character really is: a talent or skill.
At first blush, this may not make sense. Why does it matter that my character can bake or read people or throw their voice? These are things they do. What does a talent or skill tell people about who they are?
I’m so glad you asked ☺.
Personality Traits
Let’s say your character has been dancing since they could walk and their star is on the rise. They’re an accomplished dancer, sure, but as such, there are certain things you can also infer about their personality:
They’re likely to be disciplined—not only in the hours spent practicing, but in their diet and the things they give up to devote so much time to the art.
To achieve this level of skill, the character is going to be incredibly driven.
Their work ethic is no joke.
They may be a bit of a perfectionist.
Many talents and skills can give readers an overview of who the character is personality-wise. Revealing a talent in the story’s opening is a great way of showing this information to the reader instead of telling them. Then it’s just a matter of reinforcing the associated traits as the story goes on.
Other Strengths and Abilities
Not only can a talent reveal personality, it can also hint at other aptitudes that are common or even required for that activity. If your character is skilled at hot-wiring cars, for instance, they’re also going to be good with their hands, have knowledge of wiring and how electronics work, and be adept at blending in and avoiding notice. They might be mechanically minded overall, and this specific talent is just one piece of their skillset.
Knowing how other abilities coincide with a talent or skill can give you realistic ideas of what else the character might be able to do and how those aptitudes could play into your story.
Values and Morals
How the character uses their talent can tell you something about their moral code and belief system. White hat hackers, humane hunters, and serial killers who only prey on people who have caused great harm—these are examples of characters using their skills in ways that hint at deeper values. When it comes to using skills to characterize, the how and why can matter even more than the what.
Motivation and Backstory
Speaking of why…the reason your character chooses to pursue an activity can provide valuable insight into what’s driving them. Sometimes it’s as simple as them enjoying that hobby or reveling in something they’re good at. But the reasons often go deeper.
Let’s say your character is a gifted boxer. A passion or aptitude for the sport is only one of many reasons she may have taken it up. Consider the following possibilities:
She started taking lessons after a physical assault as a means of self-defense.
The character has difficulty expressing her emotions in a healthy manner, and boxing allows her to do so without hurting herself or others.
Her dead father, who she idolized, was an amateur boxer, and this is her way of honoring him.
She’s sticking it to her mother, who despises the sport.
The instructor is hot.
The reasons behind your character’s pursuit of a talent or skill can reveal a lot about their fears, wounding events, healthy and unhealthy coping mechanisms, and motivations. But those connections only work if you’ve taken the time to understand who your character is, why they are that way, and how a skill ties into their history.
People Skills
Talents can also give you an indication of your character’s people skills. Someone with a knack for manipulation, mentalism, or making friends is going to be good with people. They’re able to read others and know what to say or do to gain their trust. On the other hand, a character who spends the majority of their time alone and has turned fishing or gaming into an art form, may be more comfortable on their own than with others. This information can give readers a hint about whether your character is an introvert or extrovert, as well as their level of social aptitude.
Readers won’t be able to figure this out for sure from just a talent or skill. But combine it with personality traits, how they choose to spend their time, and a glimpse into their interactions with others, and the audience will be able to put the pieces together.
A Little Extra Help
A talent or skill can provide a window into who the character is. It’s also a natural vehicle for showing, which allows you to reveal important information with an economy of words. Now it’s just a matter of figuring out which abilities make the most sense for your character.
First Edition Design Publishing - a hybrid publisher 
