Oh, come on, you know your characters
are just like you. They say one thing and think something else entirely, try to
conceal you’re really doing that – and then give it all away with a flick of an
eye, a gesture or some muted (or otherwise) sound you make. Yep, that’s reality. Us humans evade, lie and
maneuver (just for starters). We do it to protect ourselves, to protect others,
out of embarrassment or an assortment of other reasons.
Now, knowing this it becomes a challenge
for the writer. In a script for a movie the writer sets the scene, the mood, tweaks
details to make things clear and then actors take over to do the subtle little
things that portray what’s in the script, the character’s inner monolog.
For novel writers it’s a different kind
of challenge.
The writer is dealing with characters
who might be suppressing emotion, hiding them from outsiders as well as
themselves. And the writer has to telegraph to the reader this is going on. So,
just as we telegraph in real life, whether we intend to or not, the character
can do the same in the novel. He or she can have something as obvious as a ‘tick’
of the eye when lying, or something as subtle as a lift of the chin. There can
be a high-pitched laugh, the recognizable smell of sweat on the air or maybe
hands that fiddle with a pencil or each other, or words that come out in a
flood when the character normally speaks in a more reserved fashion.
All of these little signals (and oh so
many more) telegraph through tension the movement of the story forward; they build
up expectation for the reader and empathy from the reader for the struggling
characters.
There are so many things that give us
and the characters in a novel or movie away, things that let the watcher (or
reader) know all is not as it should be.
As writers we need to remember how us
human beings work, tap into our own experience. Remember smiling when you didn’t
mean it, that stillness that settled over you when you were embarrassed or
cornered, making excuses to leave a situation, using gestures that cancel each
other out like telling someone no, but then stepping forward and reaching
toward them, or the opposite, yes, then stepping away. Can you recall avoiding eye contact or just
flat out ignoring someone? Have you felt your chest tighten as you withdrew
from a conversation or literally left a group of people?
All that and more you can attribute to
your characters when writing. They are human. You created them. Fortunately for
you, as the writer of a novel, if you’re writing the Point Of View character
you can let the reader know something of the thoughts going through his or her
head. The character can ‘act normal’ while all sorts of thoughts and intentions
race through the character’s mind. And it’s a good idea to spice the novel with
just such information.
However, to breathe intense life into
the writing, you, as the writer, don’t want to depend on that little cheat
exclusively. Seeing what’s going on and reaction to it is much more fulfilling
and draws the reader or viewer much more deeply into the story.
So do a little people watching. Add to
your repertoire, hone your writing skills and let the readers see just how
writingly human you make your characters.
