It’s been a while since I have been a regular contributor to
WWK. My nonfiction work took more time and energy than I anticipated. That was
fine, but something had to give, and this blog was part
of what I put on hold. I’m back now and assigned to the Sunday slot for your
reading pleasure—at least I hope so.
Now to a confession: I enjoy writing short stories more than
I enjoy reading them. How do I know this? Back in 2004 when I started writing
short stories as an adult, I decided to subscribe to Ellery Queen MysteryMagazine and
http://www.themysteryplace.com/ahmm/ to see how the “best” did
it. For several years I maintained those subscriptions. I let the subscription
run out after I realized the pile of unread magazines was growing ever larger. As
the workload related to my nonfiction projects started to taper, I began to
whittle down my pile of unread mystery magazines.
The pile is in no particular order, and last week I picked
up the December 2007 issue of AHMM. After skipping the editor’s notes, I read
the magazine from front to back. As I started the second story, “Car Trouble”
by Jas. R. Petrin, I quickly realized I had already read it. I knew exactly how
it would end. The sixth story, “Pandora’s Fort” by Gilbert M. Stack had
familiar characters, but I did not recall the story at all—although I did
recall the specifics of a previous story alluded to in this one. I concluded
that I must have started reading but not finished this magazine and eventually returned
it to the TBR pile.
Here’s what struck me about this saga of the December 2007
AHMM: I had exactly zero memory of the first story. Why the difference? The
title of this piece serves as the answer: Petrin and Stack wrote memorable
characters. Memorable for me may not be memorable for you. Here’s what stuck
out for me:
1. A unique name.
Petrin’s character is called Skig. As soon as I read the name, I said to
myself, “I’ve read a story about him before.” Similarly, Stack’s stories
include three main characters, but one stands out for me: Pandora. In fact, the
story blurb features the other two characters, not Pandora. Yet for me she is
the memorable one.
2. One or more
specific character traits or tics. Skig is always trying to ease the pain
in his gut. He knows he’s dying. When meeting people he asks, “You heard of
me?” They have. Pandora is a female professional gambler in the old west.
3. Memorable side
characters: Skig has an ancient boat of a car that he keeps in a garage
over which he lives. These are side characters as much as any human could be.
Pandora travels with an Irish boxer and his manager (who the editor highlights
in her blurb). I could guess their names, but I might be wrong. It is their
professions and characteristics I recall, along with their link to Pandora.
The story I couldn’t remember was well written, enjoyable
and, for me, forgettable. It didn’t have a character that grabbed my interest enough.
Now, I do realize that my “discovery” is not exactly new. I
have a book in my library by Nancy Kress titled, Characters, Emotion & Viewpoint that she wrote to help writers
craft dynamic characters. But there is nothing like personal experience to
bring a lesson home.
Questions for you: If you are a writer, have you created a
character that stands out? If not, how can you fix it? As a reader, what
characters are memorable for you and why?
~ Jim
Jim, I've encountered similar things when reading something I read long ago. If the characters are good, I remember the story. If the characters aren't that good, I don't.
ReplyDeleteThe protagonist of EVERY LAST SECRET is a half-Cherokee former homicide cop who's now chief of a university police force. I have lots of emails from readers who want to read more about Skeet, and the many reviews of the book always comment on her strength as a character. So I think I've managed it with Skeet.
I can think of a lot of writers who give the reader distinctive characters to enjoy. Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers both did, of course. Rex Stout with Nero Wolfe and Archie. Larry Block with Bernie Rhodenbarr and Matt Scudder. Louise Penny with Ruth, Myrna, Gamache. Julia Spencer-Fleming with Clare Ferguson. Sue Grafton with Kinsey Milhone. Sara Paretsky with V.I. Warshawsky. And the list could go on and on.
You know you have a winner when people ask what else they can read about your character.
ReplyDelete~ Jim
I agree, but then who is going to disagree with a man who lugs around a chainsaw? When I wrote MURDER MANHATTAN STYLE, a short story collection, I got so many questions about the family in the first three stories that I put them in a novel I titled HEARTLAND.
ReplyDeleteAnd welcome back, Jim.
I guess now I can admit my dirty little secret, too. I subscribe to Alfred Hitchcock and Ellery Queen, too, but never seem to find the time to read them. I subscribed mostly because different people I knew had stories accepted in them, and I couldn't read their stories because I didn't get the magazines.
ReplyDeleteThere are many characters I fall in love with like Laurie R. King's Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell, and yes, Linda's protagonist, Skeet. There are so many more like Louise Penny's and Jane Langton's characters. It would take up too much space to list all of them.
As for my characters, only time will tell after my books come out. I, of course, like my characters as do my critique partners, but I can't yet tell if other readers will. I can only hope.
Warren, one reason I prefer novels over short stories is that you have a larger canvass to explore character development.
ReplyDeleteGloria, as you say, time will tell -- however, I would note that likable and memorable aren't necessarily the same. We all remember Hannibal Lecter, but we probably didn't like him much.
~ Jim