What good's a great plot
When your characters cannot
Roll it up the hill?
///
What good’s a setting
Lying lifeless on the page—
Like buried bodies?
///
Nurture and nourish
Then toss them all out the nest
Let your heroes fly!
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A/N:
Always remember--characters over everything. Back to the lab. Happy Holidays everyone!
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About the Creator
Matthew J. Fromm
Full-time nerd, history enthusiast, and proprietor of arcane knowledge.
Here there be dragons, knights, castles, and quests (plus the occasional dose of absurdity).
I can be reached at [email protected]
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Comments (10)
Lovely bit of insight in this! A lesson I need to take to heart. Some of my characters are definitely not buff enough to push my plots up the hill...
Yes, we could all use a refresher on character development. Micros are definitely the most challenging...for me, lol.
This is is excellent and sage advice but! the best stories are those were the characters are willed into existence and recorded as false memories of lives never lived! Crying over a ficticious character who felt real will always be a better experieence than the best plot lived out by faceless, soulless nobodies! love this, pal!
This was so true - I think great characters are so important. It’s a bit like having good mates in a rubbish job. They make it worthwhile! No matter how good the plot is, if I don’t care about the people then it’s all over! (Doesn’t mean I can write good characters though!)
A wise lesson.
Entertainingly well said ✅😊.
Very true. I've stopped reading many a book with a great plot because the characters didn't have personality. Like the Senyru's
True, character development is what keeps the reader…reading. Plot development is also crucial.
And yet, every so often I find a magazine/publication where they say something to the effect of, "I care about plot, not characters." Not that what you're espousing here isn't the view of 90% of the literary community, but it's kind of nice to see the counterculture is alive and well.
Definitely frustrating when your characters just can’t get it together. I mean, come on can it really be that hard to hit those plot points?