Welcome to 40 Days of 3 Questions!
For the next few weeks, meet here every morning with a notebook or document to answer three questions about writing, about your status quo as a writer, or about the writing life. You can answer briefly and go about your day, or you can use this as a warm up exercise before your regular writing schedule. Whatever works for you, works for me.
Day 23 Questions:
- Are your characters ever based on you?
- What qualities do you and your character/s share?
- Was this purposeful or unplanned?
You may post answers in comments or keep your thoughts private–your choice!
And here is today’s pretty picture:
Ramona DeFelice Long 
I think there’s a little of me in all my characters, even the antagonists. When there’s a topic in the world that I’m conflicted about, I’ll create characters who are staunchly on one side or the other and let them hash it out. In those cases, it’s definitely purposeful. Other times, I may not plan it, but a bit of myself does show up in some form.
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I think every character I write is me in one form or another. It’s never planned and I don’t even recognize it until I go back and read over what I’ve written.
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I did it a few times when I was young, but it makes me self-conscious. I do think that I surface through my characters, but it tends to be aspects of myself. Then, there are those characters that are the opposite of me in some way. I’m an introvert, but some of my favorite characters include a socialite and a raging drag queen.
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1.) Are your characters ever based on you? All my characters have a part of me in their personalities — some more than others.
2.) What qualities do you and your character/s share? I share curiosity with my main characters. I just wish I had their energy.
3.) Was this purposeful or unplanned? I try to let the characters grow into their own skin after they’ve been on the page for awhile. That launches them into being unique individuals.
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Not in any planned way, but I’m sure it happens. They say in dreams, all the characters are us.
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Like others, I think there’s a bit of me in every character – good and bad. I don’t know how conscious it was, but I don’t know that I could do it differently. However, all of them are “amp’d up” versions. I’m not nearly as clever, brave, strong, agile, cunning, etc. as the people I write. I don’t think so, anyway.
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I find the longer my series goes, the more “me” it is. In the beginning I was very conscious that my protagonist is half my age, but as I’ve gotten more comfortable walking around in her skin and seeing through her eyes, the more me comes out. At a library talk recently someone said, “You talk just like you write!” On the one hand I could hear it that my characters don’t have unique voices. On the other I could hear it that I have a uniquely personal style and voice. I chose the latter.
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Are your characters ever based on you? The closest is the composite character in my stalled project. In my current project I haven’t developed the protag yet, but she’ll probably have some kernel from me.
What qualities do you and your character/s share? I’m not sure what I’ll find for her from me. As she develops I hope it will be clear. We’re going to be about the same age, but I, with more experience, will be a few years older.
Was this purposeful or unplanned? If I do find something from me to endow her with, it will be purposeful. This time.
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1. Are your characters ever based on you?
I think all of them are. I think there are aspects of me in every one. My theory is that mystery writers are such nice people, almost universally, because we write out our dark side and are free to be nice.
2. What qualities do you and your character/s share?
My sleuths are always braver and smarter than I am. They do things I think of too late, things I know I should do, but don’t. And they often come up with witty replies that have taken me a week to think of.
3. Was this purposeful or unplanned?
I don’t see any way around writing characters that are partly me. They all come from inside my head.
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Are your characters ever based on you? Aspects of me.
What qualities do you and your character/s share? One supporting character is very much me as I WANT to be. I love her, truly love her.
Was this purposeful or unplanned? Unplanned.
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1. Are your characters ever based on you? I’d be in denial if I said no. Especially my protagonist, resembles me in interests and goals. But she’s much taller and younger—as well as courageous. There are aspects of me in other characters such as the teenager who loves dogs.
2. What characteristics do you and your characters (protagonist) share? Several of them are commitment to family, occasional impulsiveness, and determination (why else would I be plodding along trying to get published?).
3. Was this purposeful or unplanned? Unplanned. Those characteristics must have just wiggled in.
The questions on characterization make me more aware of my tendencies. In the future I will experiment with modeling my characters on people other than myself.
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