Writing Craft Part 2 – Characterization, Description and Dialogue

This is the second of three weekly blog posts on the subject of writing craft.  The last post looked at the issues of dramatic structure, plot and pacing.  This one focuses on writing technique and how to develop and execute your ideas.  Writing is not an exercise in painting by numbers, with a right and wrong way to do things.  Only you know the story you’re trying to tell and how you want to go about doing that.  Even so, it’s helpful to keep certain things in mind when you’re writing.  These three areas are ones I always look at closely when I’m reviewing my work.  All of them are lessons I learned the hard way.

Characterization

The plot is what your novel is about.  Characterization concerns who is involved in those events, their personality, motivations and opinions.  They’re the most important part of your writing because you can have the most brilliant idea for your plot but if your characters are flat and two dimensional it won’t matter.  Readers must be able to relate to your characters, care about what happens to them and/or have an emotional reaction to what they go through.  If you miss your target on this your novel will fail to spark and hold the reader’s interest and imagination.

Saying you need to establish compelling characters is easy to say and hard to do.  I remember getting some test reader feedback on my first novel where, at the story’s climax, one of the central characters is killed in battle.  One of my test readers told me they couldn’t remember who this person was and what they had done in the rest of the novel.  The emotional impact of a key scene didn’t work because the character in question wasn’t fully developed and poorly written.  Looking at this critically, I realised I’d killed the character I cared about the least – keeping the more interesting ones alive for a prospective sequel.  This missed the point that the book had to be good enough to justify a sequel in the first place.

So how do you write characters readers care about?  I’ve found a few techniques useful:

Draw from your real-life experiences – Think about the people you have met in your life.  What stands out about them and why?  What do you think of when you remember them?  Can you incorporate this into one of your characters?

Understand their backstory – We’re all shaped by the events we’ve experienced.  For my main characters and even for supporting ones, I always write a short bio I can refer to and flesh out as I write.  Has a traumatic event changed their attitudes or drive their aims and objectives?  Did they grow up in a loving family?  What are their religious beliefs?  What are their hobbies and interests?  Is there someone they are jealous of and, if so, why?  Whilst I don’t always reveal the full backstory of my characters in my novels, I always use this information when I write about them and in how those characters act and behave.

Establish their character traits – Set out the key traits of your characters early on.  The more important the character, the more you need to flesh them out.  Humans are complex and often contradictory creatures and readers are unlikely to relate to someone who is effectively summarised by a single character trait.  For example, someone may be loyal to their leader.  All well and good.  However, what if they are loyal to a fault, willing to commit acts of unspeakable cruelty to achieve the greater good?  Better.

Remember physical characteristics, whilst useful to establish, are not the same thing as character.  Being beautiful is not the same thing as having a developed personality.   Someone might use their physical strength to intimidate others but those are still separate things.

Be consistent – Once you’ve established your character, their behaviour and attitudes need to be consistent.  If their personality changes, make that part of the journey they go on in your novel and provide a reason for it.  If your character is nervous and shy in one scene and the life and soul of the party in the next, your story may lack credibility.  However, as I mentioned above, humans are complex and contradictory.  So, if your character is shy but over-compensates by being loud and noisy at that party it can still work.  The important thing is ensuring the reader understands why.  Maybe they feel nervous outside, standing on the doorstep, listening to the loud music and laughter of the people in the house.  Perhaps they down a few drinks once inside to help them shed their inhibitions?

What is their relationship to the other characters in your story? – A good story thrives on conflict and this is often driven by the aims and objectives of your characters being in opposition.  Does the reader understand the viewpoints of both sides and why they have those opinions?  Alternatively, you could draw out the basis of a strong friendship or a growing romance between your characters.  Perhaps their views about each other change?  Friendships can deepen or sour over time.  What happens in your story to affect those relationships and, more importantly, why?

Be truthful – In reality we’re all shades of light and dark, with our good and bad habits.  One of the things I like least is a protagonist who’s so perfect I can’t relate to them or believe they’re real.  Someone can be a natural leader but that can also mean they’re resistant to the ideas of other people and react badly when their authority is challenged.  An unlikeable protagonist with no redeeming qualities can be hard to pull off, although I’ve seen it done.  However, a balanced and well-rounded character adds depth to your novel and will draw your readers in and hold their attention.

Emotional growth – How do the events of your story affect your characters?  If the journey you take them on has no impact upon your characters, your readers will disengage from the story.  Actions have consequences and the traits of your characters will determine how they respond.  Make sure the emotional impact of your story is reflected in the personal development of your characters, whilst staying true to their inherent nature.

Description

I’m not a big fan of too much description in my books.  New authors often fall into the trap of describing everything in exquisite detail, often employing various creative similes, leaving the reader wading through pages about the mountains and the woodlands surrounding the protagonist’s home.  This might demonstrate some tremendous technical writing skills but that’s not the same thing as good storytelling.

At its worst, too much description can kill a story because it slows down the pace.  Does the reader really need to know the shape and colour of those twelve mountains?  Just because you as the author have visualised them so clearly in your mind’s eye doesn’t mean you need to write it all down.  You’re stifling the reader when you do this.  The magic of a novel is how your writing fires their imagination, so be careful you don’t do all their work for them.  The connections a reader makes to the story are individual and personal and this is what makes them invested in your novel.

If something is important then you should include it.  For example, if there is a deep chasm between two of those mountains that plays a part in your story later on, by all means mention it.  However, do you really need to describe it over the course of the next page and a half?  Probably not.

Context is important here.  If the protagonist is returning home and knows they have to fight for this place, you might spend longer describing the buildings and (more importantly) the people who live there.  You’re painting a picture of what’s at stake and what matters to them.  If this is a town they’re passing through where they just need to fill up their car then you don’t need to describe the petrol station.  Your readers can fill in the blanks most of the time – as the author your job is to tell them what’s important.

Be particularly wary of description in action sequences.  You want those scenes to be fast and immediate.  Just as no one is going to stop and smell the roses when they’re fighting for their life, you should resist the impulse to describe the colour, shape and scent of those same roses.

The same thing applies to characters.  Generally, the most striking physical characteristics are all you need.  Are they tall or short, how do they wear their hair, what colour is it?  What stands out?  Remember, you don’t need to cover all of these elements all of the time.  Clothing is often important, indicating both their profession and social standing without necessarily spelling this out for the reader.

Always think about what you would notice first.  When you meet someone for the first time do you always remember their eye colour?  Chances are, you wouldn’t have registered this immediately.  If you change the context, though, and the two characters were in an argument and were up close and personal, those eyes might take on a different aspect.

Dialogue

Writing natural dialogue is an underrated skill.  Good dialogue generally goes unnoticed, whilst bad dialogue jars the reader out of the spell woven by the novel and undermines everything the author is trying to achieve.

Dialogue is not the same thing as description or exposition.  If there are things you need to describe or key facts you want to explain you can pepper these through someone’s speech but avoid that being all there is.  In conversation people generally communicate what they want, how they are feeling or what they want to know.  They don’t normally monologue about the history of their nation for several paragraphs, unless they’re giving a lecture to a packed university auditorium.  Make sure what they’re saying is believable in the context.

One of the best pieces of advice I’ve ever received on this subject is to read your dialogue out loud.  If it’s clunky or cringe-worthy then change it because if that’s what it sounds like to you as the author, the reader will definitely notice it too!

The structure of dialogue is important.  Lots of one-liners without any indication of who is speaking (especially if more than two people are having a conversation) can be exhausting for the reader, leaving them confused as to who is saying what.  Conversely, massive paragraphs of text, with one character monologing for page after page can be similarly wearying.

It’s better to intersperse speech with details of who is speaking (at its most basic, some he saids, she saids are welcome).  Some physical description is also useful, indicating what people are thinking or feeling without actually saying it.  A raised eyebrow or pursed lips can communicate as much if not more about what is taking place.  Remember, non-verbal communication is every bit as important as the words we actually say.  Often, it’s more revealing.  From the perspective of your viewpoint character, how are they feeling?  What are their internal thoughts and reactions to what is being said?  Adding all of these details enriches the scene, providing greater depth and meaning.  I realise this isn’t dialogue but it’s the framework, meaning and context in which you’re placing that conversation that’s every bit important as what is being said.

Conclusion

Everything I’ve outlined in this post becomes easier with practice.  This is where reading widely can really help you.  When you pick up a book take a moment to see how the author approaches description, character and dialogue.  These are all tools you can use in your own writing as well.  Good luck!

Next week, in the final post of this short series on writing craft, I’ll explore some more specific pointers on writing technique and the use of language.