Post #30 – Memoir and Fiction, Writing Alchemy – Kendra Bonnett and Matilda Butler
I was sitting in a coffee shop recently. Two young men in their mid-20s were sitting at the next table and talking about a movie. The conversation went something like this. I’ve deliberately left out the name of the movie and the characters, and I’ll explain why in a minute. First, here’s their conversation:
“Whatcha do last night?”
“We went to the movies to see Blockbuster.”
“Blockbuster, oh, yeah, I want to see that. How’d you like it? Really Famous Actor is supposed to be amazing.”
“Okay. I mean, like the special effects were awe—-some! I mean, man, they blew up every %#@*&%!!* thing on the planet. Really cool.”
“That’s hot. How was Really Famous Actor?”
“Well, his character was pretty cool. The costumes and make-up were so out there, I think some of it (maybe a lot of it) was done with CGI.”
“Yeah, CGI rocks. Anything’s possible. Did Sally like the movie?”
“She doesn’t like any of the Blockbuster series. Says the characters aren’t real. Well, yeah, I mean, it IS all about the action. But it’s okay because we have this agreement. When I pick a movie like Blockbuster, she gets to pick the next one. So, like next weekend, we’ll be going to some Chick Flick.”
“Snooze fest. That really tears it. You’re freakin whipped, man. Chick Flick…that sucks.”
“Yeah, well I dig the action, no lie. The more out-there the better. It’s the dope, ya know. But I gotta admit, Sally’s right about one thing. There is more story in her movies. I don’t admit it to her, but I don’t mind some of the stuff she picks. Yeah, sometimes they get a little sappy, and some of the guys are kinda girly men, but the stories and the people are more interesting. I don’t let on too much, but I kinda like her picks.”
“Oh man you are freakin me out. I guess you kinda gotta point, but I’d sure never let Morgan drag me to a Chick Flick every two weeks. And if you’re not careful, you’ll never get to see another Blockbuster.”
Okay, truth time. I didn’t actually hear this conversation, which is why I didn’t name the movie or the star. But ever since Star Wars came out, I have in fact heard dozens of conversations just like it. And each time I’m struck with the fact that outrageous special effects, costuming, 3-D gimmicks, CGI and good old fashion blowing stuff up do take the place of powerful character development and clever plots.
I’m also struck by the fact that the movies with the staying power are not the action blockbusters. It’s the ones with the memorable characters. That’s true whether we’re talking about classics like Gone With The Wind and Rebecca or contemporary films like The Help and Black Swan.
The lesson of the movies applies to our writing–especially considering we can’t fall back on special effects. Whether we’re writing fiction or memoir, we need great characters. Rich characters. Believable characters. Three-dimensional characters. Characters with whom our readers can connect.
I titled this post “Memoirs Have Characters, Too” because…
I want to make a point about real people as characters. In fact, I’m going to let Ernest Hemingway make my point:
“When writing a novel a writer should create living people; people not characters. A character is a caricature.”
If the best characters in fiction draw from real life, and most authors will agree with Hemingway on this, then there is every reason we owe it to the real people in our memoirs to present them as the three-dimensional, living, breathing characters they are. We owe it to our readrers too.
Memoir writers can learn a lot about character development from the best fiction writers. Here are two more helpful quotes:
“It’s also important to remember that no one is ‘the bad guy’ or ‘the best friend’ or ‘the whore with a heart of gold’ in real life; in real life we each of us regard ourselves as the main character, the protagonist, the big cheese; the camera is on us, baby. If you can bring this attitude into your fiction, you may not find it easier to create brilliant characters, but it will be harder for you to create the sort of one-dimensional dopes that populate so much pop fiction.” Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft (pp. 190-191)
Each person is the center of his or her own world. As memoir writers, we need to do our best to get inside each person’s head…world…walk around a little bit…understand what makes the person tick, what matters, what triggers certain behaviors. Issues like personality and motivation add dimensionality to character development.
“A round man cannot be expected to fit in a square hole right away. He must have time to modify his shape.”
Mark Twain is my source for this quote, and it reminds us that when writing about people/characters, we need to present them to our readers over time. It’s a sort of revealing process. Think about when you first meet someone. You can’t possibly know everything about him/her in the first five minutes…even if he/she talks nonstop for the full five. You’ll get a superficial image. If you get to know this person in the days, weeks, months, years to come, you’ll learn more. Some things will be new information; others will reinforce the image you’ve developed. It works the same way in our writing.
Intrigued? Then…
Join us for Advanced Character Development
This spring, Matilda and I are teaching an online class on character development using our Writing Alchemy methods. The class is sponsored through Story Circle Network, and as part of the class you’ll receive comprehensive course materials for developing aspects of a character’s physical attributes, quirks, personality, behavior/motivation. Much of this is based on Matilda’s techniques for applying the social sciences to character development. It’s pretty cool stuff. You’ll Deconstruct and Construct a character and receive a detailed, private critique. The class, called “Writing Fast, Writing Deep (Advanced Character Development),” is open to anyone who has taken a class or workshop in Writing Alchemy with us or gets our permission). If you haven’t ever taken Writing Alchemy, then “Writing Fast, Writing Deep (Introductory Quick Start)” is the class for you. You’ll get up to speed on Deconstruction/Construction and be prepared for all the classes in our advanced series. Classes begin April 16th, and slots are filling up. Click through to the course descriptions to learn more:
- Writing Fast, Writing Deep (Advanced Character Development)
- Writing Fast, Writing Deep (Introductory Quick Start)
