AW Blog Chain

This month the AW blog chain topic involves a clever bit of “what if?” RavenCorinnCarluk preceded me and DavidZahir will follow me. All the other blog chain participants are listed at the end.

What if your characters came to life and you had the opportunity to spend time with them? Would you like them, enjoy their company or shudder at even being in the same room with them?

My first thought is, “Gee, I’m so much older than my characters. Would we have anything in common?” And then I remember that I created them so no doubt we have more than a little, age difference be damned. Thankfully, I mostly write in the romance genre so I don’t have that many characters who would make me fear for my safety. Maybe one or two, but they aren’t all that skillful at being evil, truth be told.

As a writer just starting out, I think it’s fair to say that most of my female protagonists are made from the same raw ingredients as me, just rearranged or in different proportions, kind of like a Picasso versus a mirror. Some of them still struggle with the same insecurities that I struggle with, others have overcome them but perhaps struggle with challenges I overcame years ago. But their life experiences can vary significantly and this impacts who they are too.

In terms of compatibility, I’d say that Colin from All’s Fair or Chelsea from Fool’s Bet (RIP) would be the ones I’d feel most comfortable around. I appreciate Colin’s devotion to family, his intelligence, his wry sense of humor, he’s gorgeous and a good lover (I write romance so all my men are…duh!…and since they’re imaginary, hubby doesn’t mind.) Chelsea is closest to my age and the only one of my characters who has children, teen-aged children at that. Plus she’s funny in a self-deprecating kind of way that I like.

As to my other characters: Gayle from The PURE is rash and nosy, Shelby from All’s Fair is prissy, Dori from My Fair Vampire has daddy “issues”. Zach from Fool’s Bet (RIP) has Peter Pan syndrome, Jon from The PURE is socially awkward, Donovan from My Fair Vampire is bossy and promiscuous and Jude, also from My Fair Vampire, is…well I don’t quite know yet because I’m still working on him.

There, I’ve revealed their flaws for all to see. They aren’t perfect; heaven forbid that I create a dreaded Mary Sue. Characters should be interesting but flawed, but flawed in a fascinating way, especially the antagonists. One of my favorite bad guys is Sylar from the TV show Heroes–a ruthless and psychopathic killer but with a dark sense of humor. Alan Rickman’s Sheriff of Nottingham, from the otherwise forgettable movie Robin Hood, was the one I cheered for because he was so evilly sarcastic. You root for these guys as a sort of guilty pleasure. But, I don’t think I’d want to meet them in the flesh. Observing from the safety of my armchair, Kindle or remote control in hand, is quite sufficient, thank you very much.

But if I’m being honest, I probably wouldn’t want to meet any of them, would find them boring and predictable. What could they tell me about themselves that I (a) didn’t already know or (b) would be surprised to learn? All their jokes I’d have already heard and my sympathy for their plights would have been tapped out ninety thousand freakin’ words ago! So get ’em away from me. Now my fellow authors’ characters…bring ’em on!

April Blog Chain Participants:
Proach: http://desstories.blogspot.com
RavenCorinnCarluk:http://ravencorinncarluk.blogspot.com
AuburnAssassin (me): https://clairegillian.wordpress.com
DavidZahir: http://zahirblue.blogspot.com/
xcomplex: http://arielemerald.blogspot.com/
Frodo: http://annvevera.blogspot.com/
FreshHell: http://freshhell.wordpress.com
Aimeelaine: http://www.aimeelaine.com/writing/blog/
Anarchicq: http://www.anarchicq.com/
*RomanceWriter*:http://staceyespino.blogspot.com
Forbidden Snowflake: http://www.alleslinks.com/
razibahmed: http://www.southasiablog.com/
CScottMorris: http://cscottmorrisbooks.com/
Aheila: http://thewriteaholicblog.wordpress.com/
LadyMage: http://www.katherinegilraine.com
Leah Raeder: http://words.leahraeder.com/

My esteemed predecessor, Aimeelaine, suggested the awesome March topic of “growing up”. David Zahir will follow me in the chain. The rest of the chain participants are listed at the end of the post. Give ’em all a read–after mine, of course.

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I grew up a military brat.

Like many great icons of business in the US, I was incorporated in Delaware. Over the next sixteen years I moved every two to four years. I went to four grammar schools and two high schools in Alabama, Mississippi, Hawaii (eat your heart out), Georgia, New Jersey then North Carolina when my father retired from the Air Force.

After college (Go Heels!), I kept moving, wanted to get out of Dodge. I spent a summer living and working in London, UK, then headed west to Texas for the career job I’d landed before leaving for London. Four years later I moved to New Mexico then to Washington state. I like the west and think this feels the most like home of any place I’ve ever lived. And maybe, at nearly 50 years of age, I finally have roots, roots that were never trained to grow fast or deep for me.

When you’re a military brat, you learn at an early age how to ease your way into new organizations and social groups while always holding a part of yourself back. Always being the new kid is not that much fun so the faster you can shed the title, and slip into the flow, the sooner you can relax. You don’t put down those roots, however, because you know you’re going to be yanked up soon. You learn to live like a potted plant.

When my husband first met me in NM, he teased me about the cardboard dresser drawers scattered throughout my bedroom. I had a good job that paid well, why didn’t I have a dresser? Why was my television so small? Why was all my furniture second-hand? Why did I live in a rented house? The answer was that I needed to remain mobile, needed to be able to easily get rid of stuff or pack it in my car. Bear in mind that when I drove cross-country to TX, my first move without my family, everything I owned fit in my Ford Escort.

After living in WA for 17 years, I think I’ve finally done it…finally put down roots…I think…though there’s a yet to be built luxury condo near the golf course in Myrtle Beach, SC that is calling my name. Oh yeah, I could totally see uprooting and heading east for that. A retirement spent kicking back on my balcony with my sweet tea (because it’s the law in the deep south) with my laptop typing away at my latest blockbuster. I could do that…then maybe relocate to Santa Fe to enjoy the Indian arts and crafts and visit my old client, the Santa Fe Opera…then maybe NYC for the theatre…then…

aimeelaine – www.aimeelaine.com/writing/blog (DONE)
AuburnAssassin – https://clairegillian.wordpress.com/ (ME!!)
DavidZahir – http://zahirblue.blogspot.com/ <<–UP NEXT!
FreshHell – http://freshhell.wordpress.com/
Simran – http://theglutenfreefoodblog.blogspot.com/
Proach – http://everythinghistorical.wordpress.com/
*RomanceWriter* – http://www.staceyespino.blogspot.com/
Breddings – http://breddings.blogspot.com/
laffarsmith – http://www.writersroundabout.com/
Sneaky Devil – http://sneaks-myfantasylife.blogspot.com/
leahzero – http://words.leahraeder.com/
razibahmed – http://www.southasiablog.com/
RavenCorinnCarluk – http://ravencorinncarluk.blogspot.com/
Collectonian – http://collectonian.livejournal.com/