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When All the Characters Sound Like the Author
By david167 on Feb 15, 2010 | In Welcome
Have you ever written a story and somehow all the characters sound like you? I know I have . . .more often than I care to admit. It is easy to do. We know our responses and our thought processes better than we know anyone else’s, so when our character may be facing some deadly trap or trying to seduce someone it is easy to fall back on our own responses as if we were the character. This might work for a character, but if you attempt it with an entire cast of characters the story will be boring and sound like everyone is a clone of everyone else.
A way to avoid this is to look to the science of psychology. My two theories of preference to use is Myers-Briggs model and Jung’s archetypes. Note: I said archetype, not stereotype. They are two different animals and stereotypes make for boring characters.
By understanding and combining the two theories, characters can be made interesting and understandable to any reader. In my next several entries, I will explore the combining of these ideas. I am not the first nor will I be the last to do this and I will provide references for the reader to review and explore on their own.
Thank you for reading and please visit www.davidalanlucas.com for information on the blogs, stories, poems, and articles I write.
