At first glance, this may seem like a no-brainer. After all, most of us write our stories based on our love for the main character. However, as was reinforced to me while writing this book, there are several levels of sympathetic characters.
First, we have the characters that just come to life on the page. They’re real, they’re likable, and they’re a joy to write.
But then you have the slightly more difficult characters. These are ones that don’t want to talk to the writer. They sulk in corners and just generally make you want to throw your laptop across the room.
If you can’t get at the heart of a character, how can you share that heart with readers?
I’ve found that the key is getting these characters to talk, whether internally or in dialogue, in the first draft itself or in extracurricular interviews.
Just let loose on the page. At this point, your first goal is not necessarily to construct a scene, but rather to find two important facets of your characters: their greatest needs and their greatest fears, which will almost always be what’s keeping them from fulfilling their needs.
Keep pushing your characters. Keep asking them questions—either personally or through the medium of another character. Initiate conflict, because this is the best way to get characters to show their true colors. But, remember, you also want to make them sympathetic, even within their anger or whatever, which means you need to find the places where they’re hurting and show their wounds to readers.
