 Horror/Scary: May 13, 2015 Issue [#6977] |
  Horror/Scary
This week: Characters Must Care About Something Edited by: W.D.Wilcox  
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CHARACTERS THAT CARE
Today I thought I'd let my pen talk for me.
These are just random thoughts that cross my mind when I think about what is important to the development of any of my characters.
How is it, we can remember the past, but not the future. When going back is perilous, and too often return is impossible because the path is lost, or the traveler changed beyond hope of recovery.
There comes a time in life when our choices become narrow. The decisions we have to make become fewer and fewer, the branches less discernible, the main road more distinct. All awhile time spirals from forever to forever, as clusters of black trees with craggy limbs claw at the gloom, and dark night beats forward, circling on broad-wings beneath a wheel of cold, uncaring stars.
The sight should stop our heart, but such an easy end is not our fate. When we feel we can take no more, and then fall out of our dream into an empty room, will we decide to just pretend to be alive . . . or will we care about something . . . anything?
What do your characters care about?
In order to make them real, they must care about something, or your reader won't care. And there-in lies the problem.
Here are six ways to make readers care about your characters:
Make Your Characters Need Something. One of the easiest ways to make your character more empathetic is to expose a vulnerability and establish a need to: save a dying mother, fall in love, crack the code, etc. The need can be as simple as “get to work on time” or as complicated as “save the world.” But it will encourage readers to empathize with the character and root for his or her success.
Make Your Characters Take A Stand On Important Issues. A character with strong convictions and a cause to be passionate about will intrigue readers and earn their respect. If your audience is interested in your character’s goals and respects your character’s convictions, they’ll be more inclined to follow the story line to its conclusion.
Make Your Character The Underdog. Nothing piques the interest of the reader more than the inspirational story of a hero battling against seemingly impossible odds, struggling to find success under the bleakest of circumstances. Who wouldn’t cheer for the little guy? Think David vs. Goliath.
Give Your Characters Idealistic Qualities. Readers love characters that embody qualities and ideals they also aspire to. Even if your character is a scoundrel, make him or her a soft-hearted scoundrel. Characters that exemplify the best of humanity entice the reader to stay engaged and keep reading.
Give Your Characters Formidable Foes. Heroes are only as good as the villains who oppose them. Giving your main character adversaries who present challenging obstacles will bring out the best (and sometimes the worst) in your characters. As daunting as that sounds, the journey to overcome these obstacles will further endear your characters to the reader.
Empathetic Characters Don’t Always Have To Be Good Guys. Creating characters that evoke empathy in the reader can be challenging, but these six methods will ensure that your efforts are successful. And keep in mind that empathetic characters don’t always have to be likable. Try your hand at writing an unlikable (or even villainous) character that exudes empathetic qualities. Think Patrick Bateman in American Psycho or Severus Snape from the Harry Potter series.
Until Next Time,
billikus
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Here's a couple shorts I wrote
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DEAD LETTERS
Grin 'n Bear It! 
Screams:
Excellent newsletter! You did a tremendous amount of research into the psychology of fear. You've given us a lot to think about in crafting a really scary story.
Specter
Contemplates:
W.D.,
There’s something about thinking that ain’t natural--it blows by all the mesmerism of science, philosophy, education, yes, even religion. It’s the top hat of the paranormal in the guise of free writing on the back streets of anywhere but here. Though, I must regard horror only as horror confronted head on in this crazed world, or met with in a debilitating nightmare. Horror at its worse occurs in the spectral feeling of your heart falling on your feet. After all has been said and done, the world as reality is another kind of nightmare. And my heart keeps getting in the way of my feet.
LJPC - the tortoise
Quips:
Fantastic newsletter, Bill! The psychology of horror is a complex area and you explained it all beautifully. Awesome! 
~ Laura
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