Valentine’s Day: Why I Love My Main Character
I got back into writing a new scene for my WIP this week, and fell in love all over again with my MC. For a quick, semi-random Valentine’s Day post, here’s why:
1. She is totally antsy. If she isn’t doing something, she’s not happy–she gets impatient and frustrated and just starts looking for something to dig into. This is SO different from me–I’m just happy finding another book to read. 🙂
2. She has power. She takes steps to be in charge of her own life and, frankly, she’s not against being in charge of other people’s lives, if she thinks they need her. She acts.
4. She’s smart. Probably academics-smart, too, but in the important way–clever. She can see what needs to be done and find a way to do it, even if she has to be sneakily cunning to get there. I LOVE her being sneaky.
4. She loves busy-ness and energy and crowds and noise. Again, me–I’d rather just curl up away from it all, with that book.
5. She loves her family. She wants to take care of them. She’s going to have to learn to take care of herself, though.
6. She’s got some BIG control issues. So does her mother. Can you just see the crash coming?
7. Most of all, what I love about her this week? Well, I’ve found that the best way for me to write a scene these days is to identify my MC’s goal and then look for obstacles to that goal. Well, she has such definite goals, that the obstacles are just popping out at me–in fact, she creates a good many of them herself. Does she back away from those obstacles? No, she does not. She’s strong, and she’s a fighter.
Little does she know how big the fight is going to get.
Are you in love with your MC? Why? Let’s hear what makes this Valentine’s Day special for you and your characters.
beckylevine.com 
12 Comments
I’m loving mine, too. She’s flawed but trying.
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She’s SUPPOSED to be flawed. 🙂
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I’m still getting to know my main character in the sh*tty first draft. Writing about her every day is helping. Love the goal + obstacle for every scene though. Thanks, and good luck!
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It’s wonderful getting to know them, though, isn’t it? I think I was having so much trouble drafting before because I couldn’t figure out those goals–the extra plotting time definitely helped, as frustrating as it was not to be writing!
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It sounds like you’ve got an awesome character to write! Funny how we can invent people who are so unlike us, isn’t it? And yet, there must be something of us that’s like them, or we couldn’t invent them.
I love my one MC because even though he’s messed up and fallen way short of where he thinks he needs to be, he still goes out of his way to be a decent guy. I also love him for fiiiiiiinally talking to his author! And for his courage to change and own up to his shortcomings.
I love my other MC because even when things are whoa, unexpected, or when people are against her, she still manages to have a sense of humor about her life. Also because she’s willing to face things she’d rather not because she knows it’s right.
I hope both of them get a life outside my own head!
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Wonderful traits–I love the humor. I kind of have the sense that all the power in mine was there when I was young, but I didn’t know how to recognize or use it. Yay for fiction writing decades later!
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Yes, I love mine. She has a bit of an edge to her. She’s very idealistic, politically progressive, smart, practical, but she has a tendency to doubt her gut and think things over a little too much.
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Sounds like a wonderful hero!
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I DO love my main character. He is wounded, searching, compassionate, smart, and braver than he realizes.
I can tell I am gonna love yours too!
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I love that braver than he realizes. Can’t wait to hear more about this book. 🙂
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So glad you’re finding joy in the writing!
I love how resourceful my own heroine is, and how adventurous. She stands up for herself, and she takes risks.
But I also love her because she gets scared.
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I love that your heroine gets scared, too. I’m still waiting for my heroine to run into the thing she doesn’t feel like she can handle. I know it’s coming, and it’s not going to be pretty, but I’m sure hoping she lets me know how to write it, too! 🙂
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