Change the World With Your Writing~Taking Characters to Greater Depths (Part 2)

p. m. terrell     @pmterrell

Award-winning "Twist and Turn" author

In Part 1, we explored external factors that plunge the main character into a journey of transformation. In Part 2, we explore the internal force that can accomplish the transformation.

An internal force is something that the character suffers due to their own action or inaction, plunging them into a personal journey.

Inaction occurs when the character should have taken steps to avoid a potentially cataclysmic event, but their efforts either fell short or were nothing at all. An example is when the character hears that tiny voice urging them not to take that deserted road, but they ignore it and do so anyway. Of course, the road leads to danger, and they must discover an inner part of themselves to overcome the obstacles in their path, escape the danger, and arrive on the other side.

Change the World with Your Writing:Taking Characters to Greater Depths (Part 1)

p.m. terrell   @pmterrell

Award-winning "Twist and Turn" author

Heraclitus, the famed Greek philosopher, said that “change is the only constant in life.”

When envisioning readers, it’s important to understand that each one is undergoing change. Changes may be subtle, such as steadily growing older. Other changes may be dramatic, like a sudden personality change. Some can be seen with the naked eye, such as a spine that’s more stooped, while others are invisible because they are taking place internally.

A book that stands the test of time and becomes a classic is one in which the main character is completely transformed. This often occurs when an average individual encounters extraordinary circumstances. Those situations may be positive or negative on their surfaces, such as winning a lottery or losing a limb, respectively. However, what begins as a positive or negative often transforms the character in the opposite direction. It is that spiral that the accomplished writer should seek to portray, and the more detailed the circumstances, oddly, the more readers will identify with the character.