Finding characters
I find my characters hiding out in the most unlikely of places:
an interesting face at the grocery store...
my daughters' imaginary friends...
encyclopedias...
But my favorite place to meet characters is at the art museum.
Partly because art museums are awesome in themselves.
Partly because I love having the full image of what a character is like,
lurking behind what they look like.
Here are some faces and personalities you may find in one of my books someday:
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| Portrait of a Man, by Peter Paul Rubens |
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| Bust of Lord Granville, by Joseph Nollekens |
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| L'Enfant du Regiment, by John Everett Millais |
(All of these pictures were taken on our recent visit
to the Yale University Art Gallery and Yale Center for British Art:
two excellent, free museums in New Haven CT.)
I love visiting art museums, and you're right! They are positively brimming with character possibilities :)
ReplyDeleteThat's why I like photo prompts. There are so many possibilities in a photo, especially of people!
ReplyDeleteI like cemeteries for character inspiration. Sometimes my college creative writing professor would have our class write in the nearby cemetery when it was nice out. It's quite tranquil and stirs the muse! I can't help but wonder about those lovely names and what their lives were like.
Happy reading and writing! from Laura Marcella @ Wavy Lines
I try to separate reality from my fiction as much as possible, but on occasion the physical appearance of a character in my brainstorming or drafts will be based upon someone I've met.
ReplyDeleteThis is why I enjoy observing people, whether at the store or beach. My sister and I used to play a game making up stories about the people we saw in the cafeteria ... and it's funny how the character was more alive in our minds than the person who inspired us.
ReplyDeleteI can imagine the first man as the father in your latest ms.
Goodness, it's a darn good thing I don't have a free art museum nearby. I might spend way too long sitting in front of portraits, dreaming up the realities behind them.
ReplyDeleteWe lived near Disney World, and one of my favorite things is to go there, sit on a bench and watch. There are so many interesting people, and imagining what their lives are like? Well, reality is sometimes stranger than fiction, right?
I am a notorious people-watcher, picture-looker-atter and fine-art-appreciator(with ulterior motives.) It wasn't until I started writing on a regular basis that I realized WHY I am this way.
ReplyDeleteThis post is sending me to an art book to get ideas for the physical characteristics of one of my characters. So far, I haven't seen her around. Of course, I've only had a few people to look at over the last couple of weeks, and I know them all.
Just yesterday, I was waiting at a stop light and a man walked by carrying a flag and what appeared to be a bunch of signs. It looked like he was on his way to protest outside the nearby federal building. And I got to thinking about his story...all these what if questions popped into my head. I love it when that happens.
ReplyDeleteLove this. I can't wait to read them and put a name to the face ;)
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness. The little child revolutionary gets me every time. I like the quiet dignity of the "Portrait of a Man"...it reminds me of your father-in-law :) Also, here's the painting I was telling you about -- Romanticism 100% :) http://art.thewalters.org/detail/6365/
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