I was at an open mic last night at a small bar, enjoying listening to original music and people watching. While one of the acts was on stage, I realized that he looked very much like a conglomeration of other musicians I’d met; everything from his hair, to clothes, to posture, and even his music, was similar to something I’d seen before. This isn’t to say that his songs were unoriginal, but he just fit the mold of a certain type of musician that I’d encountered in the past.
Meanwhile, at the end of the bar was someone I hadn’t seen in a while, but I recognized her instantly. I didn’t even have to catch a glimpse of her face to know it was her; just through her gestures and her clothing, I knew it was her. I would put her in an opposite category from the musician on stage; she is truly an original.
Seeing these two people in the same room made me realize that very rarely do I encounter a person so unique that I can honestly say I’ll probably never meet another person like him/her. And this thought, of course, made me think about fictional characters. Should they be absolutely unique people, or people who are familiar to us because we’ve met others like them before?
I realized that most of the characters I encounter and enjoy reading about are usually in the familiar category. They’re easier to relate to if I can link them to characteristics I’ve seen in real life. In that way I get to know them much more quickly because I already have some context for how to interpret them. With truly unique characters, I think it gets a little trickier. They certainly do exist in books, but I realized that they often play the sidekicks (Hassan in John Green’s An Abundance of Katherines, for example). This is most likely because truly unique people are a little harder to identify with, and it might also become a bit tedious to be in their heads for a long period of time.
But for a character to be interesting, s/he can’t feel derivative, and in this way I think the two categories need to cross over a bit. So let’s go back to An Abundance of Katherines, where we have the brilliant-on-paper but dumb-at-life Colin. He’s insecure and lonely and heartbroken, which are all emotions the average person can relate to. But he also loves anagrams and spouts random historical and mathematical knowledge that most people wouldn’t find interesting. In this way he’s a unique character, even though he’s relatable on an emotional level. What’s funny about this book in particular is that while Colin might be easier to relate to, I’ve heard several people say that Colin’s friend Hassan (the truly unique character) is more fun to read about.
So all of this makes me wonder if maybe there aren’t any set rules here. We like characters we can relate to, but we’re also amused and intrigued by ones who are completely out there. We want characters we can care about, but we also want them to be more interesting than average people. It seems that ultimately what draws us in is a mix of the familiar and the unique.
- Categories: Craft, Writing Rants
An interesting post; I’m still thinking about it. I think maybe all characters (and people) are unique in some ways, but we don’t always notice it right away. Like maybe your stereotypical musician is also a physicist. And isn’t that one of the (many) challenges in writing, giving your character unique and individual traits? Not necessarily so they’re weird, but so they feel individual and relate-able.
But I think you’re right, there also has to be an element of the familiar. For me, the emotional strands of a novel work that way. Even if a character is completely out there personality-wise, if they’re sad or lonely I think, “Oh, I can relate to that.”
Hi Anne! You’re absolutely right that familiar characters aren’t the same as stereotypical characters. I guess that’s why we’re interested to read about made-up people, because we want to see how they’re like and yet unlike us.
I agree that the character’s emotions are usually easiest to relate to. Though I also love characters who react in unexpected ways and keep me guessing!
That Hassan cracked me up.
I think characters should be unique and relatable, but above and beyond all else, should never be cliche. When people talk about making characters unique, I think they are trying to make sure writers really think past the genre cliches of our characters and make even the sidekick characters have a spark of thought and originality.
Great post!