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I knew I wasn’t crazy. (Hey, I saw that eye roll!) In her lecture about the interior life of our characters, young adult and middle grade author Coe Booth said, “Characters should exist before we know them. They should keep ‘talking’ when we aren’t writing about them.” Coe had no idea how good her words made me feel. I wasn’t the only one who thought that about my characters!

When I began my third middle grade novel, I interviewed the people I hoped would populate the story. My goal was to become better acquainted with my already-identified main character and his family as early in the novel-writing process as possible.

Why? Well, for one thing, we were going to spend a heck of a lot of time together. Why start out as strangers? Also (and this is a big ALSO), knowing my characters allows me to anticipate how they’ll think and feel in the situations I’ll plot for them.

Based on the interview outcomes for each player–primary and secondary–I compiled character sketches. Each character has a job to do and I had to know they were up for it. Slackers need not apply!

Oh sure, my characters have surprised me already–and that’s the fun part–but hosting that meet and greet for the entire cast at the outset made a big difference before we buckled up and motored into the unknown together.

Here’s my secret for a great character interview–turn off your inner censor. Unplug the darn thing and put your mouth on mute. Not unlike a brainstorming session where you agree there are no “good” ideas or “bad” ideas, the same must hold true as you query characters. LISTEN. Don’t interrupt or wonder if what they’re telling you is factual or even fits with the story you want to tell. Let your subconscious and your intuitive side have free rein. If you can do this, you will be amazed by what will surface. I recorded information about my characters and only afterward learned how the pieces fit together in powerful and significant ways I never could have planned or predicted.

 

 

Here are some sample character interview questions:
Who is your hero?
What’s your favorite day of the week? How come?
What’s under your bed?
What’s your earliest memory?
Do you have any allergies?
What candy is your all-time favorite?
If you could change your name, what would it be?
What’s your biggest fear?
What are you good at in school?
What do you wish you were good at?
When you look in a mirror, what part of your face do you like best?
What do you like to do when you get home from school?
Do you have a pet?
Do you have brothers or sisters?
How do you parents get along?
Who lives at your house?
What’s the best vacation or trip you’ve ever taken?
What seems unfair to you?
If you could live in another time in history, when would it be?
What ticks you off?
What rule would you change if you could?
What would happen if your best friend moved away?
What’s your least favorite chore at home?
Do you have a bad habit?
Do you like being hugged?
What would you do with $100?

Consider these questions for starters. I know you can think up even better ones (and please, feel free to share!)

Why not interview your characters too? Even if you’re mid-novel, it’s not too late to conduct an impromptu Q and A session. You may discover something that will add depth or quirkiness to your characters and “maybe” even help to explain why they do what they do (or aren’t cooperating).

But remember the secret–shift your censor into neutral. Let your characters delight, surprise and perplex you, and then they will do the same for your readers.

Every time I write a new book, I want to push myself to try something different. ~ Lauren Myracle

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Ugh, I jacked my back AGAIN. Luckily, it wasn't too terrible this time and it coincided with the long weekend so I missed minimal amounts of work and got out of having to help Dan tear down the front fence and build a brick wall. (Which he did all by himself and it looks AWESOME. I would have just messed it up.)

Anyway, here are two books that I had to read for work and really didn't want to because I wasn't a huge fan of other books by the same authors. Luckily, I was pleasantly surprised in both cases!

Kendra Coe Booth

Ok, I really didn't like Tyrell. I wasn't going to read Kendra, but I had to for work. I'm glad I did. I like Booth's online presence and felt bad that I didn't like her book, because I really like her as a person. Now I don't have to feel bad!

Kendra lives with her grandmother in the Bronx, in the projects, but she's a good girl and trying to stay that way. Her mom was 14 when Kendra was born, but Renee just got her PhD. Kendra can't wait to go live her, too bad it looks like Renee is still not ready to face up to her responsibilities as a mother.

Kendra's not going to end up pregnant at 14 like her mom. She's too much of a dork, she's too good. Plus, Nana won't let her out of house and watches her like a hawk.

Kendra has her head screwed on straight. Until her hormones take over.

Sometimes I just wanted to shake her. Kendra was believable and acted like a real teen and she drove me crazy. I am also not happy about the ending, which you can read about in a spoiler-filled rant here.

The story wasn't really my cup of tea, but I liked it a lot more than Tyrell. I'll probably read Booth's next offering, whatever it turns out to be.

The Secret Story of Sonia Rodriguez Alan Lawrence Sitomer

Sonia wants to be the first in her family to graduate from high school and go to college. Her father works two jobs to support her family while her brothers sit around and watch TV. She's expected to run the house and do all the work, all while under her drunkle's perverted gaze. Then, if things couldn't get worse, her mother decides Sonia doesn't have enough respect and ships her off to Mexico for the summer. While in Mexico, Sonia sees the truth about her culture and her family, and comes home more determined than ever to reach her goals, only her life is more determined than ever to stop her.

I didn't want to read this because I did not like Sitomer's other work. My main complaint (Sitomer is just too angry about what he sees working with kids in urban poverty so his omniscient narrator is just too angry) held true for about the first half of this book. Sonia was really angry about her situation and her culture to the point where it wasn't believable any more. I feel this changed after Sonia's trip to Mexico. There her anger stops being at her culture and starts being directed towards members of her family for particular reasons. After that, I really got into the story and ended up liking it, but I would have put it down after 50 pages if I hadn't been required to read it.

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