I know for a lot of writers, characters oftentimes take on lives of their own, developing quirks and going in different directions than the writer intended. For example, in Surviving Matewan, I noticed that whenever my main character, Molly Anne, picked out something she liked, it was red. Red was her favorite color. Red? By far not my favorite.
Well, it's official, in my most recent WIP, Knights of Avalon, a YA Urban Fantasy about Knights of the Roundtable reincarnated as New Jersey teens, "Arthur" is a speed demon.
How do I know? Here are the signs:
* Whenever characters drive separately from Point A to Point B, "Arthur" will always get there first.
* When "Arthur" is questioned by the police, she (yeah, Arthur's a girl in this) notes the only other run-in she's ever had with a police officer was when she was pulled over for speeding.
* Other characters are afraid to drive with her and always volunteer to drive instead.
* She worries about speed traps.
* When trying to convince another character that her car, an old beater held together by duct tape and love, is safe, she notes she's had several minor accidents already and both she and the car came out of them just fine. This does not allay the other character's concerns.
I'm just worried the girl's going to get her license revoked by the end of the book.
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I know exactly what you mean. It's especially unnerving when you want your character to do something and they refuse...
ReplyDeleteI love reading about another writer's experiences!
Yeah, when characters do that I call it "going on strike." I've had two characters (Lancelot and Mordred) go on strike on me so far in this book.
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