In a previous life I used to be in a relationship with a woman whom I’d tell friends that she was ‘perfect’. This woman asked me not to describe her that way as it put too much pressure on her to try and live up to my description. She of course was right. Our own mothers told us so, ‘That no one is perfect. That we are all human’.
Yet many authors have a protagonist in their novels who seem to be superhuman. They want their central character to be the hero which the world has been waiting for to save us all. These are the kinds of books that only get read part way through before they are closed and put back on the shelf by bored readers.
Our protagonist needs to struggle, needs to fail time and time again as they try to resolve the central problem of the novel. Ellen Brock, YouTube presenter and novel editor does an excellent job of explaining the need for our protagonist to not be perfect. Below you will find my summary of her nine minute video on ‘How to Write a Character Flaw’. I have also provided a link at the end so that you can go directly to her video if you choose.
Tag: Writing a Novel
This is a brief account of the approach I took when I decided to write and self-publish a novel. What I’ll mention first is perhaps the most important part of finishing and self-publishing a novel. It is something I’d not given much attention. It is the need to manage all those things that constitute your personal life, outside of writing related matters. As of the beginning of 2017 I became a stay at home husband, retired early. I became the master of my own schedule. Now, almost a year later I am aware of how much time I’ve spent dawdling. When you are working full time and also have family, friends, and a home tossed into the equation – your schedule runs itself. Go, go, go. When you get out of that sort of cycle, there is a void present. Expectations and deadlines are no longer imposed by the exterior environment. Time management is your own job. You now have time to take care of all those personal tasks and pleasures that you couldn’t get to when life was busy. It is a daily temptation to do all sorts of things, other than your writing. I needed to learn how take my new boss (myself) seriously. I still haven’t managed to whip myself into shape in that regard. But the new year is on hand. Letting go of the old and bringing in the new. So there is hope. (more…)