The Main Character

One of the most important elements of your novel. These are the people at the core of the action in the story and the good thing about fantasy is that you’re not bound to the scientific laws of normal stories. So there is nothing to stop you from making a talking tree your main character.
When starting a new story I often ask myself a few basic questions:

Who are they?

How old are they?

What is their background?

Do they have an occupation?

Do they have a family?

What do they look like?

What is their personality like?

Is there anything special about them?

It’s ok if you don’t know the answers to these questions. Brainstorm your ideas, put down anything, you can always refine it later. An important part of writing is watching your characters grow and change throughout the novel, even if you didn’t mean them to! Once you give them life and a writers voice to express it with, anything can happen.

It is also important that you don’t get influenced by characters someone else has created. A scruffy looking boy with an unusual scar that finds out he is a wizard has already been done. Be original! It may sound like common sense but when it comes down to the nitty gritty, a lot of people seem to fall into the trap of continuing with those stereotypes.

Other common traps many new writers fall into is creating cliché characters known as ‘Mary Sues’. These characters often have traits that make them the best at what they do, or practically flawless – something which in the real world is virtually impossible to be. It is also something to remember when writing; that no matter who they are or where they come from, no one is perfect. More importantly, no one likes reading about perfect people.

A guide to common Mary Sues can be found here

WORKSHOP: Take the dot point questions from above and answer them in relation to your character or even pretend you are interviewing them. Try and answer in ways that your character would and see how their personality takes control of your page.