Bossy Characters

Do you ever find that your characters start to boss you around? Have you ever started writing a story with specific intentions, but your characters refuse to cooperate?

Um Yeah. Loads! I started a fic about a shy girl who became a Death Eater and now she's arrogant and really nasty.
I also began another fic and it was meant to be a couple of chapters about her new child (don't ask) and then the story was basically about the childs' life!

Don't worry. You're not crazy.
I don't think so anyway! :)

My characters are always taking over. Tonks is really bad for it, I've had to abandon one of my fics because she took over and started doing some strange things... My Remus/Tonks fic is also being taken over by my characters, Remus won't shut up and has far too much to say for himself, and Tonks won't stay anywhere near him! Stupid characters...

My OCs tend to behave a lot better than the canon characters, but I've never had an OC as a major character, so they play their parts then I shove them out the side door.

*sigh* I know only too well. Allow me to explain: I am in the process of writing a fanfiction that involves an OC character two years younger than Harry. 15 pages in, I had him meet a girl with, '...medium length red hair and bright, shining brown eyes, along with numerous freckles lining her face.' Ah yes, my first mistake, giving a shining description of Ginny Weasley. My second blunder was having him actually talk to her. Oh yes, that was a big mistake. In fact, it was the beginning of a 150 page mistake that I plan on correcting. Logan (OC) was supposed to befriend another OC, not befriend Ginny. I was even forced to bump him up a year, all on a stupid whim.

Behold:

(\__/)
(+.+)
(> <)
This is Giggles, my plot bunny.
He's more evil than he looks.

Sam (sorry, Sam)

Do you ever find that your characters start to boss you around? Have you ever started writing a story with specific intentions, but your characters refuse to cooperate?

All the time. I swear; all of my OC's are evil. Usually, I intend them to be evil, but I didn't mean to be evil to/at me! One of my OCs, Victoria is going absolutely soft on me. She is not being nasty and the only evil thing that she's done lately is kill a person here or there, and it's very extremely frustrating. I promised myself that if I would ever write a story about a vampire they would be evil and would never want to turn to the “light side”. Guess how long that lasted? My advice? (Not that it’s particularly called for, but whatever,) step back and don’t let yourself write your own emotions into the character. Think of all the times where you’ve just really wanted to punch, kiss, hug, laugh at, or do something, but instead never did it. And write that into the story instead. Then, get back to writing it until you’re happy with the piece you’ve written. If not, argue it out until you’ve got it; it will come to you eventually. Now making your OC and a canon character not just have it off and kill each other just for the sake of ending your story? Now that, I can’t help you with.

Do you ever find that your characters start to boss you around? Have you ever started writing a story with specific intentions, but your characters refuse to cooperate?

It's horrible! Ready for a story? I wrote my very first fanfiction, I came up with teh plot and my character and I wrote. I finished writing ti and I was so happy! Then my beta pointed out that my original character had no character, then I realised she was right. I was depressed for days, I couldn't figure out what to do! She had a personality, I just couldn't write.

Then something miraculous happened! In English class we had to make a character sketch, and I made mine about my OC. I figured if I do this then I might be able to write her... That was a huge mistake. We ended up having to do an exercise in your mind where you have to be your character. Then the teacher would say a prompt and you had to write whatever came to mind, while you were in your characters mind. I was so happy; I actually knew my character! I got inside her head and she was just like how I imagined, but better.

Then something terrible happened! We had to write a story for English about our character. What was I to do? I already wrote her, but she's a witch and British. That wouldn't do for English class! So I made a slight variation in her.. I made my character a muggle and American.

Then something strange happened. My character was the nice, shy and quiet type. You know vulnerable and yearns for love and friendship. I tried to write my character for English class, but I didn't know how to start. Once I did, my character turned on me! She was evil! She was just flat-out nasty to every person she met! She was a pessimist and vicious! I kept trying to make her nice, I wanted her to be who she was supposed to be, but she wouldn't let me!

I almost blew off the writing assignment for school because I was so angry with her. I had to turn something in so I just wrote her the way she wanted to me.

Then something amazing happened! I wrote her as a vicious and nasty pessimist but by the end of my two-page story for English, she changed. She became the person she was supposed to be! It was incredible. Want to know the best part? I can convert my English story, into a fanfic so now my OC will get a prequel to my original fanfic and it will be about her.

My advice to struggling writers, fanfic or not. When you character insists on something just do what they say. If you have a strong character they know what is best for themselves, even if you don’t know it… Wow, I sound mental, but that’s okay!

Oh, don't get me started on this...

Well, I have four OCs (not in fanfiction, unfortunately). I had no idea how I wanted to end the story they were in, either. But then they just started...taking control. Making it their story, not mine. I just wrote what they did.

Christina is always the one who tries to be superior, with an icy exterior (rhyme!) and cool disdain, though on the inside she cares deeply about what others think of her. She is never relaxed around Nita and Wren, only her best friend, Connor.

Connor is the one who always tries to see the silver lining of any situation and jokes around, trying to get people to lighten up. He cares deeply for Christina (though they aren't in love - they are just the best of friends...) and is always trying to protect her and stop her from doing stupid, reckless things.

Nita is the one who is struggling to look better in her friend's eyes. She always ends up looking weak (from her POV), and everything she does turns out wrong (to her, though she does some great things), and she is constantly worried that her friends will think her weak and pathetic, especially when they compare her to her sister, Christina, the ice princess :) . She is continuously assaulted by 'visions' too, letting her sometimes see into the future... (okay, she is not a Mary-Sue, really. The visions aren't and flowery and happy. They send Nita into a world of despair. So she isn't a Mary-Sue. And she isn't that pretty, either.)

Wren is the one who can usually figure out what to do and how to do it - she is constantly thinking and trying to figure out how to help the others. She is very complex and needs a lot of attention so she doesn't figure out the ending too early. :) She is Nita's best friend, and they are very close.

Somehow, those four took the story I was going to write and sort of...shook it up, tossed it in a blender, cut off some and added some. I had originally intended one of them, Wren, probably, to go evil (I know, how cliche!), but the characters (thankfully) had their own ideas and made my story more original. If they didn't, I'd have a bunch of typed pages with nothing to show for them.

So, moral of the story:

Let your characters boss you around. They know their story best. (BUT: if they turn the story into a totally wacky direction, stop them. You are the writer, after all.)

~Kate

Edit: Yes, I know that made no sense. *head desk*

This happens to me all the time. For instance, I am writing a next-gen story where I at first meant the sixth years to be the main characters and the rest to be only very minor, bu now the fifth and third years are getting upset with me and taking up more and more space. Especially Abigail Potter, who has gone from just a shy little girl to a shy but rather mysterious girl who is an Animorphmagus (can turn into any animal at will) and a member of the Quidditch team. And her little brother has turned into an obnoxious, James potter-like, very popular and confident guy, even though he was meant to be a simple trouble-making third year.

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Let your characters boss you around. They know their story best. (BUT: if they turn the story into a totally wacky direction, stop them. You are the writer, after all.)

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I think this is very good advice. Sometimes characters can lead you in the right direction, and all you have to do then is follow and stop them from taking over the entire story.

~ Melodie

No, my characters don't really boss me around. I plan big chunks before I write it, and then it kind of just unfolds. You guys need to be stricter, my characters know that if they put a two out of line, they'll be AKed ASAP!!!

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Let your characters boss you around. They know their story best. (BUT: if they turn the story into a totally wacky direction, stop them. You are the writer, after all.)

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Awesome advice, Kate!

Well, I have an OC (Draco's son, but he's adopted by the Potters). His name is Maximus... but it wasn't intented that way. He changed it, and even sent me an e-flame!

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Not-so-dear Priz,

I just read what you've written about me and I have to say that it sucks big time. I DON'T have pale blond hair. That's so cliche! My hair is jet blck, and I like it that way, thank you.
Oh, and, for Godric's sake, I'm not a Slytherin! I might be Malfoy in blood, but I'm a brave toaster- er I mean Potter, in heart. I'm a Gryffindor, deal with it.
Oh, and I just won't fall for my own cousin... that's GROSS! I mean, I love Shannon, but not that way. I like the Lupin gurl better...
Also, I like books, not Quidditch. I prefer Transfiguration, not DADA.
Oh, and, lastly... what on Earth were you thinking when you decided I should be Dallan?! that's such a Gary-stu name... make it Maximus or I'll be forced to Avada Kedavra you.

Love,
Maximus D. Potter (your beloved original character)

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So, yeah... he changed my plot so much it hurt. Personally, I don't mind, for he's my baby and I'll let him do whatever he wants :p .

~Priz

Lol. I love the e-flame! And I can really see what you all mean.

One of my main OC's for a fic I'm working on, Ella, has a lot of a mind of her own. She decided she would call herself by her middle name, not Harriette like I'd planned for her. She then told the Sorting Hat quite firmly where she wanted to be (which wasn't Ravenclaw), and befriended a minor OC who she was supposed to be very cold and distant towards. She also hatched her own rescue plot for this character, and managed to rope another character, Jenny, into rebelling with her. Luckily, the rest of them are still under control, although Alice keeps getting very sidetracked whilst she's supposed to be doing something important to the plot.

I have very annoying characters. I did threaten to use the Body Bind Curse on Ella once, when she insisted on walking out of Transfiguration, but I just don't have the heart to curse my characters. Who knows, it might make them rebel more! Maybe I'm too soft on them...