tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4219408317753791302.post6165865436288348450..comments2019-10-14T08:43:43.303-04:00Comments on Robert Evert: Neurotic Novelists of the World Unite!: Developing Characters (or Die Mary Sues Die!!!) Robert Everthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511309474288403831noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4219408317753791302.post-26948684346474699082014-05-14T10:51:16.519-04:002014-05-14T10:51:16.519-04:00I won't comment on the author :) It's a g...I won't comment on the author :) It's a good book. I enjoy it. But sometimes I wish the main character would meet a foe who can best him. <br /><br />But you make a good point regarding writing about somebody who has to rise above their situation. I think you're right. Stories need that change to make the story interesting. Without growth in the character, the story becomes boring...like you said.<br /><br />However, I think the character (feisty, streetwise urchin) is a bit over done... just like the muscle man who can kill everybody and everything with his mighty sword.<br /><br />I think the bottomline, for me at least, is that characters have to be more multi-dimensional. They can't be good at EVERYTHING! Clearly they have to have some attributes that help them progress throughout the story. But I think they also need to be constrained in their success.<br /><br />It's kind of like how Superman went from being a very strong guy who could fly to somebody who could reverse time. Too much power in a character devalues the power that he/she has. <br /><br />But that's just my thought. I tend to root for the underdog characters and hate the elite bastards who are treated special because of who they are/what they can do/who their parents were/ etc. <br /><br />What does everybody else say? Robert Everthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08511309474288403831noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4219408317753791302.post-80191722024905323982014-05-13T11:56:20.728-04:002014-05-13T11:56:20.728-04:00Is that Patrick Rothfuss you are reading? Sounds l...Is that Patrick Rothfuss you are reading? Sounds like it. I love it and can't wait for more. I don't mind the cliches, because I think people forget that many cliches are there for a reason. After all, how are you going to make a compelling story out of a street urchin who doesn't rise above his circumstances? It would be boring to read about one who just wallows in his or her misery. So you almost HAVE to write about one who rises above. It's the story that matters, at least in my opinion.Ted Crosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09022309459554237650noreply@blogger.com