Novel Helps Part I: Economy of Characters

Since half of my most recent posts have been about sports, I’ve decided to focus on writing for a little while, and do a little series on the elements of fiction *I* find most helpful and important when I’m writing.  This is just my humble opinion, and I’m certain many, many writers of greater talent and fortune will disagree.  But, since I’m constantly reminding myself of these things as I’m toiling with my work-in-progress, I figured I’d bore my readers with it, too.

Part I: Economy of Characters 

Film Critic Roger Ebert wrote this tongue-in-cheek Law of Economy of Characters in regard to movies:  

Movie budgets make it impossible for any film to contain unnecessary characters. Therefore, “any apparently unnecessary or extraneous major character is undoubtedly the villain” (Rising Sun, 1993); or, “any neighbors who seem unnecessary yet are given dialogue will be more than merely neighbors” (The Pacifier, 2005).

If you’ve watched either of these movies, or most other mystery/thriller movies made recently (The Bone Collector is on I’ve seen recently that employs this law), you know what Ebert is talking about.  Some minor character pops up in a few scenes – in the case of The Bone Collector, it’s the medical equipment technician – and really serves no purpose in pushing along the plot.  Then, at the end of the movie – WHAM! – the techie guy shows up to kill the the movies protagonist because of a past history the two men shared.  Of course, this history is revealed in several minutes of expository dialogue (you know, the villian’s evil sollioquy where he reveals the hows and whys of his diabolical deeds).  In movies, and in books, I consider this a huge no-no. 

While Ebert’s so-called law speaks of “what not to do,” I have my own rule that I follow.  To me, economy of characters means no character is wasted, no character is stuck into my plot unless he or she serves a purpose, and no one – okay, no one who occupies more than two paragraphs - remains static.  This does not mean one of my characters has to be “the bad guy” or “the one who did it” – I don’t write about bad guys. 

In my novel, Home Another Way, I have my protagonist, Sarah Graham.  Then, I have my secondary layer of characters (those who interaction with the protagonist have the biggest impact on her, and her on them): Jack, Maggie, Beth, Memory, and Doc.  And then, my tertiary layer (those who are less prominent, but still play a key role): Patty, Rich the Mushroom, Rabbit and Ben, and Luke. And, finally, I have the bit part players, those who have one or two encounters with my protagonist or secondary characters: Ima-Louise, Hiram, Dominic, Ephraim, and Adele.  Their presence is important in that they A) highlights personality traits (or changes in those traits) in a primary or secondary character, B) act as catalysts for certain plot points, or C) spark moments introspection in some of the more key players.

I limit my bit players.  I feel they bog down my writing.  If a secondary or tertiary character can also fulfil the role a bit player has without seeming too contrived, then I chop the bit player.  Notice, too, I have almost the same number of second-, third-, and minor-tier characters.

So, how does this look practically?  Say my protagonist, Sally, goes to the store and I spend two pages showing her fighting with the sales clerk over a blue dress.  I ask myself - how does this drive the plot forward?  Is the blue dress important?  Is the clerk important, and does she show up in the story again?  What does the scene say about my character?  What am I trying to show?  If my whole point is to show my main character’s temper, can I just cut the sales clerk and show Sally fighting with her husband instead? 

Think about it.  Go through your novel’s characters.  If you can cut one or two out and not have it affect the plot – or if you can give those roles to more important characters – try it.  You may find it strengthens you writing.

There are Only Two Seasons…

…according to Bill Veeck: winter and Baseball. I might go as far as to say there are three seasons: baseball, football, and that two week span of nothingness between the Superbowl and the time pitchers and catchers report.

It breaks your heart. It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in the spring, when everything else begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as soon as the chill rains come out, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone. You count on it, rely on it to buffer the passage of time, to keep the memory of sunshine and high skies alive, and then just when the days are all twilight, when you need it most, it stops. -A. Bartlett Giamatti, “The Green Fields Of The Mind“

Honestly, I love baseball. I love it more than football (though that’s a close one!), more than chocolate, more than any of my leisure activities. I have no qualms about jumping in the car and driving three hours to the Bronx to see the Bombers play. I have a fantasy baseball team (it’s a free team, of course). During the season, I listen to the Yankees games on the radio almost every night, and sometimes I watch them on television. I have to admit, I’ve skipped Bible study a couple of times during the playoffs (not recently, I promise). And, during my sister’s wedding reception, I was in the hotel lobby, glued to the television as the Yankees tried to force a game five in Anaheim during the ALDS.

 

People ask me what I do in winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring. -Rogers Hornsby

Well, this year, I am taking Jacob – who’s almost seven – and a friend of his, and I’m going to Tampa for the Yankees spring training. My father, who grew up in Yankee Stadium, as my grandfather worked summers there, is going as well. We’re hitting five games in eight days. Oh, we’ll be going to the beach, too. Jacob is looking forward to swimming and playing miniature golf, and there’s an awesome science museum in Tampa. The vacation from winter will be nice; there’s more than two feet of snow on the ground, and upstate NY is recovering from yesterday’s ice storm.

 

The End of Winter by Eve Merriam

Bare-handed reach
to catch
April’s
incoming curve.
Leap higher than you thought you could and
Hold:
Spring,
Solid,
Here.

I can’t wait. Yes, baseball is a frivolous game, and I know I could be spending my time doing something more constructive, but for eight days in March, I don’t want to be.

A Quick Update

Here’s my cover – or pretty close to the final rendering. I like it. And, it’s real now, the whole, “I’ve written a novel” thing.

This month, I’m still plugging away at my WIP, and I’m also editing Home Another Way. Final edits from me are due at the end of the month.

The book is being released August/September of this year. I’m planning to attend the Greater Philadelphia Christian Writers’ Conference mid-August, and I hope to have copies to share by then.

Oh, and Bethany House asked for a photo of me for its catalog. I’m sure I’m not alone in my dislike of cameras. But, that’s another post for another day!

Yes, I Love Football…

The New York Giants are Superbowl Champions!  (And, almost as important, the Patriots are not!!!!!) 

The Giants are my team (my NFC team, anyway).  I’ve followed them forever (mandatory fandom, given my father is from the Bronx).  So, tonight, of course I watched the game.  My poor son kept shouting at me from his bedroom, telling me *my* shouting was keeping him awake. Enough said.

(I will refrain from spouting about my irrational – and rather deep-seated – dislike of the Patriots).

Now, I only have two weeks of sportlessness before pitchers and catchers report to spring training.