ISWG
What
do you do when your character dies in real life?
I’m going to get a little freaky here, so forgive
me, but I’m having a bit of a hard time with Paul Walker dying. It’s not that I was
a fan or anything like that; it’s that he was Gerrard, one of the MCs in my
Newstead books. I’ve looked at pictures of his face almost every day for a
year. And now he’s dead. I can’t get my arms around it. I know a lot of you do
what I do- have pictures of who your MC looks like to refer to for inspiration,
but what do you do when that person dies? If you know, please tell me, because I
am at a total loss.
What
I’m reading: I won the complete Thirteenth Floor
series by Christine Rains during the Realms Faire, so I’ve been reading The
Dragonslayer. So far I really like it; just what my mind needed after Malcolm
Goodwell- some good old-fashioned paranormal romance.
What
I’m writing: The Guardian- which is The Newstead
Project from Steven’s perspective. It was my NaNo novel so that means I’ll
spend the next 4-5 months filling in all the plot holes and
inconsistencies. All that being said, I
still love it- might be my favorite so far.
What’s
inspiring me: Music. I’m feeling a little soulful
lately, so I’m back to listening to Warren Barfield.
What
else I’m up to right now: Writing, finishing up the last
month of working as a nurse, and- will you believe it- registering to go back
to school. You’ll never guess what for. I’ll tell you in next Wednesday’s post.
Sorry
this is so late in the day- I can only blame this crazy life of mine.
It's really sad he died. Such a tragedy. I guess I'm odd, but I never pick actors for my characters. That question in interviews always sends me searching.
ReplyDeleteChristine Rains' series is awesome.
Melanie, I understand! Paul Walker was Mike, the main character in my fourth book. I had so many photos of him with those blue eyes and light hair. I was so stunned to hear he died. Just broke my heart.
ReplyDeleteI'm like Alex, I don't really pick actors for my characters. You could still use the pictures as inspiration - if they've been your inspiration for a year, there's not much else you can do.
ReplyDeleteIs is such a sad loss.
ReplyDeleteGreat job on the Color Me Bad entry!! You have to post pix!! I'm happy to inspire!!
I seldom put a real life face on my characters, just what I picture in my mind so I don't have good advice. I hope you get over the blahs and back to it.
ReplyDeleteIt is sad, especially because he was still young and it sounds like he was a really decent person. I suppose you could still write your story with him in mind; for example, there are writers who keep bringing people like Mr. Darcy and Cinderella back to life (though not necessarily in the same story).
ReplyDeleteHey Melanie,
ReplyDeleteDid you mean Paul Walker? Paul Young was a singer back in the 80's, I think, "Every time you go away" or something like that. Wasn't sure if he died too. But yeah...sad news. I never have any real person in mind...well, not a famous one at least. It would be a lady on the bus or a man in the produce section of the grocery store that I fashion my characters after. Just a passing something that sticks with me.
Well, you know the guy well, so write as if he were still alive. :)
M.L. Swift, Writer
I also don't really have any real life analogs to my characters, (they're usually a mixture of different parts of people) but I can understand that if you're using a particular person as a physical template, and that person passes away, it could be hard to go back to that image. I'm sure that you get attached to them in a way and their death would be hard on you.
ReplyDeleteOh, that would be tough. I always have actors in my head for my characters too and it would be so strange if one of them passed away. Such a shame what happened to Paul.
ReplyDeleteShocked by Paul Walkers tragic death, and the irony is just weird. He raised money to help the Philippines, so Filipinos everywhere are mourning his death.
ReplyDeleteAnd it sounds like you're super busy with all of those big life changes! Good luck with all of that.
Sorry you're having such a hard time with Paul's death. It was shocking for sure. Put it out of you mind and still view his pics as if he was an angel looking down at you and giving you inspiration. As a spirit he truly can become your muse.
ReplyDeleteSounds like some very interesting news… Looking foreword to it!
That's so far from my experience that I'm sorry I can't offer any insight. My characters are balls of context inside my head; most, I can't fathom casting and would hope to find talented unknowns to bring them to life. I can only suggest not relying on the notion of the real person, who never had actual input on your character, and relying still on what you projected and embraced to work from. That still remains.
ReplyDeleteSo sad to hear about Paul's death. I can imagine it must be strange for you. As for me, I've never casted my characters using celebrities, I picture them in my head. I'm not sure what you could do about it, but I like Michael's idea, picture him as a spirit, maybe that can help.
ReplyDeleteActually, I'm not much help here. I don't associate my characters, at least not my main ones, with an actor on purpose. Sometimes I base them off people I know if I want a certain personality or quirk, but I don't gather collages of a favorite super-stud actor and put it on my wallpaper for inspiration. Not that that's a bad thing, because I understand the need for visual inspiration as well as anyone.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure why. Maybe I should try it out. Sometimes I think I'm afraid to base my characters/stories off of real things. Hmmm . . . I hate the psychology of writing.
Sorry I don't have much more help than that!