Collecting Characters
One of the morsels of advice that I hear from favorite authors is to collect characters and stories so in this post, I am doing just that. I have a page in my notebook, but a few have come my way just recently...
Mr. Schirmer- He just recently passed away, after living an amazing life. He was born in Germany and moved to CT after the war. He invented and patented several things, finding great success as an engineer. His daughter did not know that he had bought plots until after he had died. He had a choice of purchasing two plots right together or seven plots right together. He bought seven because "he didn't want anyone close to him."
Jenna- a beautiful high school freshman who is growing too fast, finding herself as the 11th person on a ten person team, and not sharing her friends' increasing interests in boys. She has finally been invited to play on the competitive soccer team as a team member and not just as a training player. Could a picture book work for such an old group? Probably not and it might not be edgy enough for the age group... hmmmm.
Gabby- a third-grade girl who doesn't talk. Smart, well-liked, seemingly happy, she stopped talking in first-grade and is now in a class with a teacher she loves
Ms. Quinn- A former nun who helps in our schools with some of the test prep who told one of the funniest stories/jokes I have heard in a while as we sorted through packets and stickers. Seventh-grade girls were testing out their lipstick applications by pressing their lips against the bathroom mirrors until the head of school marched them into the bathroom and had them watch how difficult it was for the custodian to clean the mirrors. He dunked the sponge into one of the toilets and began wiping at the mirror.
Eunice-A friend of my 15 year-old daughter who moved into our town this year, just in time to begin high school. She has a younger brother with significant disabilities and a mother who doesn't speak English. She just told Julia that she will probably be moving to Kansas this summer because her father has a job offer there.
Maddy- A friend of my 16 year-old who is smart, beautiful, and resistant to rules. She met my daughter at Starbucks on the day after my daughter got her driving license and was furious that Larkin would not drive her home after their cup of java. (It's illegal for kids to drive other kids for a year after they get their license!)
Over the course of this month, I will write about these stories and maybe someday, I will weave them into a bigger book. For the time being, I'm liking the collecting.
I too collect characters - and someday - perhaps - they will be more! Right now, for me, the SOL is about all I have time for...snippets...every day in March...once a week the rest of the year. I look forward to hearing more of your stories.
ReplyDeleteMelanie,
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea! I will start doing this...never thought of it before!
Hmm.... I used to love to create characters as a preteen. I had a whole series of questions I would ask myself to learn about their quirks and challenges. I may need to try to pull something like that back out!
ReplyDeleteCool! I found myself wondering if your notes were the real people or the beginning of the made up characters. I like some of the quirky names: Eunice, Schirmer, Quinn.
ReplyDeleteThe characters are real but I have changed the names for some of them. :)
DeleteI love this idea! I'm going to start doing it too. I had a variety of emotions as you described the characters. I found myself smiling, being sad, and thinking, "uh oh." We have so many stories brewing in our lives, don't we?
ReplyDeleteJulie
Very fun! I might have to start collecting characters here. My favorite, not gonna lie, is the custodian who dunks the toilet water... I have two great custodians, and I might just have to start my collection with them!
ReplyDeleteThe bathroom mirror story is the one that I picture being told from different viewpoints. Such a funny story!
DeleteI'm thinking of Eunice, and how much she has to deal with at 15. I have random notes on characters, but you have found a way to be much more organized.
ReplyDeleteEunice is probably the best story but the most intimidating for me.i have a huge amount of respect for young adult writers since that population wants edgy and we want to give them importance, too.
DeleteI love this idea and would be interested in seeing notebook pages/entries on the various approaches that we take in collecting characters. I often see characters in the grocery store and imagine their stories and, of course, know the stories of other characters... sometimes it's just a description of what they are wearing or their posture or how they speak or laugh... sometimes it's more.
ReplyDeleteI love this idea of collecting characters. I may be borrowing this idea in a future blog post because I immediately started thinking about all the people I have encountered in my life that could be good characters. Now I need to go find my writing notebook! Thanks for the inspiration.
ReplyDeletePlease feel free to borrow the idea. It wasn't mine, I'm sure. I'll have to pay attention to your posts and watch for your character collection. So fun!
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