At this point I’m thinking that I’ve introduced enough things that I probably need to spend some time on the people doing them. I’ve already been working on Ohrder and Begone, who are the main characters in the story–or are they the only two? And even if they are, how much time do I spend developing the supporting cast around them? I’ll tell you what I want to happen. I want even the characters who flash by in a single scene to have enough substance to paint a picture in the readers head of what they might look like, and how they might act in any given situation. But this next chapter isn’t about any old pop-up character, it’s all about introducing the girl in the story. At its roots, Ehlsewhere is a fairytale and every fairytale needs a princess. Is she a main character? Well, honestly, not yet. As the story grows, her role will too. Eventually, I’m confident she’ll be in more scenes than she’s not, and her point of view will be every bit as important as Ohrder’s and Begone’s. But not yet. Still, I definitely need to give her a proper introduction; one that will leave readers wanting more scenes with her in them. And while I’m at it I can’t loose sight of building on one or more of the plot points I’ve already introduced.
Once in a while your first draft turns out better than you could have ever hoped. I can tell you that chapter three fits that category. It needs polished, but I doubt I’ll end up rewriting it. I’m happy with Chahrity’s character and very pleased with the developing relationship between her and Begone. So, I’m not sure anything needs changed or even added at this point–with a BIG however. One of the things I’ve found out over the years is that important characters do grow with the story, and sometimes they can end up being someone different than you first imagined them to be. Usually, that’s just a normal part of character development, but sometimes it requires going back to earlier chapters and making tweaks to how you originally portrayed them. In Chahrity’s case I hope that doesn’t happen. I like her and I hope you do too.
May the Lord blessed your day,
Mike
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