Appreciation post: finally figured out why my characters felt flat

I kept reading prompts where people said to give a character a flaw, so I'd write 'she's clumsy' or 'he's stubborn', but they still felt like cardboard. After a workshop in Austin last week, the instructor pointed out my flaws weren't actually causing problems in the story. How do you make a character's flaw actually drive the plot forward?

3 comments

3 Comments

sage30829d ago

That workshop in Austin just fixed my whole writing life.

wood.eric29d ago

I get what you mean about a workshop cutting through the noise, but that "fixed my whole writing life" line worries me. In my experience, that feeling fades fast when you're back at your desk alone. A workshop can give you a boost, but the real work is a slow grind every day. No single event really fixes the writing process for good.

tyler23729d ago

Honestly used to roll my eyes at writing workshops, thought they were all talk. But hearing @sage308 talk about that Austin one makes me reconsider. Maybe the right group just cuts through the noise and gives you actual tools. It sounds like it got past the stuff that usually blocks people. Might have to look into something like that now.