Character Reflection

I think characters are one of the most important, if not the most important part of any good
story,. I’ve read many books in a boring setting or with little outside conflict, where the character
provides for the movement and interest in the story so I liked learning about how to create an
interesting and in depth character. I really enjoyed writing the character sketch, but I think
generally writing short pieces can be more difficult just because it is hard to fit in depth for a
short piece. For me, I get caught in the trap of giving too much background narration and telling
instead of showing. Some people prefer to write shorter things, but I think for me I get a huge
plot idea into my head and then I’m not able to get it all down. Hopefully when I am in college I
will have time to extend some of the stories or prompts I’ve written in this class. I like the idea of
doing a character sketch though because characters are the most important part of any book.
While a plot can move a story forward, some books are completely character driven and those
novels are often my favorite.
Besides that, I love to write because it's a great way to deal with feelings or visualize yourself in
a different situation so it's really great to imagine different characters and what their lives could
be like. Answering the question really helped me and completely changed the idea I had for my
character sketch. In the future I will most likely use the questions when writing a short story so
my characters are more well-rounded. I originally was going to write about a radical feminist
leader of the revolution, but as I was doing the answers it morphed into something different. It
also allowed my character to have more dimensions and gave me great ideas! Tucker was helpful
with editing my piece. I didn’t make any major changes, but his notes were still helpful.
I decided to switch it up and do a feature piece in a newspaper article because I was inspired by
some of the pieces we read in class that chose a more untraditional format to tell their story in,
particularly Zombies, Just a Quick Email and the other presentations on elements on crafts. I can
definitely improve; I wish there was a bit more suspense or a bigger point of interest but I
generally really like the piece. Something that I always struggle with is showing not telling, so I
am always trying to work on that. I tried to demonstrate her frustration with the office, but her
perseverance rather than telling. I wish I had spent time writing another draft so I could perfect
the voice so it would seem like a newspaper had written the story. In the future when I choose a
more unique perspective I think I will have to double check to make sure the voice is consistent
throughout. Also, planning out a character’s desire and other details about the character creates a
more realistic character which the reader can relate to.