Common Characters

There are patterns that are hard to break.  Even when you want to, sometimes they come sneaking back on you.  Similarly, there are characters who are hard to leave.

After having finished the fifth draft of a novel about a young girl who has to leave home to come back and finally face her dysfunctional family, I was ready to move on.  I started one story after another, growing bored with the plot and the characters I was creating in them fairly quickly.  Finally, I realized what was wrong: all these characters were the same person with the same problems.

The girls were all leaving their homes to find a new beginning. They were all the same age. Their families or tight-knit group of friends were all dysfunctional in different ways. In the end, it was all the same story with a slightly different flavor. 

Admittedly, there is room for stories to be told in a multitude of ways.  That’s the reason why romantic comedies and actions movies will never grow old.  There’s always a new twist to find and an audience waiting to be surprised by it.

The problem is that after dedicating months and months to one subject, it can get a little tedious no matter how much you love it.  Spending two hours watching a movie with the same theme and ending as another is one thing.  Spending months pouring over it when you know where things will generally end is another completely.

Sometimes characters are hard to let go because you’ve found their voice and you’ve given them all those little sparks and quirks that make them so endearing to you.  Tough love must prevail, however. 

Unless you’re willing to start a series with the same characters, make the break and move on.  Find someone new to fall in love with.  It’s the best part of breaking up, after all.