Characters Who Kick Ass… Emotionally

Main characters who are intense and aggressive and filled with vim and vigor, who punch first and may not ask questions at all, who get in in the villain’s face and shake an angry fist while escaping the 13th death trap today, who climb mountains and ride dragons and drive swords through demonspawn… well, those heroes… we know all about what makes them tick and how to put all that energy and action on to the page. (If not, check out the bulk of the tutorials and roundtables on the blog.)

But what about those times when that energy and action needs to be less, well… actiony… and a lot more subtle. What about those heroes who are heroes of the heart and warriors of words? How do you do that exactly as a writer?

How important is it to present intensity of the mind and emotions in your characters (main or otherwise)? Why?

Jen Mulvihill: Super important, yes. My characters must grow and become who they are meant to and the best way to show that is through emotions.

Nikki Nelson-Hicks: It’s very important to show the deeply held intention of the character so if they go against the grain and break their own code, it is a clue that Uh oh! something is up and cranks up the tension. 

Bobby Nash: I think it all depends on the story and/or the characters. Not every character is the same. Some are more intense than others so, for those characters, it is more important. For me, it all starts with character. Once I get to know my characters, once they become real, live, living, breathing, talking, feeling characters, I do whatever I can to make sure they are well represented as such. When I put Tom Myers or Abraham Snow through hell, which I do often, I want to make sure the reader cares.

Gordon Dymowski: Showing emotion in a lead character is critical; after all, part of the joy of fiction is relatability. Even in a straightforward action piece, readers need (and want) to connect with characters. It’s easy to get lost in high drama, but crafting an effective story means creating a character who answers the reader’s question, “Why should I bother?” 

Mark Bousquet: It is the most important. All the punching and kicking is just that unless the characters have an emotional investment in the outcome of the fight.

Selah Janel: For me, it’s very important. I want my characters to have something going on beneath the surface, whether that’s intelligence or an emotional life people relate to. I write a lot of nonhuman characters, so having that thinking, feeling element up front is always on mind. Action is fine, action is great, but I want there to be connection between my characters and readers, so sometimes I have to dig deep and think outside the box to get there.

Bill Craig: Most read for escapism, go have an emotionally tense character captures the reader. But you have to layer the character in order to show what they are like underneath the face they show the world.

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