McAnally's (The Community Pub) > Author Craft
Passive...
the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh:
--- Quote from: DeaSis on September 24, 2012, 01:04:34 PM ---I think I was too general in my plea. My problem is that as a writer, the majority of my characters in all of my stories tend to be passive. More of an observer who gets pulled into events and tries to make sense of them.
(...)
But my sci fi stories always get nailed by my writer's group for the passive characters. Have I internalized this too much? Maybe.
--- End quote ---
Maybe indeed. For one thing, there are plenty of examples of successful stories where people get drawn into events and only try to make sense as they go along, from The Hobbit to Hitchcock. For another, if you're introducing an SFnal world to a reader, the reader is going to be figuring it out and making sense of it as they go along, and a character doing the same is a good entry point - which is why so much SF uses people transported to unfamiliar worlds, or kids leaving their home village for the first time, or POV characters who otherwise have a good reason for needing things explained to them.
LizW65:
One of my favorite fantasy novels of all time, Neil Gaiman's American Gods, features a protagonist who is almost completely passive right up to the end of the story. A passive character who is finally persuaded into taking action can be very compelling, IMO.
DeaSis:
Then, maybe I have internalized it too much. It's one of those classic cases of "any strength pushed to the extreme becomes a weakness" sorts of things then. Having an intimate writer's group is good for being able to have a core of people who are always on your side and wanting to help you be better. But there is also the weakness of wanting to please them and write to them instead of to what pleases yourself.
Thanks for the comments guys, you've given me something to think about.
Quantus:
I definitely think you write what you like, not what other say you should write, as a general rule, and as others have noted passive characters often work well (though they are usually paired with some much more active character that sweeps them along in their wake). That being said, if its a rut you would like to work yourself out of for your own sake, maybe you need to force yourself into it. Work a scenario where passive does not work, where the MC /has/ to be there driving force, or maybe one where the MC is the "a trained soldier or a hormone-pumping adolescent," a Man of Action, or overblown hothead, somebody that lends themselves to the driver's seat of the scene more innately. Find a story that forces you to kick yourself out of your comfort zone for its own sake. It doesnt have to be long, or complex or polished gold, just set out to write a few scenes that are as close to the polar opposite as what you are find yourself defaulting into. It might suck, but it would probably be a useful exercise
the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh:
--- Quote from: Quantus on September 24, 2012, 05:42:52 PM ---Work a scenario where passive does not work, where the MC /has/ to be there driving force, or maybe one where the MC is the "a trained soldier or a hormone-pumping adolescent" or some such overblown hothead.
--- End quote ---
If I came across as thinking trained soldiers are overblown hotheads, I apologise; I had been looking for an example of a profession where someone might plausibly have been trained to act immediately and decisively rather than to be reflective.
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