Secondary Characters Are People Too, by Pam Hillman

A ten day project turned into a six-week one. Granted, I had a full-time job, took a week-long business trip, and had a family emergency that took up some of that time, but the “project” became bigger than I ever dreamed. And it made my manuscript much, much better, resulting in my first sale almost two years ago.

So what was this simple project that escalated into a huge rewrite?

I’m talking weaving existing secondary characters points of view (POV) into a manuscript that is already completed.

If you have the slightest idea that you might add a second, third, or fourth POV into the manuscript you’re working, plan on it from the very beginning. Don’t assume you can just add that POV later.

My manuscript begged for additional POVs, but I didn’t write them into the story in the beginning. I finished it and was very pleased with the outcome. But every so often, I’d be discussing length with someone and know that it could be 10-15K longer. 

The story could tell more of the villian’s goal, motivation, and conflict (GMC), as well as one of the key secondary character’s GMC, which was a kid, btw. And I really wanted to tell a little of this kid’s story.

But I put it off. 

I could add that part to the story with one hand tied behind my back, after I’d shopped it around at the current length. I already knew his GMC, and it would only be a few pages tucked in here and there.

It would be fun.

I kept putting it off though, working on a new story, shopping the existing one, until an industry professional (who later became my agent) asked me to lengthen the manuscript. 

Sure, I can do that. Easy.

And it was very easy in the beginning to tuck in a scene here, one there, set the stage, etc., but by the time I got to the middle (why is it always the middle?), things got tricky. And by end, it became downright complicated.

Just like figuring out my hero and heroine’s GMC’s, I had to do the same for these two secondary characters. As long as they weren’t “on stage”, the reader could insert any kind of reasons for their actions, but once they have their own POV, that’s when the horse kicks over the traces.

Try it. You might be shocked at how it changes the way your story plays out.

I had a pretty solid story, but as I started adding in these additional POVs, I realized I had these guys doing some things that wouldn’t be true to character. This became really clear when the hero and heroine figure out who the bad guy is.

The whole section where the plot fell apart was only 15-20 pages long, but it needed to be rewritten to beef up the tension and be believable for all parties involved. The remaining pages didn’t require a complete rewrite, just some wrap-up scenes from the two new POVs.

Think of a secondary character in one of your manuscripts, someone who sways your protagonist, antagonist, or your plot in some way. Plot out their GMC, and even if you don’t write them into the story, you might have a few aha moments where your secondary characters refuse to fit the mold you created for them.

Because you know what?

Secondary characters are people, too.

Pam Hillman was born and raised on a dairy farm in Mississippi and spent her teenage years perched on the seat of a tractor raking hay. In those days, her daddy couldn’t afford two cab tractors with air conditioning and a radio, so Pam drove the Allis Chalmers 110. Even when her daddy asked her if she wanted to bale hay, she told him she didn’t mind raking. Raking hay doesn’t take much thought so Pam spent her time working on her tan and making up stories in her head. Now, that’s the kind of life every girl should dream of! Claiming Mariah is her second novel.

Website: http://www.pamhillman.com

Facebook Profile: https://www.facebook.com/pam.hillman.7

Facebook Author PAGE: https://www.facebook.com/PamHillmanAuthor

Twitter: https://twitter.com/PamHillman or @PamHillman

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5800307-pam-hillman

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/wrtnbyph/

Group blog: http://www.seekerville.blogspot.com 

Personal blog: http://www.calicotrails.blogspot.com

Publisher: http://www.tyndale.com/Claiming-Mariah/9781414380964

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Where the Past Meets the Present: Stepsisters

Saturday night I watched our school's production of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella. I loved it! Everything was wonderful - the sets, the music, the acting, the singing. And while Cinderella and the Prince were quite charming, two of my favorite characters were the evil stepsisters. (Hats off to the actresses - they did a marvelous job!)

Sometimes the secondary characters really can steal the show in our stories, as well. While we still want our hero and heroine to win over our readers, we also want authentic secondary characters. Last week we talked about the villain - this week, let's talk about how to make our secondary characters shine!

What we can learn from the evil stepsisters (at least in the play I saw!):

• Personality - Boy, did these two girls have this in spades! Whether our secondary characters are jokesters, drama queens (or kings), or wise old (or young) men/women, they ought to have a personality that distinguishes them from the other characters. Names can also help with this. In Rodgers and Hammerstein's version of Cinderella the two stepsisters are named Portia and Joy. If you've read Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice, you might see the irony in a rather less intellectually endowed girl being named after the smart Portia who pretends to be a lawyer to save a man's life. And Joy - well, there's certainly irony in a name like that for a sour stepsister like her!
  

• Presence - Over at Seekerville, author Mary Connealy recently wrote a post entitled "Who is that guy?" Her point in the post is that we ought to make sure all our characters are actually necessary. If we take out a secondary character, will it make a difference to the story? The stepsisters in the play added so much humor and contrast that it wouldn't have been nearly as enjoyable without them. In the same way, the secondary characters we create should have such a presence that the story wouldn't have the same impact without them. And if they don't? Well, you might want to consider killing one off... *Gasp!* OK, maybe just make them disappear or something! ;)
  

• Power - Just as we discussed regarding our villains last week, our secondary characters shouldn't be cardboard cutouts. They should have some sort of power - an important role in the story and a voice that will stick with the reader. It's hard to do this with every secondary character, but as much as possible we ought to have stories populated with "real" people whose lives are woven together to present a piece full of meaning. The evil stepsisters have a song that asks, "Why would a fellow want a girl like her?...Why can't a fellow ever once prefer a usual girl like me?" While it's a funny song, it also contributes to the other songs in asking important questions as to why people fall in love and what true love really means.

Here's where the past meets the present! (Let's just say that Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella is a piece of the past that's found its way to the present... After all, the Cinderella story has been around for quite a while!) Could your secondary characters use a makeover? What secondary characters from movies and books have inspired you to give your secondary characters more personality, presence, and power?

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