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is there a such thing as having too many characters?

2007-11-13 04:25:34 · 8 answers · asked by ladii2k 1 in Arts & Humanities Books & Authors

8 answers

As long as its not difficult to keep track....my advice is to keep it simple.

For example, the old man and the sea received a noble prize....it's the simplest story ever.

2007-11-13 04:29:56 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1 0

When I started writing mine when I combined two dreams. From there on, I mixed in different elements of horror films I liked i.e. I used the Grudge 2 due to the fact one character goes back to the asylum where another dies but in G2 whatherface goes back to the grudge woman's old town. There is and there isn't. When you think, how many characters does Harry Potter have? However, J K Rowling only focus' on about maybe four or five at time which doesn't give the feeling of over spilling.

2007-11-13 13:30:24 · answer #2 · answered by ? 4 · 1 0

Well, from my experience, you can have lots of characters, but here's the thing: characters can be a huge crowd of people at a bar or a concert, or a political rally or something like that. They don't have names, and they hardly have faces, because when you write your focus has to come together in harmony. It will be about something, one or two or three characters are really enough to be protagonists, and honestly I'd say for beginning writers there shouldn't be more than one. There can be supporting characters but your story has to have everything to do with what this character is after. Only your protagonist can truly change his own destiny, and all the elements have to echo what is happening in transients and sense details. It has to come through this character's story, and irrelevant details should be forgotten or moved through quickly. If your protagonist stops to look at someone in a crowd, enough to notice great detail, it should have everything to do with his/her state of mind, their wants, desires, needs, their yearning, etc. If you look around too much in a scene and nothing fits your character enough to see details, this is a hint -- they shouldn't be there, it isn't helping them get where they need to go.

If you end up writing anything you want to share and talk about, you can join my writer's forum http://breathesmoke.freeforums.org and I'll be more than happy to give feedback.

Cheers,

Connor

2007-11-13 12:36:23 · answer #3 · answered by all work and no play 5 · 1 0

You have to have a main character up front. Determine that FIRST. If the story cannot be told from just that one character's point of view, you might have the wrong main character or you might need to alternate between two.

You can have as many supporting characters as you need, but make sure you don't name more than has to be named or have any similar or rhyming names. Walk-ons should remain flat.

2007-11-13 12:46:25 · answer #4 · answered by loryntoo 7 · 1 0

I don't imagine so but I suppose that you could cloud the narrative drive by introducing too many people and having too much description. Look at 'the beach' by Alex Garland. It has tons of characters but only the main few are drawn in great detail, the rest are mainly broadly drawn 'types' (as he himself admits that they are just vehicles for a type of attitude, stoic/bullshtter etc.)

Keep to narrative focus as much as possible I say and try and cut that which is extraneous. Good luck.

2007-11-13 12:32:39 · answer #5 · answered by Leean P 2 · 1 0

That's where I am now. I have the protag and his wife (plus a pet). I have a victum, three of four suspects and one cop. I wonder if that is enough or too much?

2007-11-13 13:38:34 · answer #6 · answered by TD Euwaite? 6 · 2 0

Buy a how-to guide. There can be too many, if even one of them serves no narrative purpose.

2007-11-13 13:06:42 · answer #7 · answered by serious_searchlight 2 · 1 0

Rather than having, say, a butler, chauffeur and delivery boy....I would incorporate them all into one. Less confusion that way.

2007-11-13 13:51:07 · answer #8 · answered by Holiday Magic 7 · 1 0

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