Are Your Characters Contradicting Themselves?

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy

Back in June, I caught that nasty flu that was going around and spent a few miserable weeks napping and watching a lot of TV. One of my distractions of choice was the show, Bones. It had been a long time since I’d seen the first few seasons, and while it was fun to re-watch them, one thing did annoy me.

The character Temperance “Bones” Brennan is a world-class forensic anthropologist who is very literal-minded and repeatedly says she doesn’t like psychology and doesn’t do motive.

Yet…

She’s a bestselling author who writes mysteries.

Writing is all about characters and why they do what they do. Motive is what’s driving every character to act—especially in a mystery.

Someone who doesn’t understand why people act and how emotional minds work would never be able to write great mysteries.

It’s a TV show, I get it, they wanted to make her famous and awesome on multiple fronts. And for all I know, her books are more procedural and less character, but that’s not how they’re described or referred to in the show itself.

One major aspect of the character, Bones, contradicted the core of who she is—and that bugged me every time they brought it up.

Don’t get me wrong—contradictions in characters are wonderful things, as they show the various layers of a person and turn them into real people. But when creating a character, be wary of where those contradictions lie. You can’t have a world-class swimmer who can’t swim. If two skills or traits of a character absolutely rely on opposite personality traits or skill sets, it’s going to feel wrong.

When creating a character, consider:

Do any traits go completely against the core of that character?

People believe one thing and act in contrary ways all the time. That whole “do as I say, not as I do” cliché. This is a solid character contradiction and a writer can create an interesting backstory to go with such a character. But when the core of who they are prevents the skill or trait they’re exhibiting, it stretches plausibility.

(Here's more on fleshing out flat characters)

Is the character lacking the necessary skills to possess a particular talent or trait?

This is a common problem in Chosen One stories or Mary Sue/Gary Stu characters. A character exhibits a trait or talent, yet there’s no groundwork laid to show how they got it or why they can do it. It’s even worse when the character is introduced as someone who had no access to or way to learn any of said skills. They need a skill, so boom—they have it.

(Here’s more on Mary Sue/Gary Stu characters)

Are the contradictions of that character believable?

If a character is socially awkward and has trouble understanding personal relationships, think twice before making them the celebrity host of a popular TV talk show that interviews people about their lives and relationships. Aim for contradictions that fit the personality and history of that character. A good example here is how many actors are painfully shy, and they got into acting as a way to combat that. They might be in the limelight all the time, but only if they’re playing a role and being “someone else.” Off-screen, they stay away from the public eye.

(Here's more on maintaining believability in our stories)

Good characters will have contradictions, so choose them wisely. Make sure they come from real places within that character, based on their experiences and personality. Creating a well-rounded character takes work, but it helps to look at the entire character as a whole and not just a bunch of pieces stuck together. Make sure what they do and how they think fits who they are at their core.

Have you seen any character contradictions that bugged you? What about your own characters? Are their contradictions believable or could they use some tweaking?

Find out more about characters and point of view in my book, Fixing Your Character & Point-of-View Problems.

Go step-by-step through revising character and character-related issues, such as two-dimensional characters, inconsistent points of view, too-much backstory, stale dialogue, didactic internalization, and lack of voice. Learn how to analyze your draft, spot any problems or weak areas, and fix those problems.

With clear and easy-to-understand examples, Fixing Your Character & Point-of-View Problems offers five self-guided workshops that target the common issues that make readers stop reading. It will help you:

• Flesh out weak characters and build strong character arcs
• Find the right amount of backstory to enhance, not bog down, your story
• Determine the best point(s) of view and how to use them to your advantage
• Eliminate empty dialogue and rambling internalization
• Develop character voices and craft unique, individual characters 

Fixing Your Character & Point-of-View Problems starts every workshop with an analysis to pinpoint problem areas and offers multiple revision options in each area. You choose the options that best fit your writing process. It's an easy-to-follow guide to crafting compelling characters, solid points of view, and strong character voices readers will love.

Available in paperback and ebook formats.

Janice Hardy is the award-winning author of the teen fantasy trilogy The Healing Wars, including The Shifter, Blue Fire, and Darkfall from Balzer+Bray/Harper Collins. The Shifter, was chosen for the 2014 list of "Ten Books All Young Georgians Should Read" from the Georgia Center for the Book.

She also writes the Grace Harper urban fantasy series for adults under the name, J.T. Hardy.

When she's not writing novels, she's teaching other writers how to improve their craft. She's the founder of Fiction University and has written multiple books on writing.

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