>My characters have a life of their own

>they don't listen to me when I try to get them to do stuff
>They're always acting regardless of what I, the writer, want
This is bullshit right? Or these guys are skitzos? Or am I just soulless. My characters never "danced around freely on the page", I always spent time analyzing and planning what they should do

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  1. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    I think it depends on what sort of writer you are. But a lot of character traits reveal themselves to you as you keep writing, so things you have planned feel unnatural or forced.
    I've had this happen with broad story arcs, some small part i hadn't planned out yet had to happen, or some kind of introductory thing evolved into something far away from what i'd originally planned, completely changing the story.

    • 1 year ago
      Anonymous

      I totally get discovering more about characters as you write, that's how it works for me as well. But the way you hear some guys describe it, it's like 3d holograms of their characters are constantly acting out their lives 24/7 IRL without any effort on the writer's side.

      • 1 year ago
        Anonymous

        Well, if you think about your work all day things are bound to pop up seemingly at random.

  2. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    it's just a fanciful way of saying the character's personalities and motives have been developed to such an extent that the writer knows how they'll respond to things, and that may clash with what was originally planned

    • 1 year ago
      Anonymous

      Not really. A good writer's characters are best described as 'imagery friends'-- see Tolkien's Gandalf. Imagination is actually a very trippy adventure and borderline insane, not some kitschy kindergarten nonsense you see in media.

      Jung explains it very well with AIM and archetypes: these are autonomous entities that you can converse with and even go on adventures with. Then there's the whole art of daemons/Tuplas and such from religions such as the Greek philosophers if you want to get hardcore about it.

  3. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    That is the difference between great writers and you.

    • 1 year ago
      Anonymous

      Truth.

    • 1 year ago
      Anonymous

      Real and true and disheartening.

  4. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    I think it depends on what sort of writer you are. But a lot of character traits reveal themselves to you as you keep writing, so things you have planned feel unnatural or forced.
    I've had this happen with broad story arcs, some small part i hadn't planned out yet had to happen, or some kind of introductory thing evolved into something far away from what i'd originally planned, completely changing the story.

  5. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    It means you kind of get a feel for what the character is like and what they would or would not do, and feel that certain behavior will be "out of character". You don't even have to be a writer to experience this. A writer is disingenuous when he has his characters act in a way that is not consistent with their established personality.

  6. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    I bet your writings are shit.

  7. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    congrats, you made advanced servitors

    /x/ would be proud

  8. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    They're schizos or exaggerating.

    • 1 year ago
      Anonymous

      This. They’re schizos. “Characters are real” was the plot of Call of the Crocodile.

  9. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    Anon, it's... It's a turn of phrase you fricking brain champion, to do with character motivations and personalities conflicting with authorial motivations. You can't very well just go and change an established character for the plot if you're not a hack.

  10. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    Hello Fernando

  11. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    >This is bullshit right?
    It's possible with tulpamancy, but writing a book won't make you multiple tulpas so they're exaggerating.

  12. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    lost art of the imagination - gary lachmann

    your thoughts are not your own. they are living beings. this is ancient wisdom. this book is a history of the belief.

  13. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    It's not schizophrenia if you know what you're doing and having a good time.

  14. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    >This is bullshit right?
    Yes. Anyone who says anything else is pontificating.

  15. 1 year ago
    Anonymous

    There are architects and gardeners. You sound like an architect. What's the problem?

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