I’ve been working on a very exciting project that I can’t wait to share with you, and while I’ve absolutely loved working on it, it’s also challenged me as a writer, and pushed me out of my comfort zone. Without giving too much away, I’m working on a collection of short stories, featuring a large cast of characters.
Having only ever written board books and picture books before, keeping track of all my characters and their connections with each other quickly set my head spinning!
So, like the librarian I am, I decided I had to get organized.
It was time for a chart!
I’m a visual person, so my chart needed to be colour-coded. I kept track of character names, ages and descriptions, noted which characters were featured in which stories, and plotted out how all the characters were connected to each other (some were related, some were classmates or neighbours or friends).
Right away I could see that I definitely had a few particular favourites when it came to my characters. I had wanted to keep things fairly evenly spaced out, with characters appearing in roughly the same number of stories, but it was clear that I had developed a soft spot for some of them! To remedy this, I had to go back through my stories and do some rearranging, moving some lead characters to supporting roles, and giving other characters their time in the spotlight.
I use Google Docs for my writing, so I did the same with my chart, so I could access it from anywhere I might happen to be writing. I also sent it to my editor, in the hopes that it might help them untangle the web of characters I had woven.
Working on this project has pushed me outside my comfort zone, and helped me develop new skills, which I’m hoping will help me become a more effective and efficient writer. It’s also been a lot of fun!
How do you keep your characters and plot lines organized when you write? Do you prefer to jot things down in a notebook, create a digital chart or table, or maybe even strings and push pins on a bulletin board?