Novel Writing - The Major Importance Of Minor Characters
How to write a novel – a really great novel.
Here’s a secret to great novel writing (or great screenplay writing, or any other kind of story writing) - One of the major differences between a great story, a great novel, and one that’s just half-decent is this:
Great novels don’t just have great major characters – they have great minor characters, too!
When you're writing a novel, think about your favorite novels, or your favorite movies. The major character in the story nearly always has a really interesting “buddy”, a friend who is involved in their own sub-plot. (Another secret to great novel writing is SUBPLOTS!) An excellent example of this is the movie, “Wedding Crashers”. While the main storyline is, of course, about the main character falling in love, at the same time a very entertaining sub-plot unfolds about his best friend, who’s falling in love, too - with a nymphomaniac. “Wedding Crashers” wouldn’t be nearly as good a story without the buddy and the buddy’s sub-plot.
Minor characters lend a fullness to a story, a depth and richness that’s noticeably lacking in their absence. When you read a novel, or see a movie, that has a well-rounded, complete cast of characters, you can actually feel the substance of it. Conversely, a story that lacks interesting minor characters with their own storylines feels “light”, not as rich and fulfilling as a story with well-developed minor characters.
So, how do you find, or create, good, compelling minor characters? One good way is to have a minor character whose personality complements that of your major character. That is, the minor character has some specific talent, trait, or strength that your major character is deficient in – and ideally it should be something that will be a key to your major character overcoming the obstacles that confront him or her. I’m currently working on a novel about a brilliantly gifted psychoanalyst. One of the main character’s weaknesses is that he, himself, is a bit unstable. Therefore, his buddy in the novel is going to be a character who is very steady and stable themselves, and can therefore help steady the main character at a crucial moment in the story. Minor characters are often used to provide comic relief. James Patterson, author of the Alex Cross novels, uses this device well with the characters of both Sampson – Cross’ partner – and Nana Mama – Cross’ grandmother. The Cross novels are a more satisfying read because of the presence of these minor characters. If you want to learn how to write a novel that will get published like Patterson's novels, then learn to create good minor characters. One of the first things an editor or agent looks at it is the process of your character development.
Here's an important writing tip: The important thing to keep in mind is that the minor characters, like every other element of your novel, should serve some purpose in telling the story. They’re not just there for the sake of being there - in novel writing, every one of your story elements serves a purpose. It’s important, when creating characters, to figure out what purpose you want them to serve - how they relate to the main character and the main storyline. One of the strengths of Andrea Waggener’s program, ”Novel Writing Made Easy” (you can find a link on my site), is the excellent instruction it provides on creating memorable, fully-developed characters.
Create a good buddy character for your major character, and you’ll find that you, too, have found a valuable friend to help you in the tasks of writing your novel and getting your novel published.
J.B. Maverick is the author of three film screenplays and two non-fiction books, and is currently working on the novel, “A Snowfall in Hell” – He offers free resources for writers at Everything for Writers
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