When I found the original copy of, Characters and Viewpoints, I was pretty
happy. Orson Scott Card is an author I
am familiar with and one whom I admire.
That along with my endeavor to always improve my character driven
stories made it a great find. Then when
I found an updated version I was even more excited (traditionally I prefer
updates to the original), however; I had
no idea what I was really in for or how profoundly I would be affected.
Like most books of this type I found
things I expected: elements of character creation, how to add depth and how to
find the point of view that best fits your story. So basically it covered a lot of the usual
ground, but Mr. Card then went beyond that.
He focused on growth both as the storyteller, and the writer to create a
well-crafted final product. He provides
tools to improve both sides to get the most out of your characterization. Characterization is so much more than just
about the building of characters. It is
about how and when to use them appropriately, and getting what you need out of
the character to fulfill its role in the story.
Mr. Card explains techniques to raise the emotional stakes, control the
audience's feelings toward a character and intensify the reader connection to
the characters. He also speaks about
the inferred sacred contract between the reader and the story. He addresses the need for the contracts
fulfillment for the characters, but also ways a writer can tweak expectations
without breaking the reader's trust.
Characters
and Viewpoints is very comprehensive and beautifully constructed, with a
nice layout and broken down into section so not to be overwhelming. The text is superb and fluid, and at times
profound. It isn't meant to entertain,
but it still managed to hold my attention and kept me hungry for more. Within the first couple of pages I had to
stop to hunt up my hi-liter and a pad of paper to take my own personal
notes. I quickly caught on that this
book is meant to be savored and the ideas mulled over. Beyond that, I really felt like Mr. Card
really got the essence of writing fiction and why it should be valued. He approached this subject with a very
practical sense, but still held onto his sense of awe and the ability to see
the magic happen. The only real down
side to my reading experience was the frequent misprints I found in the Writer’s
Digest version from their Elements of Fiction Writing Series.
Mr. Card is a bestselling author and
the recipient of many awards including the Hugo Award, the Nebula Award, and the 2008 Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement
in Young Adult literature, from the American Library Association. He has authored over sixty books including
his best known work, Ender’s Game,
but his writing resume is not limited to just books. He has also written plays, comics, essays and
newspaper columns. His talent has been
recognized by many cities, universities and libraries by adding his titles to
their ‘best of’ lists and reading programs.
Mr. Card holds a long term position at
Southern Virginia University teaching writing and literature, and offers the
occasional writing workshop.
I tend to not fall into love with
books very often, and books about writing even less, but this experience was so
different than others that I couldn't help myself. Quite, frankly Mr. Card just blew me away
with this book. And I'm a bit put out
for not having been introduced to it sooner.
Characters and Viewpoints, is
really one writing I think all fiction writers should read and I think it
wouldn't hurt non-fiction writers to familiarize themselves with it too. It has the ability to mature your writing no
matter where you are in your career and I believe periodic rereads will provide
you with new insights and spark ideas.
