The Reckless Extravagance of Creating a Character

After my agent had read the first draft of my novel The Dragonfly, she asked me what the main character did.  As he's retired, it's not mentioned in the book, but I told her that he worked in insurance, because that was part of the life that I had created for him.  She was interested because she found him interesting and also because she wanted to know that I knew.

I'm only mentioning this because I think it throws light on the process of evolving a character.  As a writer, you need to know pretty much everything that there is to know about the people in your story, but it would weigh the narrative down and slow it almost to a halt if you put all of the information in.  You need to have that level of detail in your head because it is part of your hero's experience and will inform how he responds and behaves, but if you went into every single tiny aspect you run the risk (unless you are Proust) of boring your reader to death.

What I think works best is a kind of reckless extravagance when you are piecing together the characters who will populate your novel or short story: make notes, draw diagrams, do time  flow charts - the whole shebang.  But once you have chronicled it all for yourself and then stowed it for safe-keeping in your subconscious, be judicious - even economic - with what you tell your reader (and when -- there is mileage in doling out information in dribs and drabs, as the plot requires it.)

Here's the doorway to a great weekend ...