Hmm. Fic-wise, I’ve done an awful lot of Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane and in ye olden days, Bellatrix Lestrange (something of a Mary-Sue, as I well knew, but I never got called on it). I do like writing Peter enormously. This does not seem to be universal among Wimsey fandom. He isn’t easy, but can be rendered easier by dint of keeping a novel open at the elbow and listening to the Edward Petherbridge audio versions, which somehow seem to channel exactly the right tone. I am presently nearly 80,000 words into the Giant WIP, and while I could wish to have spent less time on it, it is has been enormous fun and I’ve loved the focus on Peter. I think I’ve managed to keep him tolerably in-character, despite his bizarre experiences, although the final verdict will not lie with me.
In contrast, while I don’t dislike writing Bunter, I find him very difficult. He is somehow opaque, and hard to present in an in-canon way while preserving him as a character and not a collection of traits.
I knew that my first* original novel was doomed when I could not be interested in the central character. Some things happened to her that I found easy to write, but as a character, she didn’t work for me. I spent too much time making sure it was clear to readers the she wasn’t me, which is impossible, because everyone I ever write is me if only on the level of “If they back into the sofa by accident, at what point on their legs will they hit the cushion?”
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Date: 2014-02-03 10:27 pm (UTC)In contrast, while I don’t dislike writing Bunter, I find him very difficult. He is somehow opaque, and hard to present in an in-canon way while preserving him as a character and not a collection of traits.
I knew that my first* original novel was doomed when I could not be interested in the central character. Some things happened to her that I found easy to write, but as a character, she didn’t work for me. I spent too much time making sure it was clear to readers the she wasn’t me, which is impossible, because everyone I ever write is me if only on the level of “If they back into the sofa by accident, at what point on their legs will they hit the cushion?”
*Not counting the one when I was 20.