Oakley Hall says in The Art and Craft of Novel Writing (July, 1994)
“A character must be produced on the page, whole and alive, his breath congealing on the air. It is not necessary that we know instantly what he is, for it is the process of learning about him that interests us. As in the representation of any living reality, characterization is rooted in detail. It is the trifles and what they imply or reveal that create the living entity.”
From The Weekend Novelist (1994) page 30
If you are priming your creativity for Nano-ing the passage above should be helpful.
I call any preparation for writing – composting. I compost while I am filling a water bottle. I compost when I’m counting baby chicks. I compost just before falling asleep and just as I awaken and question the clock about the true time.
I like thinking about my characters.
During NaNo while we have permission to write by the seat of our pants we are learning about our characters on the fly.
Remember, as you second guess yourself and want so badly to hit delete and you are questioning every word you set down remember what Oakley Hall said about character… “it is the process of learning about him that interests us.”
Don’t touch anything sharp.