Getting to Know You

Characterisation by stealth

 When we introduce new characters into our novels, it’s tempting to provide lots of information about them all at once. After all, we’ve probably spent a lot of time thinking about them and working out their appearance and personality so we are keen to convey that to our readers. I’m not sure this is authentic though. Let’s think about what happens when we meet new people in real life. We first notice their appearance, their clothes, their mannerisms, their way of talking. Initially they may present themselves to you as they want people to see them. It is only later, if we develop deeper friendships, that we find out more about their background – their upbringing, education, family, secret ambitions, faults etc.

 It should be the same in the novel. Sociologist Erving Goffman (in his book ‘The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life’)  developed a theory about self-presentation that took the analogy of theatre. He suggested that when we first meet people we like to control the way we present ourselves, like actors playing a part. It is only when we become relaxed with people, and learn to trust them, that we let our guard down and take off the mask as it were.

So it’s probably best to introduce our characters slowly. Readers like to work things out for themselves which is why they feel overwhelmed when given everything on a plate. Better to release back story gradually, over a period of time, and plant clues from others’ reactions and their own behaviour as to what characters are really like.

In novels, as in life, acquaintances with characters should be made slowly. Then they will be more convincing.