I have just uploaded a competition entry I have submitted this year; however I cannot for the life of me decide what exactly my main character is. The only thing I do know is she is NOT a vampire aha. Caon someone read it and let me know what they think? Thank you :)
Hi Maurice thank you for the advice I guess I just wondered as I'm not sure myself and I do want to bring it in later as I've decided I want to carry the piece into a story. Elizabteth, thank you for the comment :) and yeah I'm going to look at the link if not I could try your idea of creating a new creature, I hadn't thought about that :) Thank you both :)
Hi Victoria. I just read your story and enjoyed it a lot. Why do you feel you have to label her at all? Maybe it could be a kind of creature you have made up purely from imagination? I do think that Robert's answer is very helpful though and I will most likely click on the folklore link myself to help out with my own writing.
In my opinion, I suppose it depends whether the story is to be character driven (where the character defines the story), or plot driven (where the character reacts to events, and situations).
Either way, successful authors over the years have tried to get the reader to connect with their story by creating well defined characters (Charles Dickens, Jane Austen, etc). Ask - Who do you remember more, someone who dresses plainly, is boring and miserable? Or someone who dresses eccentrically and is exciting and interesting?
An exception to well defined characters could be when the character is mysterious, or has a deep secret, or to do so would increase the tension, or mystery.
Most of my stories start with an idea, a situation, and I try different characters to see how the story works. Occasionally, I have an exceptional character, and this dictates the story.
Sometimes, the story reads better when I change the character to suit the particular story I'm writing. i.e. Instead of being brilliant, a success, or courageous, etc, I make them stupid, a failure, or a coward, etc. Or I include another character with a totally different personality, and agenda, someone the Main Character dreads.
I find this procedure is especially useful when the story has stalled, or needs livening up.