Thursday, May 2, 2013

GETTING INSIDE THE HEAD OF EVIL


Getting into the head of a character can be real a blast. And sometimes, a real challenge.

In my first novel, I went easy on myself by sticking closer to home. My main characters–a paralegal and an architect–weren’t much of a stretch as far as that went. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t a ‘no sweat’ moment by any means, just not as much of a chore as I had thought at the time. And the children, ranging in ages from four to nine, were a kick to bring to life, but again, not very difficult. After all, I was a kid once myself.

Now, the abusive ex turned murdering scum? That was a different matter altogether. Knowing the character as I do made writing him almost painful, and getting into his head hadn’t been simple. At least, not at first. I must admit, though, after just a few pages, I surprised myself. Actually being in the head of a murderer–as he commits the dirty deed no less–had a certain kind of thrill to it.

Today, I had my first encounter with an all new character–this one purported to be more twisted and sick then all of my prior antagonists put together. And as I stared at the blank screen I had to wonder if I would be able to pull it off. If I have what it takes to really dig inside that brain of his.

After writing the first scene, I knew I could do it. It’s not going to be easy, I know. In fact, I can already see the need to push myself here. I will not be satisfied with simply breaking the surface. I want to know him intimately. I want to wear his skin, wrap myself inside his psyche, and not just bring him to life, but shove him into your nightmares.

(insert evil laughter here)

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