Pick one of your favourites among the characters from your published fiction stories or a character which is an interesting example from your published fiction. What makes this character one of your favourites or an interesting example of your fiction?
Perhaps my favorite character who graces the Billy Bones books is Scamp, Billy’s pet bug and best friend. Scamp is an adventurous soul, quite gallant, and always ready for a good dust-up. He is also willing to put his life on the line for his friends, literally.
What kind(s) of character do you consider this character primarily to be, or how would you describe this character?
Scamp has the makings of a larger than life hero, packed quite efficiently into his bug-sized frame.
What is a character from a published fiction story by another author you would compare this character to and why are they similar?
Narnia’s sword-wielding mouse Reepicheep. Both jump fearlessly into the fray whenever needed. Although nothing against Reepicheep, but I think Scamp’s sense of humor has a bit more going for it.
To what extent did you use any pre-existing character formula, template, paradigm, character design, archetype, or theory or principles of making or analysing character in planning, writing, and refining this character?
Probably not enough: I based aspects of the characters on people I know.
How would you describe the first chapter, scene or section of this story in one paragraph?
The first chapter is an introduction to the Bones family and their secrets-closet: the tiny world in the bowels of High Manners Manor where they collect lies, secrets, and fibs. We are also introduced to Billy’s far-flung dreams to experience life beyond his little world.
Pick one of your published stories. How would you describe the introduction of the main character, or one of the main characters, in this story?
See answer above.
What makes this an effective character introduction for this story?
The challenge was two-fold: to introduce a skeleton boy and make him loveable, and to tell readers how skeletons go about collecting lies and secrets. I suppose it was effective because readers have a natural interest in secrets, so it was simply a matter of having some fun.
What major changes does this character go through, or what major challenges does the character encounter and how does the character respond to them?
Billy gains confidence when he meets Millicent, an orphaned relative, and get caught up in unraveling biggest secret in the book: his family’s own. He also learns that heroes are only human (even Death himself). Billy is a reluctant hero, but is protective of family and friend. Every so often he has to give himself a kick in the pants to act more with more dash, like a buccaneer.
How would you describe the most important minor characters in this story and the changes in their character, or the challenges they encounter and how the respond them?
Several of the minor characters bring trouble on themselves, and Billy, by bending a few Afterlife rules.
What does the story gain from the minor characters?
Without them, there would be no un-murder mystery to solve.
To what extent would you describe the characters in this story as typical or atypical of characters in your fiction stories?
These characters are very typical, as they make up the entire universe of my stories, so far. I really do love whimsical characters that are a little creepy, but a great deal of fun.
Author website: http://www.chrislincoln.org/
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