While not exactly "other people's fanfiction", this subforum seems the best place for this. This is a topic involving writing, and my poor attempts at it, that I've conversed about elsewhere to little gain, and am seeking more input.
A recurring element of advice and statements about writing fiction is "letting the characters drive". In other words, that the actions of the characters must be foremost a product of their own personalities and, well, character, rather than the demands of the plot.
The question I have is simple: how do you figure that out? How do you determine what character X would do in situation Y? The writing advice that I've read seems to take this for granted.
"If you
wish to converse with me, define your
terms."
--Voltaire
A recurring element of advice and statements about writing fiction is "letting the characters drive". In other words, that the actions of the characters must be foremost a product of their own personalities and, well, character, rather than the demands of the plot.
The question I have is simple: how do you figure that out? How do you determine what character X would do in situation Y? The writing advice that I've read seems to take this for granted.
"If you
wish to converse with me, define your
terms."
--Voltaire