CW5 Writing Journal

Why did you choose the character you did for your piece? What are some of the challenges you found in creating a convincing, complex character? When designing your character, did you attempt to offer the reader something familiar, unsettling/unusual, or a combination of the two? Why did you make this choice and what mechanisms did you employ to achieve this goal?

I chose the character for my piece because I like pirates, but also because I think it's interesting to have a character that has had a singular goal and has been entirely unambiguous his whole life suddenly find a complex situation awakens opposing feelings within him. The challenges I found in creating a character were mainly characterized by difficulties in trying to remember to show not tell, especially without dialog. I attempted to offer my reader something very familiar, almost a Jungian archetype. My character was a mean, black hearted, pirate, and one who had no qualms about killing. I find that this made his inner confrontation at the end all the more interesting. I used action, mainly, to advance the story. I also used flashbacks and my character's memories to give the reader insight into his mind and advance the story.