I hit Week 4 in The Artist’s Way, otherwise known as Reading Deprivation Week (okay, it’s otherwise known as “Recovering a Sense of Integrity, but one does that by–*gulp*–not reading!).

Here’s what Julia Cameron has to say about depriving ourselves of the words of others:

It is a paradox that by emptying our lives of distraction we are actually filling the well. Without distractions, we are once again thrust into the sensory world.

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For most blocked creatives, reading is an addiction. We gobble the words of others rather than digest our own thoughts and feelings, rather than cook up something of our own.

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… we will be rewarded for our reading deprivation with embarrassing speed. Our reward will be a new outflow. our own art, our own thoughts and feelings, will begin to nudge aside the sludge of blockage, to loosen it and move it upward and outward until once again our well is running freely.

I get this. I so get this. I know that I OD on books, stories, blogs, opinions, rants, articles. I know that I take into too much information from the outside, all in the name of research and keeping up, and get so bloated on it that I can hardly think my own thoughts. So, this week, instead of reading one of the four new books I got at Borders last week (*SIGH*), I’m working on my own stories. Instead of reading blogs and keeping up with forums, I’m working on my own space here in ‘NetLand and journaling, letting myself hear my own voice for once.

Today I washed six windows. It took me an hour-and-a-half, but David took the children hiking and left me alone with my windows, my cleaning supplies, classical music and my thoughts. It was a beautiful day, sunny and cloudy, with a strong cold wind. My thoughts drifted here-there-and-everywhere. I dreamed up some backstory, gained an insight, processed a situation.

It was lovely but HARD. Checking my RSS feed is an ingrained habit; I do it without even thinking. So is just picking up a magazine or a book. But I got good stuff out of today.

And six clean windows.

Thanks for all the comments about your favorite characters in response to my last post.  After coming up with my list,  I thought about why those characters are so appealing to me. There are certain character types and certain contexts that really work for me. They may not for you, but that’s okay. You can tell me why you love your favorite characters in the comments.

For what it’s worth, here’s my list:

Characters who come out of the dark side. Yes, I love me a good redemptive story. I love characters who start out bad, or conflicted, and, after a lot of struggle and pain, make it over to the Good Guys’ Team. Characters who have to overcome their own culture, upbringing, past or personality to do the right thing.

Also, the dramatic character change *has* to be logical. An about-face with nothing to base it on doesn’t work me. The seeds for the change should be present from the beginning.

And, while I like characters who change, I also like characters who stay the same. I like the steady ones, the reliable ones. No matter how else they change or grow, there are one or two deep-rooted values that they will never compromise–whether it’s staying faithful to a spouse, or never kicking puppies. No matter what the provocation, and no matter how tempted they are, and no matter how much easier life would be if they just kicked that cute little spaniel puppy with the melting brown eyes.

I like characters who are not perfect. And by that I mean they have real flaws, not virtues in disguise. “I am so compassionate that I always stop to help old ladies cross the street/rescue kittens from trees, therefore enabling the bad guys to catch me by disguising themselves as helpless old ladies and/or kittens” does not count. Give me characters who struggle with envy, pride, anger, impatience, impetuousness. Characters who are not the best at everything they try and who have to work for their successes.

I’m also fond of underdogs. Those characters who are at a disadvantage because of lack of ability, lack of social status, or physique. Those who work hard (see above!), strive to rise above their disadvantages, and use wit and humor to get in and out of trouble.  Oh, and I detest angsty whiners. If the character mopes around miserably for more than a few pages, then it cancels out any credit they get for being an underdog.

And please, I want characters who have agency. Whose actions drive the plot, not the other way around. If a character has to do something TSTL in order to get the plot change you want, don’t do it. You cannot tell me that a character is intelligent and street-savvy on one page, then have her go into the haunted basement while the lights are out by herself. Without a flashlight. And a big EAT ME sign painted on her forehead. Passivity is an even worse sin. Characters should do things–and suffer the consequences–not constantly have things done to them.

Characters should show a whole range of moods and feelings. I don’t like characters who strike the same note over and over again, whether it’s snark, boredom, rage, naivete, whatever. I’m tired of characters who substitute a smart mouth for depth and complexity.

And I like characters who have that certain spark. It’s hard to define what that is, but some characters are so delightful and surprising that they leave me grinning whenever I read their scenes. Maybe it’s because they think out of the box, or pull off the most outrageous plans. Maybe they’re an unexpected–but appealing–combination of attributes I’ve never seen before. Maybe because I read about them and go, Yes, I know exactly how this character feels right now. Maybe that character and I have the same hopes, fears, reactions.

What about you? Why do you love your favorite characters?

I admit it. I’m like a magpie. I’m attracted to the new, the striking, the hey-cool! in the books I read. A never-been-done-before premise. An inventive world stuffed full of details. An awesome magic system. Lyrical prose. A well-turned phrase.  Oh, I like high-concept too. “Polynesian flying robots battle Mesoamerican martial artists in an alternative nineteenth century world where most of Europe was destroyed by a meteorite”? I’m SOOO there.

But I’ve been going through my reviews lately and I realized that the stories that stay with me, the ones I *love* as opposed to just *admire*, the ones whose authors I stalk and whose sequels I impatiently await, are the ones whose characters come alive for me. I’ve read books by authors whose prose sparkled like the jewels in Ali Baba’s cave, but I cannot remember the name of a single character. Books whose narrative voice was witty and wonderful, but whose characters were mere cardboard cutouts. Books with worlds I could have never imagined–worlds that were unusual and worked–but whose characters were so bland or unlikeable I couldn’t stick with the story. These are the books that push my hey-cool! buttons but didn’t touch my heart.

Because really what stay with me after I’ve put the book down are the characters. If they are well-done, if they are compelling and sympathetic, if I’m emotionally involved in them, then I’ll come back for more. Characters steal my heart, not clever prose or well-built worlds.

As a writer, I focus a LOT of worldbuiling. Partly because I write fantasy, partly because my stories end up demanding it, and partly because I consider this to be a weak spot of mine. Now, with this revelation from my reader-brain, I’m thinking I need to put my characters under the microscope a bit more.

Who are some of your favorite characters, and why?

Last week, I highlighted our favorite picture book versions of fairy tales. This week I want to focus on what I truly love (more so than the originals)–fairy tale retellings!

Robin McKinley’s Beauty is the first fairy tale retelling I ever read. I loved how it fleshed out details, made the characters easier to like and empathize with, how it made sense. Since then, I’ve always been drawn to fairy tale retellings: Mercedes Lackeys’ Elemental Masters series which marry reimagined  fairy tales with elemental magic in Edwardian England; Gail Carson Levine’s Ella Enchanted which finally finally gave a more plausible reason for Cinderella’s predicament (besides an unnaturally meek personality!); yes, even the movie Ever After, hopelessly utopian and impractical ideals and all (not to mention that wince-inducing line about Danielle being taught by a master swordsman—who died when she was…. eight?); Jim Hines’ The Stepsister Scheme featuring a trio of kick-ass princesses.

What are your favorite fairy tale retellings? I’m always on the lookout for more!

Can’t get enough of fairy tales? Check out SurLaLune for annotated fairy tales; Andrew Lang’s various color-named  fairy books at Project Gutenberg; plus some e-zines: Cabinet des Fees, Enchanted Conversation and New Fairy Tales.

Any other great online fairy tale resources I missed?