I must learn to love the fool in me the one who feels too much, talks too much, takes too many chances, wins sometimes and loses often, lacks self-control, loves and hates, hurts and gets hurt, promises and breaks promises, laughs and cries.
—Theodore Isaac Rubin
3Brave
Last night I took a class offered by Gotham Writers on writing for children’s books. The class was meant to be an introduction to a lengthier course, but I found the information that the teacher gave in the brief period of time he had to be extremely helpful and insightful.
The advice that stuck with me the most came in the form of discussing character development in the story. He said that it was important for your main character to exhibit lows, encounter danger, live with fears, and most importantly, have flaws. The character needed to have something difficult to deal with in order to overcome and achieve his or her desire. ”It’s not brave if you weren’t afraid in the first place,” he reminded us.
That line has been ringing in my head since last night, as I find it to be so true to real life as well as fictional stories. Think about the greatest achievements or the most worthwhile things you’ve had in your life to date. Are they things that were simply handed to you? Did you take risks to achieve them, or give something new a chance?
I have a mug that sits next to my computer that says, “Do something every day that scares you.” A lot of things scare me. Some days, its as simple as posting a blog entry. Other days, it means applying for a job. Then there are the deeper things, that don’t just happen overnight. Making a career change. Walking away from a relationship. Giving a relationship a chance. Calling someone you haven’t spoken to in months. Saying “I love you.” Saying “I’m sorry.” Visiting a family member in the hospital. Killing a spider. Trapping a mouse. Sleeping alone at night. Living alone. Telling the truth. Whatever it may be, you feel a sense of accomplishment when it was over because you took a risk in doing it in the first place.
Think about your favorite book growing up as a child. Most likely, you related to the main character because you found a part of yourself in him or her. I guarantee that if you look back on it now as an adult, you’ll be able to see the complex layers and struggles in even the most basic storyline.
That’s what life is. A delicately woven tale of highs and lows, good and evil, struggles and successes all tied together in you, the main character. You don’t know the ending, because you don’t know what will be thrown your way. You can’t predict what supporting characters will be on the last page because they have stories of their own to follow, but you have to keep turning the page to find out. It’s certainly not interesting to read the same page over and over again, expecting to find different words on it than the time before.
Living your life to the fullest is the bravest thing you’ll ever do. So start now. Today. Pick who you want you, your main character to be, think about what they fear the most, and challenge yourself to overcome that. No matter what setbacks you may encounter, keep moving forward.
No one wants to read a book with a blank last page.
