Character Stereotypes: The Victim

The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue,

but that they are incomplete.
—Chimamanda Adichie

The idea for this series came from a talk Nigerian author Creative: Have the character recollect during the day—not just
Chimamanda Adichie did entitled The Dangers of a Single Story (i.e., daydreams—maybe a persistent image comes to them over and
stereotype)(http://bit.ly/6WfqX). She told of how she had a single over, or a phrase they heard during the traumatic event becomes an
story of the British based on what she had read in books. She then internal mantra. What if your heroine “phased out” while she
experienced the flipside of stereotyping when she came to America reexperiences her trauma, almost like it was happening in real time?
for college. Her roommate, having been exposed to only Western
literature, believed Africans to be an uneducated tribal people, 3) The character would persistently avoid any reminder of the
unfamiliar with modern technologies. trauma.

The moral of Adichie’s talk was this: What we write impacts and Clichéd: Woman raped in an elevator can’t go inside an elevator;
influences readers. Her main intent was to warn of the dangers of won’t talk about what happened with anyone, has a “blank mind”
cultural stereotyping, but I want to expound on fictional character when it comes to remembering certain aspects of the trauma (as if
stereotyping. the brain suppressed the memory).

An overwhelming 75 percent of responders on my character Creative: A character withdraws from a previous activity in which
stereotype survey indicated they had written a victim into one of they were highly involved; the character feels unable to love
their manuscripts, so that’s the first stereotype I’ll go over. To see anymore or feel anything again; the character feels he won’t live a
the vast spectrum this stereotype can cover, I’ll start with Webster’s normal life span (i.e., get married, have children, have a career),
definition. which could lead to dropping out of college, breaking up with a
fiancé, etc.
Main Entry: vic•tim
Pronunciation: \ˈvik-təm\ 4) The character would experience a heightened sense of
Function: noun
arousal.
1 : one that is acted on and usually adversely affected by a force or agent: as a
(1) : one that is injured, destroyed, or sacrificed under any of various conditions Clichéd: The hero can’t sleep through the night without waking, or
(2) : one that is subjected to oppression, hardship, or mistreatment b : one that is can’t fall asleep; a heroine is always looking over her shoulder in a
tricked or duped paranoid fashion.
Think about everything that commonly finds a way into our fiction
that falls under that definition: rape, molestation, neglect, robbery, Creative: How about going with some anger or irritability
mugging, kidnapping, being taken hostage, terrorist attack, torture, (especially in children)? Difficulty in concentrating? This might not
military combat, incarceration as a prisoner of war or in a seem creative in the traditional sense of the word, but it’s less used
concentration camp, natural/manmade disasters, severe automobile than the above and still fits the symptom description.
accidents, carjacking, being diagnosed with a life-threatening illness,
or seeing a dead body/body parts. All of these events can be learned I want to address your antagonists before I close. Protagonists
about, directly experienced, or indirectly witnessed. aren’t the only ones to have experiences that scar them. Bad guys
do too, and there is some indication that people who were victims in
I lifted the above list right out of the Diagnostic and Statistical childhood grow up to be victimizers as adults. For example,
Manual under the description for post-traumatic stress disorder definitive research reveals that abused children have a high
(PTSD). Not all “victims” have PTSD, but it’s a good disorder to know correlation with becoming adult abusers.
about in order to inflict our victimized characters with realistic,
varying emotional hurdles. One way to let the reader become sympathetic to the bad guy’s
plight is to work in a backstory that would make Job look like he got
Based on the four most descriptive clinical symptoms for PTSD, I’ll off easy. Readers can forgive a bad guy for a lot when they know he
offer a couple overdone and underused scenarios for you to consider is operating with an unhealed wound. Mary Connealy has one a
for your protagonists. great example of a sympathetic villain in her book Montana Rose.
Her bad guy was creepy, delusional, and generally insane—but his
1) The character has to go through something awful—see above— dad was so abusive and belligerent that you pity him rather than
and respond with intense fear, helplessness, or horror. wrinkle your nose in distaste.
Clichéd: Usually fictional victims directly experience a horrible past I hope this article has given you some concrete methods to vary the
event; they react with screaming, panic attacks, or “freezing” in clichéd victim role in your manuscripts!
place.

Creative: A person can have PTSD simply by seeing something

happen to someone else. They can also learn about something awful
over the phone and still experience PTSD. Not everyone experiences
fear or horror the same way. What if your character laughed
nervously when afraid or vomited when horrified?

2) The character has to reexperience the traumatic event in

some way.

Clichéd: The character has a nightmare and wakes up covered in

sweat; character suffers from intense flashbacks.

Character Stereotypes: The Cynic

The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue,
but that they are incomplete.
—Chimamanda Adichie

What exactly is a cynic? Hostility

Main Entry: cyn•ic Cynics deal in the currency of sarcasm and biting, scathing
Pronunciation: \ˈsi-nik\ comments. In doing this, they display hostility toward others. But
Function:noun don’t make the mistake of thinking this is who they truly are,
1 : a faultfinding captious critic; especially: one who believes that because it’s actually a front.
human conduct is motivated wholly by self-interest
What do we know about hostility, then? Hostility is outwardly turned
I hate it when Webster’s definition has me looking up another word anger. You might have heard it said that anger is a secondary
to get the full meaning, but captious means “marked by an often ill- emotion, and this is true. Anger can cover a multitude of emotions
natured inclination to stress faults and raise objections.” Basically, a people don’t want to feel, like fear, anxiety, disappointment, guilt,
cynic is an unpleasant person to be around. worry, hurt, frustration, jealousy, or shame.

People do not consider cynicism a good trait. These are not the Cynics’ main emotion for their hostility is fear of being hurt. They
people we seek out to eat lunch with or to babysit our children. They project this tough, rough, you-can’t-hurt-me attitude because their
don’t inspire us to scale mountains or overcome obstacles. They are biggest fear is that some dart will hurt them and penetrate their
obstacles themselves. façade. The idea behind this is that if they assume the worst, then
reality won’t be such a big disappointment and, therefore, they are
Authors have, by and large, given cynicism to a character more as a better prepared when the worst happens. Thinking positively got
vice, a personal thing for him or her to work through on an inward them nowhere before (see Disillusionment), and they globalize that
journey. I’m hoping to give some insight into how cynics get that assumption to everything.
way.
3 Steps to Breaking Away from the Cliché
Most people are not born with this disposition, they become this way
due to life circumstances. For this exposé on cynics, I want to 1) Make the cynic care about something.
examine a few key characteristics of cynics that need to be present
in your manuscript to make their cynicism ring true. Emotional detachment is safer than emotional investment. Cynics
using sarcasm and rudeness try to distance themselves from any
Disillusionment particular outcome. But give them a reason early in the book to have
a vested emotional interest in a specific outcome, which goes
What you’re about to read might be hard to believe, but if you think against the very grain of a cynic, and you have immediate inward
about it, it’ll make sense. Most cynics start out optimistic and full of tension.
hope. They probably put a lot of effort into something at some point,
expecting great results, only to get very little or nothing in return. 2) Make the cynic face his fear.
Their hopes are dashed, along with their faith in others. It is critical
to have something like this in your character’s backstory. Once cynics care about something, they ultimately will come to a
crossroad where they have to face the fear of whether they admit
Writers tend to gravitate toward a cliché of a male cynic hero who they care, or walk away (or be rude, biting, etc., to mask their
tries hard to get a job promotion, but some young upstart, relative feelings). This will be the outward tension.
of the boss or other not-as-deserving person gets the job instead,
foiling his efforts. This outcome turns the hero against others. 3) Give the cynic one situation in which cynicism works in
her favor.
The female cliché is one we’ve all read before, as well. The heroine
puts all her eggs into one romantic basket only to have them There is some value to being a little cynical. It’s not all bad. Cynics
returned to her broken and unrecognizable. This heart-wrenching are generally interesting people, and many can be knee-slapping
event, no matter how far back in her past, turns her off love for hilarious. Let your cynic showcase his or her “talent” by being right
good (until she meets the hero, etc.). about a con artist, hoax, or get-rich-quick scheme.

Depression However you portray your cynic, the reader will want to see him or
her change by the end of the book. If by the end of the book the
If this type of disillusionment goes on long enough, these people will cynic comes to a place of balancing negativism with a healthy dose
become depressed at their life situation. They begin to think that of realism, you’ll have done your job well.
nothing they do in life really makes a difference, and this is the
definition of helplessness.

The one psychological disorder most marked by a sense of

helplessness is depression. That’s not to say all cynics have to have
depression. The more areas of life that their cynicism touches, the
more likely they might be clinically depressed. For example, a person
can be pessimistic just about his work (environment, boss,
coworkers), or she can be negative about her work, church, family,
government, and dog.

A good rule of thumb is not to have your character cynical about

everything, doubting everyone’s motivations, suspicious of every
facet of his or her life. Why? You’ll have a harder book to write with
more ground for the character to cover in order to reach some point
of “healing” catharsis.

Character Stereotypes: The Tomboy

The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue,
but that they are incomplete.
—Chimamanda Adichie

Fiction carries many examples of tomboy characters: Jo March in b) Desire for recognition (beyond physical beauty)
Little Women and Idgie Threadgoode in Fried Green Tomatoes at
the Whistle Stop Café, to name just two. The word can refer to little What if your heroine grew up with a beauty-queen mother from
girls engaging in what society considers more boyish activities to whom she inherited drop-dead gorgeous looks. Not wanting to be
grown women who “hang with the guys.” valued for her looks alone, she seeks rewards for her professional
successes or athletic accomplishments instead. To her, these
There is no hard-and-fast rule why some girls prefer Tonka trucks represent more substance, but they are also considered more
and Transformers to tea sets and tiaras, but sociology has “masculine” arenas.
established tomboyism to be a normal experience among girls of all
cultures and identities. c) Hometown hero(ine) mentality
Unfortunately, most of the psychological research looks at Research shows that tomboys more often than not grow up in a
tomboyism in light of gender outcomes as adults, such as rural setting. Not to be too stereotypical, a female seeking to
homosexuality or transsexuality. But roughhousing young girls establish herself in a backcountry town might be forced to run faster
shouldn’t have to suffer the presumption that they want to be a boy and jump higher to stand out. To do this, a female would almost
or will grow up to be a lesbian. In books written for the CBA market, have to excel at being competitive and a risk-taker.
this is certainly not the intended or desired result for our heroines!
3) Give her a non-masculine job.
Typically, in books targeting Christian readers, the author pens a
“one of the guys” kind of girl who refuses to wear pastel, lace, or It’s easy to imagine a tomboy as a police officer, athletic coach,
dresses. She usually ends up donning a dress against her will that is animal handler, or military trooper. But what if she had to run a
both pastel and lacey for some event, then she realizes that she florist shop or a jewelry store? Or had to work in the lingerie
wants her best guy friend to see her as a romantic interest and look department instead of the hardware department? If you give her
at her as a girl. surroundings that are even more unwelcoming for a tomboy than
general circumstance, you’ll ramp up the tension for your heroine.
How can you spice up this stereotype?
A short word should be said about the male equivalent of a
1) Give her a weak spot for some feminine aspect. tomboy—the “sissy.” This term is far more pejorative for males than
tomboy is for females. The connotation sissy carries with it is less
Perhaps she wears lacy panties under her basketball uniform. Maybe positive. So instead of all out sissification, there are male characters
she wears satin to sleep in. Possibly she gets regular pedicures but who are “in touch with their feminine side,” which means they have
covers her prettily painted toes with power heels or cleats. While she affinities for cooking, they dress well, tolerate a shopping female, or
can keep her hard outer shell, a quirk like this can help the non- like to have their hair just so. But because I’ve never read a book
tomboy identify with her and soften her in the eyes of your readers. about a sissified man, you won’t be seeing a “Character Stereotypes:
The Sissy” column next month. Just not happening in CBA fiction
2) Give her a solid reason to seek the masculine realm. right now—or probably ever.

a) Disappointment with female role models

Tomboys may want to identify with the world of men more than the
with the world of women, particularly if they think the world of men
has more to offer them. For example, if a tomboy grows up with a
powerful father who dominated a submissive wife, the young girl
might begin to reason she should be more like her dad, interested in
what interests him.

Many girls who gravitate toward being a tomboy don’t want to be

perceived as weak, boring, or a pushover. They don’t want to be
used and abused as they might have seen happen to some other
female they know, so they work hard at showing no signs of
weakness.

Character Stereotypes: The Geek

The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue,
but that they are incomplete.
—Chimamanda Adichie

In most cinema examples of geeks, the guy wears glasses and a Have Your Geek Undergo Social Training
pocket protector, dabbles in all things electronic, and repels women
like water off the back of a duck. A girl geek likely has mousy hair, Keene State College psychologist Lawrence Welkowitz found that
braces, and enough social awkwardness to make you squirm in your geeks could overcome their social awkwardness with concentration
seat as you watch. and repetition. He knows this because he runs a peer-mentoring
program where cool kids take their nerdier classmates under their
Thanks to psychology and personality testing, we’ll look at a few tutelage to give them tips on how to be popular. If geeks approach
character trait generalities that you might want to include in your social interactions in the same way they would binary code, they can
book. succeed in overcoming this deficit. Conversational templates exist for
 everything from dating to job interviews. If they study these
1) Reason Trumps Emotion templates, the rules of socialization are quick to follow.

Most geeks are systematic thinkers. They analyze all problems Have Your Geek Join a Community.
logically, looking for previous rules or guidelines. Usually, they are
intellectually gifted but socially lacking. The social arena is emotional
Geeks tend to stay in their own world most of the time, which is
and nonrational, therefore uncomfortable and more likely to be what makes romance hard. Perhaps you don’t want to “mainstream”
avoided. Since that’s the case, their social skills won’t be honed foryour fictional geek, so you can offer him or her a subculture built
lack of use, making them awkward and stunted emotionally. around his or her particular geek hobby or interest. For a really great
example, Star Trek fans—Trekkies—go to conventions where they
2) Penchant for Gadgetry have social interactions with others from their world. And yes, they
can meet people of the opposite sex, fall in love, and have Trekkie
The latest technology is a must-have. These are the people who wait weddings. It happens.
in line for the newest iPhone. You call them for technological help
because nine times out of ten, they will know the answer to get you Make Your Savvy Socialite a Covert Geek
out of your pinch. Their office space might be cluttered with gadgets
and the wires that come with them, but they know where everything Turn the stereotype on its head and create a highly capable, socially
is because it’s organized chaos. apt character a covert geek, perhaps with nerdy interests he or she
keeps on the down low, or unusual interests that take all his or her
3) Competitive for Recognition free time. The challenge with romance in a scenario with a geek like
this would likely be a battle of intellects (see #3 above).
Being smarter than others is important for geeks. This intelligence
doesn’t necessarily have to be technology based, either. For
example, an architect geek might try drafting the most complex
plans. A marketing geek might trump everyone else’s strategy with a
stellar campaign idea. You get the picture. They want to be smarter,
because with increased smarts comes increased recognition, which is
the ultimate aim.

These stereotypical descriptions only scratch the surface, however.

There’s always room to spice things up, because geeks aren’t as cut-
and-dried as you might think. No one is, which is why I like Adichie’s
quote above so much.

Romancing the Geek

Romance can’t happen in a vacuum. There has to be social

interaction—even if it is awkward—for romance to bloom. The
following suggestions will help alter a geek’s social arena to such
that romance is feasible.

Character Stereotypes: The Do-gooder

The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue,
but that they are incomplete.
—Chimamanda Adichie

Do-gooders, also called Goody Two-Shoes, are the people who make How to Crossbreed: One way to change this subtype of do-gooder
everyone else look bad. They turn the other cheek, go the extra is to give the character such an awful backstory that they feel the
mile, raise the bar, and set the standard high. only way to atone for their past sins and overindulgences is to
martyr themselves by living in constant suffering and sacrifice.
But why? What motivates them? What’s the payoff?
3) Busybody
Aside from the general, run-of-the-mill do-gooders who are
generous because it’s in their nature, there are three sub- Motivation: to be in the know.
stereotypes do-gooders. Let’s examine each type by delving further
into what motivates each and how writers can crossbreed them to Common Specimen: the retiree from next door who brings you a
spice things up. dozen cookies only to pry and get the latest gossip about whether
you are getting a divorce or moving.
1) Doormat
Description: Sometimes do-gooders are generous simply to
Motivation: to please people disguise their true ulterior motive to gather information for gossip
mongering. Recipients of this type of charity usually perceive that
Common Specimen: the already overworked congregation the busybody’s goodwill toward them is only to plump their arsenal
member who just can’t say no when the Educational Minister is short full of juicy tidbits to share at the next Bunko meeting. It’s enough
a Sunday school teacher. to make someone highly resentful.

Description: Doormats are the most common form of do-gooders Genuine do-gooders probably had an experience with a needy
in Christian fiction. They generally have low self-esteem and believe person that transformed them and their way of thinking. A
that by doing what everyone asks of them, they will up their busybody, however, likely realized that sharing an intercessory
estimation in the eyes of others. Perhaps they grew up with the idea prayer request was code for dishing dirt in a socially acceptable
that if they could just be who people wanted them to be—instead of manner, simultaneously making themselves look like the caring sort
who they really are—they would find love and acceptance. is only a perk by-product.

How to Crossbreed: Changing the doormat’s payoff will be the How to Crossbreed: What if you gave your busybody a selfless
best way to alter this stereotype, because you can’t change the reason why he needs to be in the know? It would be
people-pleasing motivation and keep the person a doormat. For counterintuitive, of course, but would help redeem this character in
example, a doormat do-gooder could simply be covering as a the eyes of the reader. For example, a girl tries to get the life story
doormat for a self-serving reason, like wanting to ingratiate of her best friend’s romantic interest, all in the name of trying to
themselves into a small town for political aspirations or real estate protect her friend from making a huge mistake.
reasons.

2) Martyr

Motivation: to obtain sympathy/admiration.

Common Specimen: the businessman who gives away all of his

wealth and allows his own family to live in poverty.

Description: Martyrs might be the extreme form of do-gooders, in

that they do so much good that it’s sometime to the detriment of
their own health or family or general well-being. They are a strange
dichotomy of altruism and self-interest.

One could argue that they have an almost masochistic urge to put
others before themselves, and feeding into this unhealthy
compulsion can easily overwhelm a person. The idea just doesn’t
hold that the greater the amount of suffering, the greater the size of
the reward.

Character Stereotypes: The Playboy

The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue,
but that they are incomplete.
—Chimamanda Adichie

Christian fiction has its fair share of heroes who dabble in playing What’s a Playboy Running From?
the ladies. Of course, the nature of Christian fiction doesn’t lend
itself to measuring sexual prowess by notches on bedposts, yet 1) Fear of Growing Old/Unattractive
some of the more edgy novels flirt with this truth, or at least skirt
around it.
 It’s feasible to write a Casanova who hangs on to his womanizing
Casanovas, Lotharios, Romeos, libertines, rakes, rogues, lady-killers, ways because it makes him feel young and carefree. A universal sign
and ladies’ men find a place in all genres and time periods. of virility and manliness is a woman on each arm, and the mental
Expounding on the available research will help you break away from process might be that a man should “get” while the “gettin’s” still
the stereotype and create a more believable, and even likeable, good. Maybe deep inside, though, this character really wants to
character. settle down but is scared to lose face with his playboy crowd. (Think
Mel Gibson in What Women Want.)
Playboy Psychological Factors
2) Fear of Settling Down
1) Absent Father
Infamous self-proclaimed New York playboy Paul Janka doesn’t think
Studies show that men who reel in woman after woman typically of his relationships with women as dating. He just enjoys the hustle.
grew up without a father. Jed Diamond, psychotherapist and author It’s a game to him, with rules and even a self-written manual.
of The Irritable Male Syndrome, thinks that this failure to attach to a There’s something energetic and exciting about still playing the field.
father figure early on could make men insecure about how It’s the unknown territory of wading into the water and letting a girl
acceptable they are. So playboys lure women as a way to in and sharing his life with her that keeps him fishing on the banks.
compensate.
3) Fear of Being Hurt
2) Ugly Duckling Syndrome
The chances of being hurt are slim to none when it’s the man doing
If you were to peek into a playboy’s high school yearbook, you the lovin’ and leavin’. Perhaps your character suffered an extreme
might be surprised to find that he wasn’t the Greek god he is now. emotional blow, like walking in on his wife and another man. Or
In fact, he might have been quite homely. These men who were maybe it reopened a wound from childhood when he was rejected
sideline spectators in the game of love have burst out of their drab, by his father or mother or friends. Maybe this wound bruised his ego
ordinary cocoons and into the limelight . . . and they love every so much that he never wants to risk opening himself up to that kind
minute of it. They crave the attention and adoration because it’s like of devastation.
a balm to their inner zit-faced, braces-wearing caterpillar who still
remembers what it felt like to be shunned. Regular therapy should help a playboy see past his insecurities and
utilization of women to meet his emotional (and physical) needs. But
3) Low Self-Esteem God—with the use of a willing writer—can do a great work in the life
of one of these fictional heroes just by introducing him to a made-
A playboy hits on women to feel better about himself. It’s an ego- for-him heroine and making him face these fears.
stroking action that can become as addictive as any drug. A
woman’s starry-eyed stare validates him, makes him feel important
and loveable. Low self-esteem lies at the heart of this type of
overcompensation. Their confidence and charm might very well be a
mask for the deepest kind of insecurity. I’ve separated this factor
from the one above because even the most attractive man can have
low self-esteem. Counterintuitive, isn’t it?

Not all playboys fall into one of the above categories, although #3 is
pretty fail-proof. But writers can take liberty in creating different
circumstances that prompt a man to seek affirmation measured by
how long his string of girlfriends is. To do so, a writer has only to
learn what a playboy fears most.

Character Stereotypes: The Workaholic

The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue,
but that they are incomplete.
—Chimamanda Adichie

Main Entry: work•a•hol•ic likely than a workaholic who overworks himself for the “sake of the
Pronunciation: \wurk-uh-ˈhaw-lik, -hol-ik\ cause.” For example, a social worker might truly want to help foster
Function: noun children—indeed, it might be her deepest desire—but fighting off the
1 : a person who works compulsively at the expense of other underlying emotional issues of her own stint in foster care years ago
pursuits might be what drives her to work those late night hours.

You won’t find workaholism in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 3) Social Factors
of Mental Disorders. But according to research, Americans work an
average of 200 hours more a year than they did in 1970. That’s Friends aren’t high on the average workaholic’s priority list. In fact,
almost an extra month. friends and family members might bring with them a host of
obligations, commitments, or—gasp!—feelings that are most
Of course, with those longer hours come fatter paychecks and unwelcome. Other people are unpredictable and therefore outside
bigger accolades, both of which society and culture esteem. But the workaholic’s scope of regulation and control. Having significant
what happens when work supersedes other areas of life? friendships and relationships present far too many variables with
which to contend, and can often be catalysts that send the
Dr. Bryan Robinson wrote Chained to the Desk: A Guidebook for workaholic back to his or her desk.
Workaholics, a manual of sorts for partners, children, and clinicians
working with these people. Robinson has a quick quiz you can take Workaholics will often make and break commitments to loved ones
for your characters (or yourself!) to determine if they are because they don’t know how to set limits on their work in order to
workaholics. engage in frivolous “play.” When they do go to the movies or out to
dinner, often they aren’t mentally present. As you can imagine,
On a scale from one to five, with five being the most satisfied and intimate relationships would be difficult to nigh impossible as a
one being the least, have your character rate his satisfaction with his result. Many workaholics consequently present in therapy with
family life, friendships, health and hobbies. If his total is fewer than relationship troubles.
ten points, read on.
Here are two fail-proof ways to spice up a scene with a workaholic:
The following psychological insights will be helpful for you to make
your workaholic characters more realistic. 1) Put them on a deadline and cut their Internet access.

1) Childhood Factors Like the Visa commercial in which everything comes to a complete
stop, so is the world of a workaholic with no cell phone towers,
Workaholics often grew up as perfectionists, whether self-imposed charged laptop batteries, or e-mail access.
or otherwise. It’s painful for a child to realize that she might never
live up to her parents’ expectations, but she might still strive to meet 2) Combine an important business meeting with a social
them. Focusing on schoolwork or being consumed by a hobby or outing.
sport helps a child avoid dealing with painful emotions, and they
carry this skill into adulthood, masking it as workaholism. Put a workaholic in his business skin and transplant him into a
playful environment like a cocktail party or gala fund-raiser event to
It’s also likely that workaholics come from a family where addiction ratchet the tension. As the hero cozies up to a potential client to
or other parental mental problems were prevalent. A boy who loses land a sale, he will consider an attractive heroine an unwelcome
his childhood sense of play and carefreeness in order to cook, clean, distraction, especially if she’s attracting not only the client but the
and play “brother’s keeper” to his younger siblings might be set on workaholic as well!
the pathway to workaholism. Out of necessity they learn from an
early age what responsibility feels like, and this responsibility gives
them control in an otherwise uncontrollable situation. Later in life, it
becomes even more uncomfortable to give up this sense of control.

2) Emotional Factors

Here’s an interesting tidbit about workaholics: They aren’t addicted

to the actual work they do. They can be lawyers or garbage
collectors, secretaries or CEOs. Workaholics are addicted to the
alleviation of stress and anxiety that their professions or trades
provide. They go to work to evade unresolved emotional issues, and
it’s the evasion that is addictive.

That’s not to say that every workaholic has to have emotional

baggage they don’t want to wade through, but it’s far more
 Character Stereotypes: The Neat-Freak
The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue,
but that they are incomplete.
—Chimamanda Adichie

Main Entry: neat•freak don’t see neat-freaks whip out a portable vacuum cleaner to suck
Pronunciation: \ˈneet freek\ up their dead skin cells and hair follicles from their keyboards,
Function: noun most coworkers would admire, even envy, the neat-freak’s clean
1 : a person who exhibits a pattern of behavior characterized by and clutter-free desk.
obsessive cleaning and ordering
3) Neat-freaks characterize themselves as having
If your character color-codes his sock drawer or lines up all her eccentricities, not problems.
DVDs in alphabetical order, they qualify as neat-freaks.
Neat-freaks don’t think they have any more hiccups in their
Some out there in the world of psychology believe that Obsessive- routines than everyone else. Banks wrote that she considers
Compulsive disorder operates on a continuum of sorts. On one herself “idiosyncratic . . . much like a person who loves to whistle,
end, you’ve got the germophobes, counters, and checkers (and a hair twirler, or practical joker.”
double and triple checkers). They can’t function because their
minds just won’t quit. This little tidbit is where authors can have fun. As the story world
envelops the Type-A character, forcing change upon her, have fun
On the other end, you’ve got people who hand dry their pots and with the revelations outsiders bring to the neat-freak. Help her to
pans to avoid all trace evidence of watermarks, and those who see herself through someone else’s perspective. Give him a reality
have to iron their wrinkle-free shirts. These behaviors don’t check. And this is done with heavenly tension.
interfere with their ability to function, but they do make them
officially Type-A, for anal-retentive. 4) In relationships, neat-freaks have (and probably will
always have) trigger areas.
Kinda anomalous. Kinda admirable. Kinda aggravating.
For those of you who write romance, you’ll be interested to note
How can you make your neat-freak pop on the page, larger than that little things left out of place or put away wrong can suddenly
life? These four insights should help. take on the extreme importance and hold insurmountable tension
between the couple. The partner will feel the neat-freak is neurotic
1) The underlying issue isn’t neatness. It’s control. and over-the-top, and the neat-freak will feel the partner doesn’t
care if they wallow in filth.
A neat-freak borders on neurotic in certain areas of their lives. According to New York City clinical psychologist Ellen McGrath, as
They react disproportionately if something in their sphere of interviewed in Psychology Today in 2006, neat-freaks have very
influence isn’t exactly the way they want it. Their anger often high standards for neatness in particular areas. These trigger areas
drives other people away, and those who stick around end up might originate from childhood routines in a household where
going toe-to-toe every day about the toilet seat left up or the pair cleanliness was considered next to godliness.
of shoes carelessly left in the living room.
They possess an intrinsic motivation to keep their environments It’s possible for neat-freaks to find meaningful relationships, as
clean and lint-free. This obsessive cleaning feeds a need for the long as they are aware of their leaning toward obsessive
neat-freak to feel in control of their lives, which is their way of cleanliness and withhold judgment from the not-so-inclined
coping through stress and trauma. You know those people afflicted partner. This ideal ending would make for the nice completion of a
by the desire to scrub down every surface with a 10 percent bleach secondary character arc.
solution? Usually they do this when facing an overwhelming
decision or event. They feel out of control, and cleaning helps
lessen this negative feeling and gives them a sense of security.

2) The environment is an extension of the neat-freak.

Jennifer Brown Banks, author of Confessions of a Neat-Freak,

wrote, “It’s no secret that one’s home is a reflection of self. Neat
surroundings (we believe) help us to juggle many tasks, maintain
order, think strategically and even save money!”

To a neat-freak, how his workstation looks is a direct reflection on

his productivity and abilities. So while #1 focuses on the inner
motivation, #2 focuses on the outward reward. As long as we

Character Stereotypes: The Ditz

The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue,
but that they are incomplete.
—Chimamanda Adichie
A ditz is someone you can count on not to count on. With of the classic chicken-or-the-egg argument, it’s hard to say which
synonymous names like flake, space cadet, scatterbrain, and comes first: the impulsiveness or the lack of conscientiousness;
airhead, very few readers would likely want to read a full-length however, it’s very clear that this third factor is the resulting
novel about one, but they would make for a colorful secondary consequence.
character or sidekick.
Being the personification of such happy-go-lucky traits, how can an
The ditz is often portrayed in films as a blond, buxom, bubblegum- author “reform” or challenge a ditz in fiction? Is it even feasible to
chewing valley girl. Common examples would be Reese try?
Witherspoon’s role as Elle Woods in Legally Blonde and Alicia
Silvertsone as Cher Horowitz in Clueless. An example of a male flake Use Caution
would be Rhys Ifans’s character Spike in Notting Hill (interestingly,
also blond). All authors want that blessed tension to keep readers turning the
pages, and ordinarily I’d say put the character in a situation opposite
But surely there is more between the ditz’s ears than air. What’s where she might thrive in order to get that tension; however, a ditz
really going on with them? placed in an environment where high performance is required would
overwhelm her in real life. When overly taxed with demands, the ditz
Let me boil a ditz down to three traits. Hopefully you’ll see that they might act out and self-sabotage her position.
are, totally, more than just, like, airheads.
Instead, Roberts suggest challenging a ditz within his comfort zone
Lack of Conscientiousness instead. For example, maybe a boss asks a ditz to give a
presentation of where the company is heading for the future. Given
According to Dr. Brent Roberts, psychology professor at University of his people skills and penchant for visualizing the forest, a ditz would
Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, conscientiousness has five facets, all of be very good at this task. In addition, though, he has to present a
which the ditz generally lacks: structured one-year action step guide (the trees) to get the company
there. Now you’ve got an adequate challenge that would bring about
1. orderliness tension.
2. self-control
3. industriousness Baby Steps
4. responsibility
5. traditionality Nothing happens overnight. Having expectations of a ditz to
drastically change in a week is unrealistic. Instead, have her try
short, incremental time periods where she makes herself stay on
A ditz will often forget where she left her car keys. She’s not going task and be productive for five minutes. If she’s successful, she can
to be the hardest worker, and she’s not going to be all that reliable. reward herself with a coffee break. If not, she tries again. Gradually,
Following social norms and conventions isn’t her forte, either. you could increase the time spent diligently working. Another
suggestion would be to implement a system where he has to pay a
Let me be clear: Lack of conscientiousness and lack of intellect are dollar for every minute he is late.
two separate things. I like the way Joe Anzalone with Asset
Marketing Systems described them: “Remember that the [space Positive Kudos
cadet] is mentally lazy, and has trouble concentrating on one idea at
a time. Think of their mind like a computer with several applications Just like a child, anyone responds well to being praised. Have the
open at once, each containing a project that’s been started, but supervisor of your fictional ditz catch him being good. Praise
never finished.” following this appropriate behavior is called positive reinforcement in
Let the ditz surprise you. They are not all like Alicia Silverstone’s the behavioral world. It works on just about everyone for just about
Clueless character, who gives credence to the “dumb blonde” joke. everything, including, like, a ditz.
It’s feasible for a ditz to be more conscientious, but he has to be
highly motivated to change because it takes sustained effort and real
work to overcome a perceived character deficit.

Abundance of Impulsivity

What a ditz has in spades is spontaneity. They are fun and exciting
to be around. They don’t plan ahead much and can be a great foil
for super-structured lead characters to balance them out. They may
need others to tone down their impetuousness and help them see
through the consequences of any particular actions.

Dragging Feet

A ditz likes to procrastinate. They see the big picture of what needs
to get done really well, but since they aren’t interested in the finer
points to get there, they often arrive there late, if at all. It’s not for
lack of ability; it’s all about lack of effort. In a variation

Character Stereotypes: The Narcissist

The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue,
but that they are incomplete.
—Chimamanda Adichie

Narcissists get their name from the Greek myth about Narcissus, a True narcissists need validation like they need air to breathe. They’ll
man renowned for his beauty. Myths state he was cruel and do anything to get it, even taking ruthless or cutthroat measures.
disdained people who loved him. As divine punishment, he falls in They are willing to forfeit being liked by others as long as they have
love with a reflection in a pool, not realizing it is his own reflection. their admiration. So the difference would be that if a narcissist asks
He dies there, unable to leave the beautiful image. a question like the one above, she would expect—and feel entitled
to—a positive, admiring response. If she received a comment that
But narcissism, like many other character flaws, operates on a didn’t meet that expectation, even if it was the tiniest criticism, not
continuum. At one end, you have people with the clinical diagnosis only would she be highly offended, but also she would harbor a
of Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD). These people want to be grudge like no one’s business.
the center of attention and feel entitled to first-class upgrades,
backstage passes, and half-court seats. They are self-absorbed and 3) How mean can they be?
believe themselves to be invulnerable, almost as if bad things will
bounce off them like they were Superman or Wonder Woman. They A subclinical narcissist would likely feel some sort of remorse if he
usually aren’t anxious or depressed, and rarely feel overwhelmed were to step on toes or hurt someone else’s feelings. While he
with stress. might have felt justified in what he said or did, guilt would still
niggle at his subconscious.
Then there’s narcissism on a subclinical level. These people have a
healthy ego that might be at times too large for those around Remorse isn’t in a narcissist’s vocabulary. They don’t doubt their
them—the guy who thinks girls are fighting over him when he’s not courses of action and can be completely rude as occasion calls for
looking and the girl who would genuinely say that a Victoria’s Secret it. They could step on someone and not think twice, and when
model has nothing on her. crossed, even become aggressive. Manipulation comes easily, and
more than one narcissist has used romantic attachments only as a
Carl Vogel of Psychology Today (2006) quotes a researcher as way to further pump up their estimation in the eyes of others.
likening a semi-narcissistic person to driving a huge SUV: “You’re
having a great time, even while you hog the road, suck up extra 4) How far do they need to grow in your story?
resources, and put other drivers at higher risk.”
If your story needs a character with an inborn capacity to change in
light of new facts or information about themselves or their
 How can you give your character the right dose of narcissism to fit environment, stick with a light dose of narcissism for your
your story? Try asking yourself these questions: character. Why? A true narcissist is so hard to treat (read: change).
A narcissist might recognize that she is unhappy, or that life is
1) How much ego is too much? empty, and even seek therapy, but she presents the problem as an
external issue, not an internal one.
Say a person makes the following comment: “I’m a good teacher.”
This could be a teacher who has won awards or recognition for his For example, a man might come in unhappy with his life because he
or her skills in the classroom, or is voted Most Favorite by students. believes he’s not being treated as well as he deserves. By virtue of
These are external indicators that the teacher is telling the truth. his personality, he believes that the problem lies with others, not
The character could have just said, “I’m a teacher,” but the good with something that he might be able to do differently. He is blind
part lets the reader know that the character values this aspect of his to his own faults, which means it’s very difficult for him to arrive at
life and that perhaps that value is well placed. the end of the book with a nice character arc of internal change

On the other hand, you could have a diagnosable narcissist say, “I

know I’m a good teacher.” This wording would change a reader’s
perception of the character, probably negatively. It seems to shun
outward endorsements and focuses only on what the character
thinks is important: his knowledge that he’s a good teacher. It’s just
a subtle difference in dialogue, but it gives the reader far more
information into the character’s mind-set.

2) How much do they need to be admired?

Most people want validation. It’s a warm fuzzy, a feel good. Some
might even fish for compliments, such as asking, “What do you
think of my new haircut?” This doesn’t make them diagnosable,
although it’s along the low range of subclinical narcissism. They
might ask more out of a lack of self-esteem than an abundance of
it. If the character were to receive the comment, “It’s okay . . . but
I really liked it better longer,” she would likely be upset, maybe
even cry. That would be normal, right? We can all relate.

Character Stereotypes: The Doormat

The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue,
but that they are incomplete.
—Chimamanda Adichie

Main Entry: door•mat Exhaust Them

Pronunciation: \dôrˈmăt\
Function: noun This shouldn’t be hard to write at all. The most likely outcome for
1 : One who submits meekly or offers little resistance to someone described above is sheer exhaustion. The stress of having
domination, mistreatment, abuse, or indignities by others so much on their plates and not saying no will finally cave in on
them. Many a doormat finally reaches the conclusion that it’s not
We’ve all heard of and probably known a few doormats. These are worth it.
the people pleasers who will do anything for anyone, sometimes at
the expense of their own well-being. What the above definition Of course, this is only a bandage to the problem, but it’s an
doesn’t explain, though, is why. effective way to get the doormat’s attention. She has to reach an
inner understanding of what got her there in the first place.
As a therapist, the answer to that question is what I am most
interested in. What makes someone so passive? What motivates Explode Them
these people to accept being taken advantage of or even being
abused? If you have characters in your WIP running ragged and
flagging out because they can’t say no, you need to have a Another bandage that will serve to get the doormat to a moldable
plausible reason why they are this way. Below are two potential position of change is to let her become resentful. A person can’t
components for the backstory of a doormat. spend so much energy pleasing others without paying some sort of
price, usually passive-aggressiveness. Catering to other people for a
Conditional Love long time can lead to bitterness and grudges and will eventually
poke holes throughout any relationship, causing a rupture at
At the heart of many a doormat is the yearning for validation. They anytime.
will take it in any form and do just about anything to get it. This
could be because their parents never validated them for just being Examine Them
themselves.
Here’s where you play therapist. Someone needs to sit down with
You can see how difficult it might be for someone like this to accept this character (yes, a fictional therapist will do), and have the
Christ’s unconditional love. They probably grew up with parents doormat take a close look at what triggers his or her
who told them what to do and gave them attention and love only submissiveness and why. According to Jay Earley, psychologist and
when they obeyed. This is conditional love, the overarching reason author of Finding Your Life Purpose, “People-pleasing behavior
for many a doormat to submit to others. When they do so, they are comes from fear, from an assumption that others are in control of
using the best method they know of to get love or validation. you. Healthy behavior comes from genuinely wanting to be
connected to people.”
For those writers who want their doormat characters to have happy
families of origin, then consider a painful breakup in early Have your character ask herself why she is doing any particular
adulthood. Maybe the doormat doesn’t want to risk heartbreak action. Is it because she a) cares about the person, or b) is she
again by offending or disagreeing with his or her partner. afraid she’ll “lose” him? When the doormat can answer with a
response closer to A, then her actions are for a more healthy
Loss of Value purpose and not driven by the fear of being abandoned.

(I use the example of a female here because girls are trained from Experiment with Them
a young age to oblige and defer to others, so the percentage of
female doormats is disproportionate to the percentage who are Eventually the people-pleasing doormat will have to practice not
male.) saying yes to everyone for everything. She’ll need someone to hold
her hand while she role-plays standing up for herself in a situation.
A doormat doesn’t have any idea how valuable her person or She’ll have tons of anxiety just saying no, but eventually she’ll get
actions are. This would start in childhood, perhaps because her the hang of it.
parents never encouraged or praised her for being assertive or
stepping out on her own. Her self-esteem compass is broken, if not
nonexistent.

The measure of the doormat’s validity, then, comes from an outside

source, such as a boyfriend/girlfriend or mother/father or best
friend. When she meets the demands of other people, making them
happy, the takeaway value for the doormat is that they are happy
with her as well. If they aren’t happy, then the doormat absorbs the
responsibility for making them that way, and fear takes root that if
she doesn’t double over backward to please these people, then they
won’t love her.

Of course, we can’t leave a character in this mental space. It’s too

unhealthy. What can you do to help “cure” them of their doormat-
ness?

Character Stereotypes: The Lone Wolf

The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue,
but that they are incomplete.
—Chimamanda Adichie
How many of us have read novels about a lonely, brooding hero 5) Celebrities
who is emotionally unable or physically unwilling to engage with
others in the story? The ranch hand who prefers his horse to Perhaps a close second to the lone wolf stereotype of the ex-CIA
people, or a business tycoon who rarely comes down from his who is trying to move on from his sordid past is the movie star who
penthouse to interact with the masses? just wants to get away from paparazzi. Valuing privacy, for
whatever reason, is a valid motive for wanting to live a life of
I’ve read tons of them. The most popular motivation behind the solitude. Famous leading lady Greta Garbo said, “I never said, ‘I
lone wolf’s preference for solitude is some crime committed or want to be alone.’ I only said, ‘I want to be left alone.’ There is all
action taken in his past and that he now regrets and just wants to the difference.”
live solitarily to try to forget it ever happened.
6) Survivalism
Nod your head if this rings a bell.
John Krakauer wrote a national best seller, Into the Wild, about a
(You’re nodding, aren’t you?) young man, Chris McCandless, who shunned society in favor of
living in the woods. But you don’t have to go to the Alaskan
I will break this stereotype yet stay true to the loner mentality. After wilderness to want to be this way. I’ve encountered many homeless
all, we read books with loner heroes just so we can cheer them on youth and adults who just want to “travel” and “live off the land”
when they come out of their self-imposed boundaries, usually to (i.e., steal or trade a day’s labor for food) in the alleyways of major
hook up with the heroine. (I hope you’re still nodding.) cities. The reasons behind this chosen lifestyle are many: activism,
anarchism, environmentalism, or separatism...the list goes on.
There are two different types of lone wolfs, the imposed loner
and the preferred loner. The first type doesn’t wish to be alone, 7) Religious Convictions
but because he is rejected by society, he is alone. The second type
prefers solitude and derives contentment, even pleasure, from it. Some people want to live the reclusive life of a hermit for spiritual
reasons. Different faiths espouse withdrawing from society to focus
Below are nine reasons (read: motivations) why a person might on God or enlightenment or various equivalents. Removal for
seek solitude as a preferred loner or why solitude might seek a religious contemplation might be spurred on by a bad choice or
person as an imposed loner. You’ll notice that a history of breaking regret over committing a crime. These loners might feel unworthy
the law is refreshingly absent. to be around others in civil society.

1) Introverted 8) Creativity

At the risk of offending extroverts, introverts find being around There seems to be a correlation between creativity/originality and
other people tiring. They absolutely have to recharge from social solitariness. Artistic types enjoy their time immersed in paints,
interactions by getting away and being alone. This restores their pastels, oils, clays, and canvasses. According to research by San
minds much as eating and sleep restores their bodies. They are not Francisco psychologist Elaine Aron, withdrawn people have a high
antisocial, but may just have a low need for affiliation. sensory keenness and are good at noticing subtleties that other
people miss. What better way to channel this creativity than
Some introverts mask their introversion with extroversion—if the through the arts?
motivation is high enough or the cause worthy enough to do so. For
example, Guy Kawasaki, the “Godfather of Silicon Valley,” tweeted, 9) Mental Disorder
“You may find this hard to believe, but I am an introvert. I have a
‘role’ to play, but I am fundamentally a loner.” Many disorders could play into a person’s desire to live a life of
solitude. For example, a person with body dysmorphic disorder may
2) Insecure so dislike one or several physical attributes that he wants to squirrel
away and hide from others. Schizoid Personality Disorder is
When a person is unsure about how she will be received, or she is characterized by a lack of interest in social relationships, and people
overly critical about herself, this insecurity can definitely manifest in who suffer from Avoidant Personality Disorder show a pervasive
a preference for solitude. The fear of being negatively judged for pattern of social inhibition/avoidance of social interaction and
her perceived imperfections both personally and professionally can extreme sensitivity to negative evaluation. People can also have
cripple this type of lone wolf. She’d rather not go to a social mixer social phobia, where they are fearful of social situations.
than risk amusement or derision due to her inferiority complexes.
There you have it. Nine out-of-the-stereotypical-box motivations for
3) Pathologically Shy your lone wolf characters.

These poor souls are most definitely imposed loners. They might
(and likely do) crave interaction from the bottom of their hearts, but
because of overwhelming anxiety or fear, this outcome is
impossible. As a side note, shyness begins in childhood for many.

4) Don’t Want Distractions

Some lone wolves need solitude with their thoughts. Other people
are often tiresome or troublesome in that they interfere with this
process. Many lone wolves find socializing tedious, and prefer to
hunker down in their basements or workshops to put their noses to
the grindstone and develop the latest and greatest technology or
theorems. They may also feel that they can focus better, mature
faster, avoid peer pressure, and be more reflective and
introspective alone.