Thank you
I'm a very character oriented writer; without them I've little to say. I don't precisely create them myself; I define a few things, and from there they grow on their own within the framework I insist on for every character: realism including and especially when it comes to flaws; three dimensions, and absolutely not 'black and white'; a life which extends before and after everything which appears on the page. As they grow they find their own story, and then share it with me. The characters in 'Eleanor' are the deepest, most complex I've yet ended up with.
They're a damned inconsiderate bunch too! Always butting in with their demands, always showing me some scene or other, always telling me some line of dialogue or exchange, always demanding I drop whatever I am doing and write their bit
now. I've got to add a fourth parameter to that framework: considerate to the frog
I wouldn't wish to be without them. Simply I love them, the whole damned lot. They're the reason I write 'Eleanor', to try to do justice to them and all they are and do.
I'm passing the award on to someone who has a knack for comedy characters which raise a smile from me. His nonsensical rendition of William the Bastard/Conqueror stuck so well in my mind it causes trouble when I read history books featuring the real man. I point the accusing finger at
Dead William! Curse you - I've a
shelf full of history books on late Saxon and Norman England!
I understand he's having a few problems with his account. I shall hope that they're resolved quickly, rather than pass over him.