do your characters always do what you intended?

It may just be my writing style, but often I find my characters exploring different territory than what I'd planned. A few times, I had to rewrite a couple of pages when I didn't like where they'd taken the story. Other times, I gave them their heads and let them take the story where they insisted it go.

Am I unique? Does everyone else keep their characters on a tight leash?

I don't do what I intended most of the time. My characters usually have a better sense of direction.

Well, sometimes my characters have a mind of their own. Herding cats is the aphorism that comes to mind.

Quote by keylime314159

Well, sometimes my characters have a mind of their own. Herding cats is the aphorism that comes to mind.

You don't need the plural, I know that for true.

To actually answer your question, I have had a preconceived set-piece between characters lead me to a sudden new thought. That said, I basically write my stories complete in my head before committing anything to paper. Not word for word, of course, but a detailed story line, only jotting down something clever (ha) or important for later reference. Probably not the best way of working for long stuff, but my stories are short (flash/micro) and it works for me.

i'm just not disciplined enough to do that all the time. Sometimes I have it planned out, but even then, the characters sometimes show their personality and independence.

That just proves you are creatively thinking. Invent as many roads as you like, then choose the one to travel.

My characters almost always run amok. I feel like when they take over, my stories are always better. Don't try to fight them, it will just make the story harder to write.

My characters think they know better than me in the direction of the stories I write. Sometimes, their stories write themselves, and other times, I have to steer the ship and get them to behave.

They are fiction so obviously neither they nor the author have a clue about the future.

My characters never behave as intended. Naughty lil fuckers!

Like Kistin, I usually have a moment or a line or a scene in my head that I'll scribble down, then go and fill in the blanks. I let the needs of the characters drive my writing, and they often surprise me as I write a line of dialogue or they perform some simple act or mannerism, and it spins off into a different direction than I'd expected. I try and run with it, as it tends to make stronger stories.

Other times, that leads to abandoned work because I can't see past the choices the characters make. If I become too invested in a particular branch of their behaviour, it can blinker me.

Time away from the story that allows me to reassess their nature, or seeking collab assistance, can sometimes get the story back on the right track in those circumstances. Or I just shelve it forever, or recycle the idea into another, better story later.

For my multi-chapter stories (there are character based novels), I have always written short(ish) biography on all the main characters. This includes, what they look like, behave, evolve, catch phrases, and a little background story to support each character. This helps me to keep character constant, except for the deliberate changes that happen as characters evolve.

My story plots are all on a spreadsheet, which covers the over all story, and each chapter and what needs to happen. It there to keep me on tack, so I know exactly where I am heading and the route I should be taking.

Having said all that, I wouldn't say that I keep things on a tight leash. There is always wiggle room to change things, and I do, especially plot details. They always evolve as I write, though I try hard to keep plot changes true to each characters personality.

On short one chapter stories, I write a couple of lines, or use a photo to remember what each charater looks like. The rest is is in my head and I just get on and write it.

Almost never. Slippery little fuckers, these fictional types.

One of my favorite literary stories from authors was from Alan Moore when he made Watchman.

• spoiler warning for what’s typed below, but since it’s a title almost as old as me I’m discussing it

During the process of writing, he grew to absolutely love the character Rorschach (as most readers did as well). When it came to write the end, he realized that the character he made could not survive the story. There was no way he could act in character and have it end with him alive. So with a heavy heart, Rorschach was killed off.

For my personal writing, characters do surprise me. I make rules about how they act, and without a major development they must follow those. If there is a specific event I want to happen, I’ve encountered instances where I can’t make it make sense. So I either have to change the story or the character if I want that to happen.

I prefer authors who write in this style.

They absolutely do not. That's probably the most fun you can have in writing.

Quote by RowanThorn
During the process of writing, he grew to absolutely love the character

That's interesting. One of the things I've read (somewhere) is never to fall in love with your characters because it makes for weaker storylines. That may explain why some story series lose their way over time.

As authors, I guess we have to stay objective towards our characters' goals and frailties or we'll end up softening their necessary choices as we develop the universe they inhabit.

Quote by WannabeWordsmith
As authors, I guess we have to stay objective towards our characters' goals and frailties or we'll end up softening their necessary choices as we develop the universe they inhabit.

I love my characters, but the universe my characters inhabit is as cold and dark as fuck.

No. I had to rewrite my series because my main character didn't want to pursue someone. He also developed chemistry with people who weren't meant to be an interest and the character of Liam was never meant to exist past more than a chance encounter. The person he was meant to end up with has a minor amount of dialogue and barely gets much mention. It's easier with the short stories I've done for competitions. I write the characters out, place them in a setting and there is no end goal. I had an inkling that I wanted Physalia to take traits of those she partners with, like a form of evolution, and unwittingly she took jokes/teasing from humanity.

Yeah, we're usually on the same accord.