Lights On

Ever since I was a little girl I have suffered through chronic nightmares & the occasional night terrors. I even had the same 3 recurring nightmares until I was in my early 20s.

Ghosts, hell hounds, Freddy Kruger; they're all in there. I would pull the blankets over my head, turn on my side; my heart would beat so furiously, one would swear Cerberus & a thousand other minions crowded into my room bent on ripping me to shreds.

Jerk me awake, scare me stiff fear crashes over & robs me off coherent thought. And, it is at this moment that the lights come on. I can't sleep unless I am showered by illumination distilling the dark corners & bathing the entire room in goodness. My feet don't hit the floor; my ears shoot to wolf precision. It's sad sometimes when I think about it. I'll be 42 in a few months & yet I still flip the switch when the demons come to call.

When we first got together, my husband didn't understand it. But, after a few times of blood-curling, hair-stiffening screams in the night, it didn't seem to bother him as much. Now, he doesn't even comment on the lights, except to ask after the craziness living in my head & make sure I am alright.

Last night was no different. Ghosts this time, cornered me under a blanket in the middle of the floor. They invaded my soul, tortured me across the center of some weird little apartment complex. No one answered my screams & then no sound escaped my lungs. All I could think was that I needed to pass out, get out. My body half-lunged from the mattress trying to reach the light switch. And then it was over.

I've often wondered how to incorporate this little quirk of mine into a character. I'm thinking I could spin it to the portentous & supernatural. Try to turn it into something fun/helpful rather than terrifying. What about you guys. Have you ever considered or actually written your own idiosyncracies into a character? If you did, did you find it therapeutic or too exposing?

Happy Writing,

Patti

Quirky Is the New Real

Every single one of us has quirks. Things we do that are unique to us, our families, our peer groups, etc. These little idiosyncrasies are what make us unique. They are ingrained in our behavior.

In my family, falling up stairs is much more common than falling down. What makes this interesting is that this is my married in family, but we all share this genetic predisposition to fall up. My niece & I are the most frequent offenders. Ascribing this attribute to a character could be fun - the klutz as detective. Ya know, tripping over bodies, accidentally uncovering evidence when he/she bends back a toenail.

With my parents, the quirk is how not to talk about things. This of course leads to a lack of family reunions & get-togethers. Who wants to hang out with people you can't really talk to anyway?? Ah, but the unspoken is sometimes much more interesting than the oral. With this quirk, white space is your friend; the sentiment is left on the fringe of the paper which amps the trauma & drama.

I have a friend who, when she's done listening to you, paints her lips with the ends of her hair while she stares into space. Another, twirls her hair when she doesn't want to discuss something. For women, hair is one more weapon in the beauty arsenal; a hair cut, a style. When used as a barrier it becomes an interesting device of protection, avoidance &/or misdirection. This quirk adds depth to a witness, a best friend who doesn't lie well, or an MC playing the innocent victim.

I have yet another friend whom I love dearly. She has had a host of surgeries over the last ten years; knees, back, neck. We can rebuild her. But, we can't make her go on a diet. My friend is chronically overweight & yet she insists that she needs to drink at least one Dr. Pepper a day to keep her blood sugar up. So, an overweight, hypoglycemic with a soda addiction. That is a contrast made for writing. And, the quirkiness of it, adds a level of reality that readers will recognize.

Quirky, quirky - we're all identifiable. Don't need fingerprints, DNA, or any other scientific identification. It's the little things that observation & character development are made of.

Happy Writing,

Patti