Character Sketch

So, I've been writing the beginning of a new novel.  I love the excitement at the beginning of a project.  There's a new world, new people, new ideas ... and it's just fantastic!

Then, I sometimes get stuck on how my characters are going to interact with each other.  When I've been with my characters for a while, I know who they are and what they're likely to do in any situation, but the new characters ... I just don't know them!  I sometimes have to stop in the middle of a scene and ask myself, "Who is this guy?  Where does he fit in this?  What is his MOTIVATION?!"

Hence, the character sketch.  When I get to know them a little better, I can go back to my writing.  Even if the character sketch never appears in the actual body of my novel, it is SO IMPORTANT to my own understanding.

This week's prompt:  Choose a minor character from something you've written and do a character sketch. 

Remember, there are as many different ways to do a character sketch as there are writers.  At the SCBWI conference, Anne Osterlund suggested choosing the animal that the character is most like and using adjectives that describe the animal to describe the character.  If that's what you want to do, great!  Do you want to write a pivotal scene from their childhood?  What they did when they woke up this morning?  Maybe a list of their features?  Whatever you do to get to know your characters better, I'd like to see it.

Cheers!

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My response:

Okay, this is fair warning, this might be rough.  I'm actually sketching this guy out as I go.  Right now, he's just a little vague and nebulous to me. 

Maral Kenon woke from a dream so deep he couldn't remember it, even in the first moments after opening his eyes.  Of course, that might have something to do with the piercing alarm and flashing red light.  He rolled over, careful on the thin bunk not to roll off, and checked the clock.  He'd barely had time to dream since lying down.  His whole body ached.  Without even turning the light on, he reached into a pouch in his pants pocket, lying on the floor near the bunk.  He drew out a pill and swallowed it down dry.  He shut his eyes again, grateful for the painkiller as the searing agony in his head eased.  He took a deep breath, preparing himself.

The door slammed open, and his assistant, Tend Astar, stood silhouetted in the doorway.  Maral could hear the terror in his voice.

"Starwal Base is gone, sir, we have to evacuate."

"Gone?!"  Maral threw off his thin blanket and picked up his pants, shoving his legs into them.

"Yes, sir," Tend flipped on the light.  "We had a leak.  They came under attack a half hour ago.  Ten thousand Fleet officers landed on their doorstep."

"Commander Brighton."  Tend didn't have to tell Maral what Commander Brighton did when he looked out at ten thousand troops attacking the Rebel main base.  Maral had been in the meeting when the orders had been decided.  Some called Brighton extreme, but he was also insistent.  They owed their allies that much, at least.  "When?"

Tend sighed.  "Self-distruct had already been initiated when I came to get you ...  If it hasn't happened yet, Sir, it'll be soon."

Maral thrust his feet into his shoes and reached out for his shirt.  His hand reached down and patted the pouch of pain pills in his pants pocket without Maral even thinking about it.  "Have we contacted Ambassador Worl?  We'll need to evacuate immediately.  What about the tech staff?  Are they wiping the memory?"

"They ought to have Ambassador Worl ready for you by time we get to the control room.  We're already doing a clean sweep of the computers."

"Any sign of attack on Rightshelm?"  Maral had only been commander of Rightshelm for three weeks.

"No, sir, it's all quiet outside.  We're monitoring radio communications, and we've roused officer Pent to keep an eye on any telepathic messages.  So far, we're in the clear."

Maral nodded.  "If Ambassador Worl is ready, it should only take us an hour for a full evacuation, and we'll all be on our way to Kris."

Maral and Tend slipped out the door into the hallway, jogging down the corridor in complete sync with each other. 

"I wish I hadn't lived to see this day, Sir," Tend admitted.

Maral didn't so much as glance in his direction.  "We're the lucky ones, Tend.  At least we have somewhere we can retreat to.  Leaving Denar isn't the end.  We still have a few small pockets left, and we'll return with the people of Kris.  Right now we have to concentrate on honoring Commander Brighton, and every life lost to keep that information from the Empress.  If we do our job right, they won't be expecting us when we come back."

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Marla Kenon is the Commander of the rebels/revolutionaries who, although they've relocated to the planet Kris, are still waging war against the Renault Empire.  The rebels did succeed in deleting any reference to their alliance with the people of Kris, and as the Renault Empire hasn't discovered Kris on its own, they're unknown to the Empire.  But they're getting stronger, and with Emmaleen and a few other Tremanats on their side, they're ready to take a stand and bring down Empress Vidriana Renault.  (Those who have read my "Emmaleen" will know where I'm going with this.)