A couple of weeks ago I sent the first 50 pages of the manuscript of my first science-fiction novel to a professional editor for evaluation. It had been read by a number of non-professionals, including other beginning writers, non-writer friends, and those in several critique groups, but never by a professional. The editor was almost effusive in her praise for my ability to string words together, and made it clear that she thought the book had promise in the marketplace. But there was also a serious drawback, or rather a pair of drawbacks. These had to do with the stakes that the characters were working toward or against, and their motivation to keep doing so. I was glad to have her opinion.
I have to admit that I would never have realized on my own that these vital components of the novel were lacking. The stakes and motivation were there, but were so vague that the reader had to look hard to find them. I had been so focused on getting the writing accomplished that such esoteric concepts as laying out the reason(s) the characters were doing what they were doing had pretty much escaped me.
Clearly, characters in any story (short, medium, long) have to have a motivation to do whatever it is they do. Sometimes it’s obvious: a kidnapped person wants to get back home. But sometimes it’s not so obvious: a man takes a day off from work and goes on a rampage. That kind of story may make interesting reading and there may be tension and conflict on every page, but the reader is going to want to know why? This is true in everyday life. Everybody does something for a reason, though we are generally not aware of others’ reasons for acting. Rarely does someone do something for no reason, and in a novel this would soon become so boring no one would read it.
People don’t act in a vacuum. Thoughts and desires do matter. An author must look beyond the mere words and phrases and sentences of his/her writing. Something drives the character—what do they want? What keeps them going toward that goal? Is the goal obvious in the first place? What takes a person out of their humdrum, tiresome existence and gives them motivation to do something they otherwise would never accomplish? I thought I had that aspect of the life of my main character(s) covered, but it didn’t come through to an independent reader. That’s also a good recommendation for getting your work read by others. I guarantee you won’t be able to figure out all the little details that bring a story alive by yourself.