TAKE TWO

Writers are often called crazy—for our neurotic tendencies, for our desire to spin stories out of thin air, for our intravenous coffee addiction. I, for one, embrace that title, taking my characters with me wherever I go—even to my therapist’s couch. After all, we are our characters. They come from us. We will them into existence and bleed their worlds onto the page.

Maybe you already apply your Psych 101 lessons to your characters, but if not, come lie on my therapy couch. Get comfortable. We’ll be here a while.

Emotional evolution requires conscious understanding of one’s internal wounds. This understanding also applies to fictional characters. A writer needs to not only identify a character’s wounds, but also why the character