Do you ever use true characters from the past in your writing? I find the further back I can go in history to glean information about a character, it’s often easier to add my own characteristics to that character. I find it easier to stick some truth into everything I write about the past, leaving it up to the reader to go and investigate if what they are reading is true or if it is made up.
I got an email about a character by the name of Fastrada, the first wife of Charlemagne, when I wrote her into a story. From all the characteristics I found about her, one of them struck me as something I could build on. She was by all accounts, ‘…a cruel woman…’ which led to my remembering my toddler son and niece’s relationship. Just bear with me for a moment! My niece lived in Florida, but my sister would bring her home frequently so they didn’t grow up not knowing one another. One day, I overheard my son telling one of the other kids my younger sister was watching, “You be Jasmine.” as he missed his cousin so much. So, my Charlemagne, the Rex named all of his wives whom he claimed after his first wife Fastrada who died a human death. She was evidently too much even for him to want to keep around forever. It became a name that was a title of sorts, not just a name, and cruelty was something its bearer had to have in their arsenal.
There is a lot to be said about how you name your characters, do you think of the character first then name them? I agonize over names, and feel more fortunate when I can find a character in time that may or may not be real. Once again, you have to do your research. Dive deep into history, you’re sure to find someone that fits into your story perfectly some way. The two excerpts below are from two characters I found in history, Zhang Yizhi and Zhang Changzong who were famous as being the male lovers and heads of the male Harem of Empress Wu Zetian, the only female ruler of China. My works are multicultural on purpose, with ALL races having places of power and prominence. It’s my world building and I can craft it anyway that I want to, go do the same. Now, its time to go, the Dodgers are up on the Yankees 2-0 in the top of the third and my Rally Cap is suspiciously not where I left it Saturday…not that its doing me any good! #BeEncouragedTAL
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