Have you ever been writing away when a story question arises that you don’t have the answer to? It’s your story, so you can just make something up, right? Wrong.
I couldn’t tell you how many times I’ve added a name to one of my characters, only to find that I’d already used it. Or maybe similar features ie hair color, body build, even the kind of clothes they are wearing.
This could be avoided with a character journal, or notebook, used to track each character and all the important information about them. Not only will it help a writer to avoid over usage of characters and their descriptions, but will also help her/him add diversity to their story as well.
Along with names and descriptions, it’s also useful to add pertinent information about the character. Friend from school, parents own coffee shop, in wheelchair, etc.
This information will not only be vital to the writer’s current WIP but also to a sequel, or simply to keep from using those names or descriptions in the next book.
Save yourself some time and future headaches, write it down!
Rebecca Carpenter, copy editor and author 