A few days ago, I blogged about the G in GMC. The G is the goal, or the what. What is my character working toward throughout the course of the book? In Getting into Character, Brandilyn Collins calls the G the action objective. The action objective is the character’s desire and it should be stated as an action verb.
Instead of: Jimmy John wants to be successful. You make it: Jimmy John wants to win first prize in the pie eating contest. The more specific, the better. So now that we’ve established the need for every good book to have a G, let’s look at the M.
If G is the what. M is the why.
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M stands for Motivation. For every goal we give a character, we better have a reason, a motivation, a why, for giving this character that goal. What motivates Jimmy John to want to win a pie eating contest? Why does getting first prize matter to him? If we want this story to be believable, there better be a good reason. And this reason better be strong enough to drive Jimmy John through the course of the story.
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There are a whole number of reasons why Jimmy John might want to win first prize in a pie eating contest. Maybe he’s really skinny and his dad’s a big man who always took pride in his girth and the amount of food he could eat. Maybe Jimmy John grew up teased by his equally big brother who said real men have big appetites. Maybe winning that pie eating contest is Jimmy John’s way of proving to his father and his brother that he’s just as much a man as either of them. Even though this idea is absurd, it’s believable.
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Because the motivation is there.
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Debra Dixon says motivation is one of the most important elements in writing fiction. Because without a plausible and strong why, the story falls apart. There are no limits in fiction. We can do anything we want. If we want Jimmy John’s goal to be growing his toenails out until they curl under his feet, we can do it. If we want Jimmy John’s goal to be cloning his dead uncle Bob, then we can do that too. We can make these stories believable as long as we establish the WHY. Motivation is key. Every character needs a goal, and every character needs a motivation for that goal.
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Debra Dixon’s advice as far as finding the motivation?
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Keep it simple. Keep it strong. Keep it focused.
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God has brought a person into my life recently. And this person gave me advice that has lined up very nicely with what I’ve been reading in Goal, Motivation, and Conflict. She says, “Every time you have your character do something, always ask WHY?” A strong WHY is what suspends disbelief and engages our readers in the story.
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Questions to Ponder: Do your characters have motivation? How do you go about finding the reasons that drive your characters to act the way they do?
On a side note, I apologize if my use of the name Jimmy John made any of you hungry for a sandwich.
