So far, on this journey called life, I’ve managed to acquire three scars.
A scar by my left eye. I fell off the fence at my day care provider’s house when I was four. Her teenage son carried me inside. I had a crush on him. Seriously, who has a crush when they’re four?
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A scar on my elbow. In sixth grade, my best friend and I rode a bike down the stairs of Mark Twain Elementary School. Imagine the Wizard of Oz. You know that bike the mean lady rides…the one who takes Toto away from Dorothy? That’s the bike we were riding, with me steering and my friend sitting on the rack in the back. Needless to say, we wiped out.
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A scar over the left side of my upper lip. This is the big one. Get ready to cringe. Seriously.
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Six years ago, I went golfing with my family and my new fiance. On the tenth hole, I went down to the women’s tee to hit my ball, thinking everybody had teed off. Nope. My brother had gone to the clubhouse to get water or something. Well, he didn’t see me at the women’s tee. He hit a straight, line drive right at my face, and all I could think was, “That ball’s going to hit me.” It did. Right in the mouth. It spun me around and knocked me on the ground and all I can remember thinking is, “My teeth are in the back of my mouth. Why are my teeth in the back of my mouth?” My family said it sounded like a ball smacking into a tree.s
The total damage? My top teeth stayed in my jaw, but my bone busted away and smashed toward my throat (hence, why my teeth were back there). My bottom teeth chipped into a perfect half golf ball shape. And my lip had a hole in it, straight through. My husband said it looked like somebody shot me in the mouth. They rushed me to the hospital, where an oral surgeon gave me ten shots in my face, then went to work, putting my jaw back in place, wiring it so it stayed there, and piecing my upper lip together with a total of forty stitches.
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Can you believe that?
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I don’t golf anymore. Neither does my brother. In fact, I think he was more traumatized by the entire ordeal than I was. Because once the doc shot morphine in my butt, I kept asking people if they wanted to see my lip.
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So those are the stories behind my three scars. The last story is the reason why I have to get a root canal in a few weeks. I already had three root canals after the accident. Looks like six years later, I need one more. Anyway, why am I telling you this? For two reasons.
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One, I thinks scars and the stories behind them are cool.
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And two, it relates to writing. It really does.
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Do you give your character scars? Emotional scars? Physical scars? Do you know the stories behind each scar? Do these scars affect how your character acts and thinks? For instance, if I were a character, I might cringe every time I see a golf ball (I don’t, but I might). I think scars can offer insights and dimensions to our characters, even if we never explain the stories behind them on the page.
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Questions to Ponder: Do you have any scars? Have you ever given your character a scar?
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Writing Update: My short story is out for all to see! If you have time, please go check it out here. Wendy Miller’s short story is published in the same issue. Fun stuff!
OUCH. I think I'm going to stay away from the golf course after reading this! I've never given my characters scars but what a good idea. I'm going to have to incorporate that into my WIP!
I knew there was a reason I don't golf, that and the guy who lost his eye at the driving range. Never thought about scars with characters. Great post
Congrats on that short story Katie! That was unreal. I read it and loved it and now I want you to do my short story homework for me! Well done.
Kelly – you're too kind! Thanks for saying that. I usually put cover up on it and you can't notice it too much. It helps that I have freckles. They sort of act as an extra cover up. My oral surgeon was AMAZING!
It made me cringe to read your story! Especially since my husband is a golfer-eeewwww– I need to tell him!
OH MY GOSH … that gave me goosebumps, shivers, and …. OUCH!!!!!! Yes, I've got them. And … what a great idea to think about your characters in that way, too! Great post. Your picture on your blog is gorgeous … looks like you've healed up really well!
Hey everybody! Sorry to gross everybody out about the golf story. It's just such a fun story to tell (I can say that now, after all the swelling's gone down…and there was A LOT of swelling).
I love reading your scar stories – whether actual scars or character scars. I'm telling you, scars are intriguing.
A special thanks to Carrie and Kristen for you encouraging words about my short story! I really appreciate it!
And Galen – I might consider your suggestion. I'll be needing a ride to Chicago soon…maybe I just have to say, "Hey bro, remember that time when you hit me with a golf ball…yeah, that hurt. Wanna drive me to Chicago?"
Coming back to post that (1) my 2nd scar is on my leg — I forgot to specify a body part, and (2) I read your online story! Writing 1st person from the POV of the opposite gender is so difficult, but I think you really pulled it off well. Congrats!
Ouch! I think I have an emotional scar from hearing your story!!!!! Thank the good Lord above that you no longer golf! Ditto for your poor brother. Already the world is a safer place! The only real scars I have are on my knees from some pretty bad roller skating injury's. (Although they were sure a lot of fun getting them….*sigh* I miss roller skating.
Wow, Katie that hurt me just to read it. Yeah, I’ll bet your brother is feeling pretty bad about it all. Say, maybe you could ride that horse for a few favors from him…you know, drag out the old missing mouth incident every time he sorta stalls on something you want him to do. Just say, “Oh, okay then. Pardon me while I get some pain killer, my lip is bothering me again.” Then, limp off to the medicine chest.
Per your question, however. Yep. The Book Two villain actually has a patch over one eye. Got it from a wound at the battle of Bull Run. I think scars or deformities, both physical and emotional help paint a good character that easy for readers to see.
Best Regards, Galen
Imagineering Fiction Blog
Wow, that golf ball story is a killer. And I'm getting a root canal this week too! I so feel your pain. It's only my third, so you've got one up on me, but still.
And yes, I think scars are important for characters. Emotional scars, especially. Everyone has a past. And if your character doesn't, there's going to be a problem.
Hey, Katie!
Just wanted you to know that I just read your story and I loved it!!! Your voice is beautiful! Don't ever stop writing!
OMG!!! I golf so your story made me cringe. I could imagine the whole scene…I've been there…teeing off at a women's tee….and from now on I'll make damn sure everyone has teed off before I go over here!!
My MC has an emotional scar… it has a huge effect on her life and the decisions she has to make.
Okay, give me a minute to un-flinch…
I haven't explicitly given any of my characters physical scars, but there are definitely some emotional recoveries lurking about.
I have two scars: 10 stitches high up on my forehead from when I tripped over a rug and into the corner of some furniture when I was two, and a nearly-perfectly-round scar that I have passed off as a "bullet hole" wound… in fact, I slipped on water and slid at high speed into the sharp edge of a doorjamb.
It has suddenly occurred to me that my fall at age two is probably why my mom was such a lunatic about insisting we have rug pads for a rug in our house… she was probably trying to protect MY toddler! How's that for character development?
oh my. sorry to hear about your traumatic golfing accident! i bet your brother was totally upset about it. i'm trying to imagine how i would feel to have put someone through that kind of pain. yikes!
i have a chicken pox scar on my left inside calf about the size of a #2 pencil eraser. i have a 2-inch cat scratch scar on my right upper arm that i got only about a week before my wedding (in a strapless gown!) in 2005. i have a scar below my navel from having a laparoscopy done to determine i have endometriosis in jan of 09. i have a weird scar on my left thumb i have no idea how it got there or when, but as long as i can remember, anyhow.
as to giving characters scars, mine mainly come from emotional scars rather than physical. i'll have to think about that one. wonder why i steer clear from physical scars?
oh, owie! Poor you, and poor brother!
I have a lovely scar over my left eyebrow from a fall when I was a kid.
As I'm plotting this new book, I can see the benefit of giving my character a scar on the outside. I usually try to give them some scar on the inside so I can torment them with it. 🙂
Wow! Great post–and what a painful–but great– story!
I definitely play with scars a lot in my stories. Most of the ones I give are emotional, but in my latest story one of my characters was burned. It was a lot of fun to play with and I know it made my story better!
Oh, that golf ball story is…horrible. I can't imagine! I have a scar on my elbow, too, from falling off my bike. And one on my hand that is shaped like a tooth, from getting bitten by a dog when I was a kid.
I mostly give my characters emotional scars. But (and it's funny this is your post today) my husband and I were talking about scars two days ago and I decided to give the hero in my new WIP a scar.
Thanks for the mention. 😀 Wonderful to read your story (your word choice).
Actually, my character in that short story had a scar from the nail in the old fence. 😀
My current MC has one by her hip from getting caught in an odd way in a zip line. Ouch! Sounds almost as bad as a golf ball sending teeth to the back of someone's mouth. 😀
~ Wendy
Cool. I love your golf story. You have a good point. There's also the memory of the pain on impact. So important when you're trying to feel for you character.
I have one scar on my lip, but the story was no where NEAR as exciting/horrible as yours. I just fell and nicked it on the side of a laundry chute when I was six. It was the day of a Christmas party and my siblings told me to go as Santa for a new lip instead of two front teeth.
My characters tend to have more emotional scars than physical, BUT I may change that 🙂
Oh, ouch! That's painful.
I like the idea of giving characters physical scars (I do have some char's that are emotionally scarred already.) I was thinking the other day that I don't seem to read any books where the main char's get sick or have any problems unrelated to the main conflict. I like to give my characters a hard time, though.
Elizabeth
Mystery Writing is Murder
Oh, my. Your golf ball story is going to haunt me for a long time! And it didn't even happen to me. How crazy is that? I am sorry about the root canal you're having to get.
I got hit over the bridge of my nose with a tennis racket by some cute boy who was playing around practicing a serve and didn't realize how close I was standing to him. My nose bled for hours!! But didn't break!
My characters definitely have emotional scars, and my current MC has had several concussions and a dislocated shoulder. Ouch!
Yikes. What a story. Oh man. Wait until your kids start getting scars. One of my twins was climbing a tree in the woods behind our house and as she jumped down a broken tree branch gouged a deep long gash in her skinny leg. She had 25 stiches to patch it up. I was traumatized for her!
Some characters scars are worse than others. Some have recent wounds and others are from childhood. But I think those are usually the motivators behind what drives our characters, don't you think?
Oh yes, I give my characters scars. They have to be wounded in order to heal.
Your golf ball story is so horrible!!! 🙁 I'm so glad you're okay now. Wow. I just can't imagine but what I can makes my skin crawl. Anyways, from your photos it looks like your face got put back together, so that's good. LOL