Do you have an alter ego?
I do, and no, I’m not schizophrenic. My alter ego’s name is Lola Cruz. She’s a smart, sexy, sassy, Latina detective.
Let me just say this. While I am smart and I have the potential to be sexy (at least according to my husband–*wink wink*–and when the stars are aligned, I’m having a good hair day, and I’m down those dastardly five pounds that make or break a great dress), I’m not terribly sassy, am not Latina (though I do like to say that I’m proud to be Latina by marriage), and am not actually a detective (unless you count all the detecting that is a natural part of motherhood–like figuring out just who finished off the bag of chocolate chips in the freezer, or where the missing band t-shirt is five minutes before your child NEEDS it for a competition).
But still, if I were smart, sexy, and sassy–the whole enchilada–, I’d be Lola Cruz. She lives in my head. Not in a she tells me what to do scary multiple personality kind of way, but in a she’s real to me way and I want to be her sometimes–or at least have her rub off on me. I want to do the things she does, be empowered to follow my dreams the way she does, and have a personality that sparkles–like she does.
What is it about Lola, and other fictional characters, for that matter, that make us want to be them for a little while…or at the very least be their friend? It’s not that my life isn’t great. It is. I’ve got the same kinds of ups and downs that Lola does–minus the danger and threats to my life, but hey, she doesn’t have 5 kids, 2 of whom are in high school band. Not sure she could handle that. Enough said.
I’ve given this a lot of thought and the answer for me is that those characters who we really respond to actually compliment who we are and those parts of our personalities that are tucked away. The characters represent something in us that isn’t fully realized. Don’t we all want to have a little bit of Scarlett O’Hara’s determination and fighting spirit? Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have the calm and peacefulness of August Boatwright? Can’t you just see those Bridgerton siblings loaning you sugar if you were all out and desperately needed a cup? Aren’t they the kind of people you want to surround yourself with?
That’s what good books do. They give us built in friends (or alter egos) whom we adore spending time with and who bring out something that’s in us, and that isn’t accessed in any other way.
The characters we respond to are three-dimensional, are flawed, have hopes and dreams, and are painted in such a way that we can see them, hear them, feel them, and almost smell and taste them. They appeal to each and every one of our senses and seep into our consciousness until we almost think that they are real. That’s what I love about Lola and my other fictional friends. They’re like comfort food. They’re there when I need them, when I want the comfort of someone familiar. It’s what’s so appealing about romance. We’re guaranteed the HEA, and with our fictional friends, it’s even more meaningful because that HEA is about someone we care about.
So, back to my initial question. Do you have an alter ego–from your own fiction or from someone else’s? Who is it and what is it about that character that speaks to you?
No related posts.
Gayle Wilson gave a presentation on character, and some of her comments stayed with me.
The reader wants to think that she would behave as honorably as the character in difficult situations. Of course, we don’t want to be in those situations (that’s why we’re reading about them instead), but we’d like to think that we have what it takes to deal with them.
Not really. As a writer, I’ve created, probably, hundreds of characters and I love them all. However, none of them are my alter egoes or my ‘babies.’ More like, they’re some of my bestest friends. If they were real, they’re the kind of people I’d like to hang out with at a party. Some not to close to a few, though, like ‘Junior’ who has ADHD and tends to accidentally blow things up wherever she goes.
I never thought I’d want to be a tattoo artist crime solver, but when I started writing my tattoo shop mysteries and created Brett Kavanaugh, I started having fantasies about what sorts of tattoos I’d design for people. Brett is from a totally different world than mine, and she’s young and hip and hot. She is who lives within my middle aged mind
Tattoo artist crime solver. There are tattoos in Living the Vida Lola, too!
Lordie, my heroines are all messed up so I hope I don’t aspire to be them (grinning).
But then, a lot of my books are about running away and the gypsy in me always thinks about that (if I could take my loved ones with me…)
Yeah, a messed up heroine wouldn’t be one I connect with in an alter ego fashion, but there must be things about her that you love and that speak to you. It’s those layers, you know?
Fun comments! Glad I’m not alone in connecting with my characters on a deep level.
“I’m not schizophrenic”
Just a fyi – schizophrenia is *not* multiple personality disorder, and doesn’t mean ’split personality.’ It would be nice if people stopped misusing this term as it causes a lot of offence and harm to sufferers.