Demanding Characters

William C. Knott in The Craft of Fiction, advises that you start not with a premise (which he calls a theme), but rather with characters who demand to be whatever life you can create for them on the printed page. It is the characters who must galvanize you to write, insisting that you tell their story.


How to Write a Damn Good Novel: A Steb-By-Step No Nonsense Guide to Dramatic Storytelling by James N. Frey