Casting the Minor Roles in Your Fiction

Secondary characters are like kids and dogs: they'll steal a scene if you let them.

With secondary and bit players you have the opportunity to add spice to your story. Any minor character can be made more interesting if you'll just give the process some thought. Cab drivers, truck drivers, waitresses, cops,doormen, maids--a whole host of "bit players" spring up in our fiction and it's easy to reach for the cliche models.

Most fiction writers invent secondary characters as the need for them arises in the story (a novel will require many, a short story very few or none at all). A scene involving the main character will be imagined, and thenpopulated with other characters that must be present to make the scene work. When this happens, spend at least a few minutes "auditioning" possible characters, and then cast the best one for each role, avoiding stereotypes.Once that's done, take a few minutes to create the following basic "bio" for each secondary character:

* Name, vocation, nationality

* A physical tag, one thing that stands out about his/her physical appearance

* A speech tag, anything about the mode of speech that is unique

This is the start. If you decide later to expand the secondary character, you can simply add more depth to the portrait. If, however, this is more of a bit player--one who won't have a significant impact on character or plot--you probably won't have to go any further.

a tip from WritersDigest.com