It’s Read Around the Rainbow time, and I was this *holds up fingers really close together* close to skipping out. If you haven’t read any Read Around the Rainbow posts before, we’re a group of authors who blog on the same topic on the last Friday of every month. This month’s topic is:
Someone insults your main character, how do they react?
Some authors have elaborate backstories for their characters. They keep story bibles with facts and character sketches. They know their middle name and their birthdays, what they dreamed about becoming when they grew up, who their first crush was, and that sort of thing.
My characters are born thirty years old – and often they appear out of thin air because parents are a hassle. They don’t have a background unless it’s important for the story.
If you study my characters, you’ll notice many of them lack description of their physical appearance, one even lacks a name (Dear Diary). I have a beta reader who often comments on not knowing the age of the character (bless her), and most often she doesn’t because to me that shit is unimportant as long as they’re adults.
I don’t care if they’re thirty-three or forty-three, I don’t give a damn if their hair is blond or purple, I don’t care what their first dog was named – unless said dog turned into a ghost when it died and still is around, then it’s important!
What I’m trying to get to with this rant is that unless my character is insulted in the story, I don’t know or care how they would’ve reacted if they were. Once I’ve written the last sentence, gone through the edits, written all the blog posts etc about a story, the character is erased from my mind.
This is why I don’t do series, and on those few occasions I’ve tried, I’ve ended with a two-book series where the second has been painful to write.
I love my characters. I give them all my attention, care, and love while I’m with them. Six months later, I don’t remember their names.
So how would my main character react if he was insulted? Hang on while I flip through my catalogue and see if someone ever is 😆
I don’t know… Bassel in Bathshit Bassel is insulted almost every day, but his tactic is to do his best to ignore it. He’s a psychic and he makes some people uneasy, so he mostly ignores their reactions and does his best to avoid conflict. Thor doesn’t always agree with his approach. Thor is the guardian of Dag, his nephew, but his life as a nightclub owner is busy, and Dag spends more and more time with Bassel.
“There’s a door in the back, yeah?” Bassel was watching him with big, sparkling eyes.
“You can come into the club.”
The sparkle died. “Eh… there will be a crowd, and a kid in a nightclub, and…” He flinched.
Thor watched him with a growing sense of dread. Bassel didn’t like his nightclub. “Have you ever been inside?”
“No! A guy like me can’t walk into a place like—” He waved at the old brick building. “We’re not welcome.”
White hot fury erupted in his chest. “Everyone is welcome in my club.”
“Ah…” Thor could feel Bassel backtracking despite not having moved an inch. “It’s not my scene. The hyena wouldn’t want me there.”
Thor narrowed his eyes. “Who?”
“Ed.”
Thor jumped, having forgotten Dag was there and capable of participating in a conversation.
“He’s a wolf.”
Dag shrugged. “He laughs like a hyena every time he walks past here.”
A low rumble built in Thor’s chest. He didn’t have the energy for Ed being an ass. “I’ll talk to him.”
“No!” Bassel reached out but didn’t touch him. “It’s the way people react to me. You can’t protect me, and I don’t need you to.”
“The hell I can’t! You’re mine to protect—” He motioned at both Bassel and Dag to make him appear a little less insane. “—and I will not stand for you being harassed.”
Bassel stood frozen for a second or two, then he glanced at Dag. “I think we’ll take the door in the back. Is it open?”
Holly Day 
Aw, I love that protective streak in him. ❤️
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Yeah 🥰
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