Well here's an odd one

[Green_Jade]

Hello, new member here! I have a longish story and a question about my daughter.

I have an 18 year old daughter. I thank God for giving her to me; she’s very respectful, dutiful, faithful and though she has a temper to beat all, she’s normally a good girl.

She’s also a writer. She loves writing novel-length stories, though she has no intention of publishing them. She just enjoys the hobby.

The other day she was telling me about how attached an author can get to their characters, which I can see why! So much time and love spent on creating them

Anyway, she shared something with me that I found quite charming. That she sometimes finds herself chatting with her characters. Christopher badgers her constantly that she needs to get her homework done and done well, Karen comments on her fashion choices and Arthur yells at the tv along with her over how insufferably dense the hero is.

However, when I shared this with my sister, she was alarmed, and felt that this was a psychological problem in desperate need of therapy, since she was hearing voices.

When i asked her about it, she laughed quite hysterically. She assured me she knew full well that her characters were not real, and even made me promise to take her to a shrink if she ever insisted they were. To her, she says, it’s just a game, like writing a story in her head. I don’t feel like there’s much cause for concern, since it seems quite harmless, but my sister is insistant that my daughter is disturbed. What is your opinion on this?

 

[flyingfish]

However, when I shared this with my sister, she was alarmed, and felt that this was a psychological problem in desperate need of therapy, since she was hearing voices.

When i asked her about it, she laughed quite hysterically. She assured me she knew full well that her characters were not real, and even made me promise to take her to a shrink if she ever insisted they were. To her, she says, it’s just a game, like writing a story in her head. I don’t feel like there’s much cause for concern, since it seems quite harmless, but my sister is insistant that my daughter is disturbed. What is your opinion on this?

In my opinion your sister is being ridiculous.

Your daughter is unusual, but in a good way. How many people do you know who are capable of writing novels? Most people would probably sit there staring at a blank page unable to come up with anything! I wouldn’t be surprised if many people would also be bored to death if they had to sit in a room alone with pen and paper.

People are in “desperate need of therapy” when their mental states are interfering with their quality of life and ability to function in society.

 

[shondrea]

I tell you what you do. You tell your daughter she isn’t alone!

I’ve been known to do the same thing, with characters I’ve made and with my favorite characters from books. In fact, my friend and I like to play a game similar to that together.

Sometimes, you have to get creative and make your own fun! It’s dirt cheap, it’s using he imagination, and she seems to still have a fine grip on reality. I see no harm

 

[John21652]

Oh, character dialogue in the head is quite normal for someone who writes stories. However, as long as she is writing, it’s OK. If she stops writing and still has this dialogue, then maybe worry. In the meantime, why not encourage her to keep writing and take her stories to a publisher for an opinion. A publisher should encourage her to write, with suggestions for improvement, perhaps in her character development and storyline. If she has talent, she will be ‘spotted’. It also sounds as though her stories are very contemporary and that is a big plus. Take a shot, it wont cost anything.

 

[SunnaB16]

Anyway, she shared something with me that I found quite charming. That she sometimes finds herself chatting with her characters. Christopher badgers her constantly that she needs to get her homework done and done well, Karen comments on her fashion choices and Arthur yells at the tv along with her over how insufferably dense the hero is.

Sounds like a pretty good way to make her characters come alive and be more “realistic”, not sterile.
Epic writers like JRR Tolkien (dec.) must do that sort of thing, along with creating landscapes and all the rest of it.

 

[lizds]

Creatively unusual… That’s what I call it. A few years back I was really into writing short storys and the like. I did exactally the same thing. I had an active imagination. : ) I don’t think it’s anything to be concerned about. I talked with myself, and my characters, quite a bit when I was younger. Hehe. I just never shared that with my mother. She probably would have looked at me as if I was a little unstable, about the same reaction your sister had.

 

[Sailor_Kenshin]

Hello, new member here! I have a longish story and a question about my daughter.

I have an 18 year old daughter. I thank God for giving her to me; she’s very respectful, dutiful, faithful and though she has a temper to beat all, she’s normally a good girl.

She’s also a writer. She loves writing novel-length stories, though she has no intention of publishing them. She just enjoys the hobby.

The other day she was telling me about how attached an author can get to their characters, which I can see why! So much time and love spent on creating them

Anyway, she shared something with me that I found quite charming. That she sometimes finds herself chatting with her characters. Christopher badgers her constantly that she needs to get her homework done and done well, Karen comments on her fashion choices and Arthur yells at the tv along with her over how insufferably dense the hero is.

However, when I shared this with my sister, she was alarmed, and felt that this was a psychological problem in desperate need of therapy, since she was hearing voices.

When i asked her about it, she laughed quite hysterically. She assured me she knew full well that her characters were not real, and even made me promise to take her to a shrink if she ever insisted they were. To her, she says, it’s just a game, like writing a story in her head. I don’t feel like there’s much cause for concern, since it seems quite harmless, but my sister is insistant that my daughter is disturbed. What is your opinion on this?

I do this all the time and have since childhood.

I was also a published author. Maybe other authors do the same thing. Who knows? I doubt it’s a sign of mental illness. If it is, I volunteer to be her roommate.

Have her read Chesterton on the use of imagination. You read it, too. And God bless.

 

[aicirt]

Don’t think there is anything disturbed about your daughter. Actors also do this. Some live and act like the characters the whole time they are involved in a particular play whether they’re on or off the stage.

 

[Rascalking]

I write all the time, and I do this with my characters sometimes.

It’s a good way to actually seperate charecters from ourselves and make them truly original.

 

[puzzleannie]

Anyway, she shared something with me that I found quite charming. That she sometimes
. . .
However, when I shared this with my sister, she was alarmed, and felt that this was a psychological problem in desperate need of therapy, since she was hearing voices.

?

first, your daughter shared a confidence with you, which you then shared (with permission?) with her aunt. that is a huge breech. It is often very hard for a writer to talk about her work, and that she can do so with you is wonderful, but how could you share that with a third party? please say you had permission.

second, your sister’s reaction is way out of line and ridiculous unless there is something you are not telling us, such as other sypmtoms or abnormal behavior on the part of your daughter.

third, yes for writers of fiction this is common. I don’t write fiction any more but when I was working on my novels I would play the character’s taste in music, eat like them (I even tried to eat kosher for a few weeks!), and imagine their reactions to certain situations. Every creative writer is different, some “direct” their characters and make them do what they want, but others have to “listen” to the character and let the character make decisions. It is similar to an actor getting “in character” by for instance walking, dressing, eating like a princess.

If your sister is not someone with expertise to offer in the writing field I suggest keeping her out of your daughter’s work, and as she is no psychologist, I would not recommend having those discussions with her, either.

the writing process is about a lot more than time spent at the keyboard, 90% of it is mental and happens while you are not actually putting words on paper, and yes, continued dialog with your character can be part of that.

 

[LilyElain]

Oh…do not worry. She is very normal. She sounds very much like me growing up.
Temper and all…
Anyhow…the characters are people you spend a lot of time with (creatively) and you tend come to be a bit attached. You feel like you share a lot of what happens with them…so it is natural. I wish her luck with her writing…I never wanted to publish either, but I had some amazing teachers and friends who convinced me to at least consider it! So who knows…

 

[monicatholic]

first, your daughter shared a confidence with you, which you then shared (with permission?) with her aunt. that is a huge breech. It is often very hard for a writer to talk about her work, and that she can do so with you is wonderful, but how could you share that with a third party? please say you had permission.

second, your sister’s reaction is way out of line and ridiculous unless there is something you are not telling us, such as other sypmtoms or abnormal behavior on the part of your daughter.

third, yes for writers of fiction this is common. I don’t write fiction any more but when I was working on my novels I would play the character’s taste in music, eat like them (I even tried to eat kosher for a few weeks!), and imagine their reactions to certain situations. Every creative writer is different, some “direct” their characters and make them do what they want, but others have to “listen” to the character and let the character make decisions. It is similar to an actor getting “in character” by for instance walking, dressing, eating like a princess.

If your sister is not someone with expertise to offer in the writing field I suggest keeping her out of your daughter’s work, and as she is no psychologist, I would not recommend having those discussions with her, either.

the writing process is about a lot more than time spent at the keyboard, 90% of it is mental and happens while you are not actually putting words on paper, and yes, continued dialog with your character can be part of that.

i was thinking all of this. aside from the ethical ramifications, there are practical ramifications, too. puzzleannie mentioned, " It is often very hard for a writer to talk about her work here’s part of the reason why:

a writer has to be careful for whom she’s writing. and she needs to be careful to recognize and dismiss uninvited editors in her head. sometimes recognizing is tricky and subtle. and sometimes dismissal is tough.

subtly, your daughter may find she’s writing for an audience that includes her stiffling aunt. that may be bad for her writing.