When creating fictional characters, it's important to remember that genuine human beings rarely know themselves. We don't know our own minds, we don't know why we do what we do, and we have no idea what the subconscious mind is up to in any given moment. If your characters are coming out flat, ask yourself this: are you attributing them with more self-knowledge than they ought to have?
I've been watching the new show 3 lbs.; if you haven’t seen it, you might want to check it out. You can learn a lot about the human mind--and how we really work--while picking up some good tips on solid dialog at the same time.
On last week's episode, a woman was refusing treatment for her brain tumor in order to protect her unborn child. While her left brain was busy protecting the baby, her right brain was expressing anger and resentment over her own predicament. The nature of the show--and the woman's unusual condition of being able to access her brain hemispheres separately--allowed the viewer a rare perspective into a phenomenon that usually takes place well below the level of conscious thought.
Malcolm Gladwell's Blink is another excellent source of insight into the mechanisms of subconscious processing. The book presents many examples of how we "think without thinking." We discover solutions without knowing how, we make decisions without knowing why, and when we try to justify our reasoning, we're usually wrong.
Have you ever started humming or singing without even knowing it? Do you have any unconscious gestures or habits? Actually, we all do. Recently I filled out a standard dental form that asked me whether or not I grind my teeth. I was sure I didn't. Until I noticed over the next two weeks that in fact I do grind my teeth--all the time. I just didn't know it until someone asked the question.
So if you want to create believable characters, make sure you give them a few gaping holes in their self-awareness. Even if your character is profoundly introspective, make sure they're wrong once in a while. They don't know the half of what you know about their own motivations. For that matter, leave a few surprises for the reader too. A little mystery keeps life interesting.
