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 Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2007 8:36 pm
In my main Yu Yu Hakusho (which at this point is about 67 chapters total) Hiei falls in love with this human. At the beginning, he's pretty in-character, but as the romance becomes more involved, I've noticed he's becoming more out-of-character. I'm trying, but it's actually making the story somewhat worse to keep him in-character and still in a relationship (though it's a pretty loose one).
Here's what I want to know: should I keep my loyalty to Hiei and his character and ALWAYS keep him in character, OR, should I allow the story to develop his character? If I keep him the same, he's not developing at all, and it stifles the rest of the story. But if I change him (not drastically, just a bit over time) it feels like I'm making him out-of-character, and I'm not being loyal to the character.
So, what should I do?
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Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 8:25 pm
It depends on the situation in specific.
If you've given him sufficient reason to change, and specifically to change the way that he has, changing his character is perfectly acceptable. To truly keep him in character you have to let past and present events color his actions; he doesn't exist in a void, and new experience should add to old experience to produce something new.
That said, if you haven't provided enough of a reason to change him, he should stay the same -- and even with reason to grow, essential things about him should stay the same. There are ways in which he would never change, no matter the circumstances, so honor those and don't mess with them. If you know his character well you should be able to tell what they are.
But beyond that, go with your instincts. Trust me, character growth is important. I've done it quite actively in my own YYH fanfic, and the most consistent compliment I've gotten is on characterization.
In point of fact, would you be willing to do a fic swap? You hit mine so you can see what I'm talking about, and I hit yours so I can give you my opinion on how it's working? 'Cause I totally haven't beta'd recently, and that would be spiffy, whilst I always appreciate another pair of eyes on my own work since it's still in progress itself.
Unless you already have a beta reader, or don't want help, or are insulted by my temerity, or totally don't want to spend the time reading my crap. Or something. >.> But even if you don't want to read mine, I'd still be willing to take a crack at yours.
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