Do Your Characters Speak to you? with Terry Persun

Well, that's how a novel is written most of the time--I'm eavesdropping.  

1. Do your characters speak to you?
TP - There are times where my characters talk to me, but also among themselves. Well, that's how a novel is written most of the time--I'm eavesdropping.  

2. What is the funniest thing you have heard from one of your characters?
TP - There are many things, but one recently was in writing a novel about a shaman and his son. They just had a tussle with a few bad guys and one of the characters asks if the son, Jason is okay. He said, "Shaken. But not stirred," which I thought was kind-of funny. Anyhow, maybe you had to be there. These are the kinds of dry humor-type incidents that I have. 

3. What is the most memorable thing one has said?
TP - "Do not wish for everything, when you must concentrate on the first thing." This was a character in my new novel, "Doublesight". I won't tell you which one. 

4. Who is your favorite character?
TP - There are way too many to count. But I do like Leon from my book, "Sweet Song". He had a tough life to somehow figure out and I believe he did. Some reviewers said that the book ended too quickly, but I feel that is always the case with books I want to go on longer. I'm glad it feels that way. Perhaps they wanted more of his life to view than the short period of time that I showed them. That's a good character. 

5. Who is your least favorite character?
TP - No matter how bad a character may seem in one of my novels, I see the humanity in them. I have no least favorite. 

6. Characteristics that you admire in a character?
TP -The same as humans: courage to go against the norm, courage to battle for right, kindness, a willingness to help others. You can probably go on from there. 

7.  Pet peeves about a character?
TP - I occasionally have a character who continually says the wrong thing at the wrong time. Sometimes I just want to say, "Shut up for a minute." 


Visit the website of Terry Persun
Whether writing novels or poetry, Terry Persun is concerned with who his characters are and what provided the impetus for them to change along the way. Everyone lives within the constraints of identity. We may be one person at home and another at the office. We may play the role of the tough guy while struggling with our weaker self. Terry’s books let us look into the minds of people just like us who want to become something different, who want to live a more authentic life. According to Today’s Librarian, “Persun is adept at conveying the complexities of human inner struggle.”

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