Calling All Extras (as in; do you know where your supporting cast was this weekend?)

This week, let's go back to talking about your characters.

Many times, it's the characters that force you to start your story. These fictional people in your head are so vivid and witty, you simply have to write their story. But how's your supporting cast? Most of the time, we start with our main characters (protagonist, antagonist, and possibly one other [a sidekick?]) and the other characters present themselves when they need to. However, leaving them that way when you send your manuscript off to agents or self publishing is a massive rookie mistake.

So, for this post's homework, I'd like you to go back and examine your supporting cast.

Does each character sound like a distinct, new person? Though he may only be there for one scene, every character that graces the page needs a personality and a backstory that you know (but that you, please dear god, do not go on and on about to readers). What does he smell like? Does he have a favorite phrase? Does he squeak or hum when he walks? All of these things, even in tiny doses, make your supporting cast and your story world come to life.

If your supporting characters are a little too bland, and you don't know how to fix it, start with dialogue. It's the number one best way to help breathe that third dimension into them. Make that character unique and distinct. Not necessarily with an accent or a catch phrase, but perhaps with the candor of the lines or the flourish of the adjectives.

For example, give supporting character number two a distaste for a certain word. Try cutting out every "as" "but" or "it". Or, if supporting character three needs some life, take a hint from my own life and have her pick up an annoying aphorism. Case in point: In college I picked up the bad habit of saying "B-T-Dubs" rather than "by the way". No matter if I actively try to stop myself, it always comes out like this. Yes, even to my boss, embarrassingly enough.

Truth is, if you spice up your supporting stars' dialogue, their personality will shine through too and you'll know them better in the context of your story world. Your readers will recognize this. It may be the final push you need to get your novel from good to great.