What the Dickens?

Okay, so it has been slightly over a week since I last blogged, but I have heard that there are some people who are reading this so tonight, this is for you.

Last week, I watched a programme on Charles Dickens on film and how many of his stories have been adapted to the big screen or turned into BBC dramas. It made me feel a wee bit in awe of Dickens. Characters like Pip, Oliver Twist and David Copperfield - all characters of Dicken's imagination are now household names and fictional characters that the public have grown to love. Oh to have an imagination that can span generations.

If, like me, you studied Dickens at high school, you may have read an abridge version of the original novel or just seen the BBC series,  then I'll give you all a challenge to read a Dickens Novel, because they are rich in words and storytelling. I went back to read Oliver Twist a couple of years ago, and despite of all the version of Oliver that I have read or seen on television, there was still something magically about reading the original prose, and seeing his characters jump out at you.

Then I got to thinking about characterization. I would say that my novel is very character led and half the debating going on in my novel is about the characters and whether they are true to life. It is difficult for a writer when creating character because your characters can do anything they want but in the essence of writing characters have to be true to themselves or they become fake and readers can pick this up. I think one of the endurance of Dickens is because the characters work so well and they are believable. I would be one happy lady if I could create one character that has the power and recognition of one of Dicken's characters.  And do you know the most impressive thing about it - all these characters came from one person's imagination.

Perhaps, you don't find that magical and you may think me mad for thinking it is. But I was listening to someone talk about creativity and how important it is to do something creative, because it is part of human expression and it can let out happiness within people. Words, pictures and music can change the world.

I'm going to leave it there for tonight, because I am sure sleep helps creativity as well, but I'll leave you with two gems;

(1) It is Boxer Family Folklore that a Great Granny in one of the generations was partly used for inspiration for one of the characters in the Pickwick Paper. I would like to think this is true, but I know that there are probably a number of families with similar stories.

(2) A Dicken's quote from Great Expectations, Chapter 3. "I had seen the damp lying on the outside of my little window, as if some goblin had been crying there all night, and using the window for a pocket-handkerchief." Simply lovely.

Good night.