I've been reading the Write Practice for several months and always find the posts informational and provocative. I was particularly taken with today's post about delving into the lives of your novel's characters. I'm in the midst of the first revision of my novel and I'm looking for ways to round them out. Marcel Proust's Thirty-five Questions to Ask Your Characters will definitely help. Here's his list, written in the late nineteenth century. By the way, his answers sold in auction for €102,000 in 2003. 1. What is your idea of perfect happiness? 2. What is your greatest fear? 3. What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? 4. What is the trait you most deplore in others? 5. Which living person do you most admire? 6. What is your greatest extravagance? 7. What is your current state of mind? 8. What do you consider the most overrated virtue? 9. On what occasion do you lie? 10. What do you most dislike about your appearance? 11. Which living person … [Read more...]