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The importance of creating believable characters in fiction writing is something which can never be under-estimated nor under-stated. Although fiction is quite clearly make-believe and the vast majority of readers at least will be aware of this fact, the reader wants for a time to be able to believe that what they are reading is in fact actually happening and if they can not identify in any way with the characters whom they are reading about, it is extremely unlikely that they will in any way be able to do so.

The whole purpose of anyone reading fiction is for them to achieve a degree of escapism from the real world around them. They as readers know that what they are reading about never happened and will never happen but - just as when watching a movie - they desire to believe for a time that it is in fact real and is actually happening as they read about it. Although there may be certain types of fiction where even the characters themselves clearly can not exist - perhaps in such as horror or fantasy writing - it is not something which the reader wishes to sense while reading the novel or short story.

The importance of creating believable characters in fiction writing is most of all about the reader being able to identify with them and the experiences they are having. The reader wants to actually be able to discern why a character reacts in a particular way to a defined set of circumstances - even though they themselves may have shown a different reaction - and this will lend for them an authenticity to the piece which quite simply can not be achieved otherwise. In this sense, the characters are almost the link between the reader and the events which are taking place within the plot.

The importance of creating believable characters in fiction is perhaps most profound in that it is necessary in order to keep the reader interested in the story. Where a character is so staid or stereotypical that the writer essentially cringes in a mental sense when reading about them, their thoughts or their actions, this can very possibly turn them off the piece of work and cause them to read no further. This could not only prove detrimental to the writer in the short term but the long, as the chances of that reader ever again picking up a piece of their work to read will be at very best slim.

Learn more about this author, Gordon Hamilton.
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