Sometimes even when the book is over I don't know who's good and who's bad. It's really more interesting, I think, to write about gray characters than it is to write about black and white.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
What I always studied in screenwriting from my mentor John Glavin was that the most interesting characters are characters with shades of gray.
I know when I go and see a writer, the first thing I think to myself is, 'Are they the character in the book?' You just can't help it; it's the way people are.
I've always preferred writing about grey characters and human characters. Whether they are giants or elves or dwarves, or whatever they are, they're still human, and the human heart is still in conflict with the self.
The characters that have greys are the more interesting characters. The hero who sometimes crosses the line and the villain who sometimes doesn't are just much more interesting.
There are infinite shades of grey. Writing often appears so black and white.
There's so much grey to every story - nothing is so black and white.
I don't think of the characters as being good or bad because that doesn't help me as a writer.
The characters are always the focal point of a book for me, whether I'm writing or reading. I may enjoy a book that has an intriguing mystery or a good plot, but to become one of my real favorites, it has to have great characters.
Whatever I write, no matter how gray or dark the subject matter, it's still going to be a comic novel.
In a culture defined by shades of gray, I think the absolute black and white choices in dark young adult novels are incredibly satisfying for readers.