23 November 2005 - writing a novel 2

Character and plot are the two legs on which the platform of the modern novel wobbles. As every security-conscious government leader knows, the character is far more important than any plot in which it is engaged; as a novelist, your first goal should be to identify your characters from a standard database. This is best accomplished through dialog:

Falstaff: To be no counterfeit, but the true and perfect image of life indeed—the better part of valour is discretion.
Punch: That’s the way to do it!