Posts Tagged Mannerisms

I knew a girl once who coward every time someone raised their hands.  I know a guy who does a fist pump whenever he takes a drag of a cigarette.  I remember a dog that barked at any man who wore glasses.  I know a guy who washes his hands any time he touches a doorknob.  I worked with a man who held his ribs as he laughed.  I met a woman who offered her hand to be kissed, even to other women.  I knew a girl who prayed over hamburger meat because cows were precious.  I know a woman who went through a phase where she always had someone check her rear-end after she used the restroom.  Ally McBeal had a character who always flushed a toilet by remote control before stepping into his stall.  I personally check behind the shower curtain before I use the bathroom.

Why did I tell you those things?  Because you can later identify each person from those mannerisms.

Before we get any further, let’s define a few terms.  A trait is a distinguishing feature such as a look, line of thought, or behavior.  A habit is an automatic, repeated, or regular pattern of behavior.  A mannerism is a pattern of behavior that is distinctive and peculiar to an individual.  In other words, a habitual trait is a mannerism.  Got it?

How is a mannerism helpful in writing?  It helps you manage your secondary characters.  Yes, yes – main characters have mannerisms as well, but they are often annoying and hard to keep consistent.  If you can do it, great!  You will have great depth in your main character.  However, that isn’t why I think mannerisms are important.

Do you remember the girl who prayed for precious cows?  Of course you do – I hope you do (it’s the whole point here so you better).  Let’s play with her mannerism for a moment.

Let’s say that you are writing a manuscript and you think it might become a series.  Let’s also say that you have a small character who you hope will come up from time to time, but not necessarily in every novel.  How can you hope that the reader will remember this girl?  By the name?  Not likely, there are plenty of repeated names in real life and the reader will not necessarily know if it is the same girl or not.

In the first novel you could introduce the girl as saying, “Aren’t they precious,” while looking at cows.  That will stand out, but it isn’t a mannerism.  Before the reader has a chance to forget her, somewhere in the next chapter or two, insert the mannerism, have her pray for the “precious cow meat that we are about to eat.”  That reinforced what you read earlier and set her up with a unique behavior.  Then, in book 3, 7, and 8, you can bring her back and just have her praying over the hamburger, “God, we thank you for the precious meat here before us.  Forgive us for taking the life…”  Each time you can make the prayer a little more mature, the girl is maturing, but the mannerism of praying for the precious cow will always remain.  Your reader will always know it is the same girl.  That’s all there is to it.

Remember, a mannerism is a habitual trait – it identifies your character in a way that a name alone cannot.

A writing challenge for you, create a list of mannerisms for all your current and former friends and coworkers.