Wednesday, April 26, 2017

Personality Quirks: V is for Vacillant


Your vacillant character is uncertain in purpose and/or action. And you are correct when you see a connection to vacillate. Heesh alternates, wavers among different opinions and actions. This indecisive character can be quite trying for your other characters who are seeking clear answers or stances.

Vacillant comes from Latin vacillat- meaning ‘sway unsteadily.’

How might you use a vacillant character in your writing? Perhaps your lighthearted novel includes a character who is deeply into astrology and other prognostications. Heesh uses the daily horoscope to lay out the day’s plan for business. Heesh loves Chinese food because the fortune cookies add another layer of understanding for shim, and so forth. Assume your vacillant character is a Libra. Heesh knows the stereotype for Librans—indecisive because they see both sides of every argument, thus unable to pick. Imagine the situations that can be bollixed up with your character’s waverings. Get married? Set a date? Where to honeymoon? Constant plan changes can give you fun scenes.

Another kind of vacillant character might be someone who is so insecure and so self-deprecating that committing to any course of action would be risking being disliked by others. Such low-self worth can make for a very annoying character for whom one initially feels sympathy but as the vacillance continues, others lose patience.

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Here are some ideas for #writers on creating vacillant #characters from @RomanceRighter http://bit.ly/2p2eoLQ

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