I think my very earliest stories were all intellectual exercises and I was writing from experiences I had never had about characters who were about an inch deep.
George R. R. MartinIt was the easiest thing in the world for Arya to step up behind him and stab him. โIs there gold hidden in the village?โ she shouted as she drove the blade up through his back. โIs there silver? Gems?โ She stabbed twice more. โIs there food? Where is Lord Beric?โ She was on top of him by then, still stabbing. โWhere did he go? How many men were with him? How many knights? How many bowmen? How many, how many, how many, how many, how many, how many? is there gold in the village?
George R. R. MartinThereโs an old writing rule that says โDonโt have two character names start with the same letterโ, but I knew at the beginning that I was going to have more than 26 characters, so I was in trouble there. Ultimately it comes down to what sounds right. And I struggle with that, finding the right name for a character. If I canโt find the right name I donโt know who the character is and I canโt proceed.
George R. R. Martin