Large families have a whole host of dynamics, relationships, and conflicts that can enrich your story. However, keeping track of all the characters and ensuring each one feels distinct can be difficult. Whether you're writing a mysterious family drama or a heartwarming holiday read, writing believable and complex families involves more than just adding siblings and relatives. Which is why listed down below are five essential things you need to keep in mind when writing big families.
Draw a Family Tree
The first thing you should do when writing a big family is draw a family tree. With big families, getting confused about your characters is easy, so drawing a family tree can be incredibly helpful. First, start by identifying the central characters and their relationships. Determine who the parents are, how many siblings there will be, and whether there will be extended family members, such as aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents. Once you have a clear idea of the family structure, you can add even more details to your family tree, such as their ages or personalities. Overall, drawing out a family tree can be beneficial in helping you remember your characters and not get confused.
Consider the Dynamics
Every family has different dynamics, especially big families where there are added family members. As a result, it is crucial that you consider the dynamics of your characters. Consider how age, personality, and life experiences affect the different relationships between family members. For instance, maybe the older siblings take on more parental roles, while the younger ones feel overshadowed or rebellious. You should also think about the emotional bonds, rivalries, and alliances that may have formed. Perhaps certain siblings share stronger connections based on their interests. Or the relationship between the grandmother and grandson is tense because of a past conflict. In general, you must think about the dynamics of "your" family because they make your story more authentic and realistic. Plus, understanding these dynamics helps you craft more compelling and believable characters.
Make Each Character Unique
Relating to the previous point, all of your characters should be unique. Just because your characters may be part of a large family doesn't mean that they all share the same personalities and values. For example, maybe one of your characters is an uncle who is obsessed with teaching his nieces how to play basketball, while their mom is against playing sports. By making your characters distinct and realistic, you add layers to your characters and make your story more engaging (because these differences are bound to cause tension). For more tips on writing unique characters, click on the button below.
Avoid Stereotypes
When writing about big families, you also need to ensure that you avoid stereotypes. Stereotypes are lazy, and they can make your characters feel flat, predictable, and unrealistic. Relying on stereotypes such as the "bossy older sibling," the "forgotten middle child," or the "absent father" reduces the complexity of your story and limits it. Big families, like all families, are made up of unique individuals with personalities, values, and experiences. So when writing large families, make sure that you create authentic and relatable characters that resonate with readers and reflect the diversity of real family dynamics.
Determine Their Financial Status
Lastly, you must determine the financial status of the families. In real life, not all families have the same financial statuses, so neither should your characters. You should determine whether the family is wealthy, struggling financially, or somewhere in between, and how that impacts their dynamics and relationships. You also need to consider how their financial status affects every character differently. For example, perhaps a parent works long hours, causing them to have to miss some family events. Or maybe one of the siblings resents having to give up their college dreams to support the household. Overall, financial status can influence everything from a family’s living conditions to their aspirations, adding another layer of realism and complexity to your story.
From establishing unique personalities to managing the intricacies of family dynamics, the guide above will help you navigate the process of writing big families in a way that feels authentic, layered, and engaging. Remember, the main thing you need to do is give quirks to each character and make them unique. You got this!
Comments