I’m sure you’ve heard of dissociative identity disorder (multiple personalities), but perhaps you were unaware that in fiction, there is often a dramatic and equally troubling phenomenon: Sudden Transformation of Personality. We’ll call it STOP!
STOP usually occurs when a character does something at odds with everything the reader has been led to believe about him or her. This unexpected and unexplained new behavior is often convenient to the plot, such as when the “intelligent” hero rushes blindly into certain death, dismissing all logic in favor of an exciting conclusion. I see it in romance, when either the hero and heroine randomly decides to run away, usually near the end of the story when you’re not sure what else is delaying the HEA. (The average solution to this problem is to have some third party disaster show up. The bad solution is the STOP. The good solution is a subject for another post…)
STOP plagues many a decent read, and inevitably…infuriatingly…past the point where I would normally just stop reading. I probably should, but instead, I will put out this universal plea to writers: Don’t allow your characters to suffer from STOPs. If you find that your character can no longer behave in a manner consistent with his or her original personality, then find a different character to start with, one whose personality fulfills your needs.
Well said. STOP! I like it.