Just wondering...

[megwrites]

How many of you cast actors in the roles of characters you're writing in your works? How does that work in your writing process, how important is it? Are they just physical models, or do you borrow attributes from either the actor themselves or a role they've played elsewhere?

Comments

[fiction-theory.livejournal.com]

I kept envisioning him as Derek Jacobi whether I wanted to or not. :)

Is this the only time that characters have sort of cast themselves, and do you find that writing that character was easier/clearer than characters that didn't have an actor cast or didn't have one that cast themselves?

I'm really trying to explore this because I'm finding myself suddenly fascinated by what writers use to build characters, and how it seems like some have favorite muses/models the way painters and photographers seem to.

I'm also wondering about it from a reader standpoint, about whether a reader can detect whether a writer has cast an actor in that role or not.