When characters collide
Characters drive story in a modern classic, explored by Helen M Walters
Helen M Walters
This month we ‘re looking at another contemporary story for our master class: Dido‘s Lament by Tessa Hadley. As usual, spoilers follow and you ‘ll get the most benefit from this article if you read the story for yourself (see http://writ.rs/wmjun17), and I‘d also urge you to read a few more of Tessa Hadley‘s stories as well as they all have a lot to show us about how to create characters who are interesting and authentic.
On the face of it Dido‘s Lament is a fairly straightforward story. Toby and Lynette used to be married. Following a painful divorce, they haven‘t seen each other for nine years until one day they meet on the London Underground. In this month‘s masterclass I‘m going to explore what it is in the writing that lifts this story out of the ordinary.
Firstly, as with all of Tessa Hadley‘s stories, we are presented with characters who are extremely well drawn. Throughout the story we are shown their quirks and foibles, both of appearance and behaviour, so that by the end we feel we know what it would be like to spend time with them.
Click here to read the full text of Dido‘s Lament
Toby and Lynette are both interesting characters. Tessa Hadley shows us this with little touches, like Lynette‘s humiliation at being caught out being part of the crowd on Oxford Street and the mismatch of ruggedness and delicacy she sees in Toby. Much of what pulls us into the story is what happens when these two characters are thrown back together.