Am I in My Book?

I have two chapters left in the first draft! As I near the end, I have had to face many questions about myself as an author and my relationship to my book. Like how much of me is in my book? The first part was easy, as some of the characters in the book reflected some of my own characteristics. But, as I examined all the major characters, I was glad to note that I didn’t make myself into an actual participant in the story.

Developing interesting characters would be impossible if I avoided sharing some similarities like, gender, age, physical type, likes, dislikes, socio-economic class, ethnic background, life experience, weaknesses, fears, and philosophical view point. I used my life experience and beliefs and created my main characters without becoming part of the book. I hope that my readers will enjoy the characters in my stories.