St. Patrick's Day is but a jig away, and you know what that means, don't you? Oh stop with the green beer, already. I'm thinking of Irish potatoes. But if a person is of Pennsylvania Dutch extraction and about 90 years old, as is my husband's granny, one might look at those delectable little sweets and say, "What the @%#* are those? Monkey balls?"

Not that I've ever peered closely at a monkey's unmentionables but, come to think of it, one has to wonder why the candies are called "Irish Potatoes". After all, they're light-brown, round, soft, and perhaps -- if one squints or has cataracts -- fuzzy looking, not unlike what one might assuem monkey doo-dads look like. People eat fish eggs, so why not... Oh, never mind.

But I don't really want to discuss a candy recipe. I'm writing this to present a simple question you can ask yourself in order to develop an ingredient list of character traits, GMC, backstory and more:

What causes two people to view the same item or event differently?

Start with something inconsequential...tasty little candies, for instance. What will your characters see/think when they look at them? These mini world views reveal that everyday traits that make your characters unique yet still "only human"; readers can identify with them.

Once you've given your characters invidual reactions to an item/even, ask the above question. This delves deeper into your characters' backgrounds and world views, providing you with motivations and backstory. This makes your characters believable and sets the stage for how characters face their black moments.

Example:

Item: Small, round, light-brown confections on a platter

Even: St. Patrick's day party

Hero, to best buddy, unaware that buddy's sister, who make the candy, is standing nearby: "What the #$@^ are those things? Monkey balls?"

Heroine (the sister, of course): "Those are Irish potatoes, you dolt!" She snatches the plate, then offers the candy to someone on the other side of the room, clearly enjoying herself in the party atmosphere.

Hero mutters to self, "I hate parties."

"What do these two people view the sweets and the party differently?"

 

Hero Possibilities:

*Re: the candy: he's Pennsylvania Dutch and he's never seen them before (background); his sense of humor runs toward the inane (trait). Or he has foot-in-mouth syndrome (trait). Or he and the heroine's brother have an inside joke about monkey balls (backstory).

*Re: the event: He's shy; he's a loner; he's coming down with avian flue. Further explore why he's shy/a loner (backstory, GMC). He thinks everyone at the party is a snob (worldview, background possibilities).

 

Heroine Possibilities:

*Re: the candy: it's her favorite treat; she's of Irish background or she's an afficionada of all things Irish. The recipe was her grandmother's and she treasures all the childhood memories.

*Re: the event: she's a party person; she hates to be alone; she struggles to make it seem as though she enjoys these parties; she thinks everyone there is a bozo.

 

Besides creating individual character traits, backstory and elements of GMC, you can mix your possibilities to develop the hero/heroine relationship.

*Which traits create something in common? His inane sense of humor; perhaps she snickers every time she offers a candy to a guest. Hero realizes she has a sense of humor which he's never noticed before.

*Which traits create conflict, however minor (it's how they deal with it that's telling)? Her favorite treat/childhood memories and he thinks everyone there is a snob: Her appetite for Irish potatoes is ruined forever, and she's mad enough to want to push a "monkey ball" up each of the hero's nostrils... He thinks she's stuck up and can't take a joke.

 

The recipe:

As one simple question

Mix well the resulting possibilities

And you've brewed up a pot o' gold!

Begorrah.

~

If you're tempted by the thought of quick-n-easy, little round cream cheese/coconut confections rolled in cinnamon, the recipe for Irish Potatoes follows, thanks to BCRW member June McDonough Kovelowski. Happy St. Paddy' Day to ye'.

 

June's Irish Potato Recipe

3 oz. cream cheese
1 stick butter
1 lb. powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
cinnamon
coconut according to taste

Cream the butter and cream cheese. Beat until smooth. Add the vanilla, then add the sugar one cup at a time. Last add coconut. Blend well. Refrigerate for 4 hours or more.

Form into balls and place on wax paper to dry.

Place cinnamon in small plastic bag.

Toss in 20 or so balls at a time until all are coated.

Store in refrigerator.

 

You could also add nuts and/or roll the balls in ginger.