Writing Wednesday #2: Creating BFFs in Literature

Hello book lovers! Welcome to the second edition of Writing Wednesday! I’m so happy you could be here for this topic today, which is:

Creating BFFs in Literature

– Care when the other is hurting
– Have inside jokes, things that they only do/see/know
– Not show up just for kicks in a scene that doesn’t require them
– Doesn’t always have to be/agree with everything the other does
– and so much more

I’m going to help you write the best friends you’ve ever written in these few easy to follow steps and advice that I use myself, and that I’ve learned from years as a Book Blogger and Creative Writing lover. I’m not saying I’m an expert at all, or that these are musts in writing, but these things will help you (or at least be a guide) to creating BFFs that readers will also love.

BFFs aren’t like they used to be:

When we think of best friends from movies, they aren’t always like the ones we know now. How often does your best friend come over to your house and gossip about school, flipping through magazines and throw rocks at windows in the middle of the night for adventures? Not a lot anymore. So, unless your novel is set in the early 00’s or 90’s, your novel BFFs should recognize that:

– Technology is a huge part of modern friendships

– Friends can be boy/girl, girl/girl, boy/boy, or anything they identify as 

– BFFs don’t always have to fall in love or be jealous of the others partner

– Friends fight, it’s normal, and they don’t always get along 100% of the time

– Stereotypes are over-hyped. Don’t make your one BFF a goth and the other a princess, just to show how different they are. Friends don’t have to be from other sides of the track to be close, and vice versa.

– BFFs don’t always come in twos!

– Never forget that friends these days don’t always have to live in the same country to be friends

Famous best friends in literature:

Have you got a favourite friendship group in literature? Maybe you’re a Harry/Ron/Hermione fan. Or maybe you like the PLL girls. Or maybe you adore Simon/Leah’s friendship. What ties all these different characters together? When you break apart the friendships, for example, the Harry/Ron/Hermione friendship, we have a trio. Some scenes that you write aren’t going to include all three characters, but that doesn’t mean that they aren’t as close as the others. Sure, Harry/Ron probably have more scenes together, but that doesn’t mean that Harry cares more about Ron than Hermione. It’s just how the story goes. Don’t focus on the amount of screen-time (metaphorically, book time) that the characters spend together, and build more on the amount that they care, or mention the friends/do things/protect/care for the friend, even when they aren’t around.

What makes a best friend their *best* friend, though?:

Sometimes there’s no BFF in a novel. Sometimes a character has a few friends, but they don’t know them like that. And in that instance, it’s other characters like family, or their love interest, that they find that connection with. But say that you’re writing a story about a girl called Clare. And Clare really likes a boy named Evan. Clare’s best friend, Freya, is the closest person to her. They’ve been friends forever. Just because Clare might start/starts dating Evan, and develops a major connection to him, it doesn’t mean that the friendship connection she has with Freya is gone. I see this happening so often in novels that when the love interest comes along, they forget about the friendships. They push them aside for love: and that’s not true to life (in most cases). 

Fancy reading with your BFF? Check out this article!

Best friend name ideas that sound awesome together:

Sasha + Patrick

Riley + Nolan

Mimi + Lydia

Sebastian + Audrey

Remi + Bonnie

Kai + Dylan

Willow + Ashlie

Penny + Sage

I hope that you’ve loved my few tips for writing BFFs in Literature!

Join me next week for:

Opening Lines!

happy writing!