There is one book related question that I dread more than others, and it only comes from readers who know me personally, either in the real world or through social media.

"This character in your book, that's you, right?"

I don't blame people for asking. They have some very good reasons to wonder, as my protagonists tend to have a lot in common with me. Almost all are from New York, as am I. Most have unimpressive military backgrounds, just like me. One even teaches historical fencing in the same city I do. They sometimes say the sort of things I would say, and sometimes do the sort of things people imagine I would do.

None of these things are a coincidence. My characters are from New York because I know what it's like to grow up there. I know what it's like to be from New York, so I can write about it in a way that would ring true. I don't know what it's like to be from Texas, or Maine, or California. So if I tried to write about someone from one of those places, a great many readers would feel put off by the lack of authenticity. More importantly (at least to me), I would feel weird doing it.

My characters say the sort of things I'd say because I'm the one writing the books. They have elements from my life in their background because I can write about the emotional impact of those events from my own experiences. But most of what I put into them is pure fiction, borrowed from people I have known, books I have read and sometimes just things that pop into my head. All of these combine to make what I hope are compelling and believable characters.

To answer the question, no. My characters aren't me. A typical protagonist is 90% fiction and 10% me, sometimes more, sometimes less. Writing fictional stories is, in essence, lying. And the best lies have elements of truth woven into them. The more truth, the more believable the lie is.

Not every writer does this, and many are great at telling lies with little basis in reality. I’m just not one of them.