ISWG & A-Z: C for Characters & The Clerk

As a part of Insecure Writers Support Group and A-Z  I'm doing a double post.  Man, its day three and I'm exhausted.  Before I start I wanted to thank Alex for being the superhero ninja that he is.  I also want to thank Annalisa Crawford, Elsie, and Julie Luek. Thanks guys!

For the past few months I've been fretting over my characters.  Of the feedback I've received, one suggestion was to tweak a few things about my main MC and another supporting character in order to make the story better.  Hey, I'm all for that, right?  Who wouldn't?  So now that I'm in edit-mode, I find myself troubled, wondering how much I should change.  What makes a good character a great one?  Is it plotting, dialogue or hell even better writing that will do the trick?  I recently read a book blogger rant about urban fantasy authors and the annoying trends they read in books.  I wish I could find the link of the post since it was a good one.  I remember reading it and asking myself..."Did I do that when I wrote my novels?"  I can't remember verbatim what those traps were, but the point is, readers matter.  So now that I'm making those last final edits to go from good to great, I find myself wondering what a reader would expect.  This is also frustrating because it feels like a death trap too.   Any suggestions?  Do I sound like lunatic?

A-Z:  C is for The Clerk

The Sir Cleric of Oxenford was a hard-working, somewhat religious man, obsessed with learning and his books.  He never spoke that much but when he did his words were wise.  His told a tale about the marquis (Walter) and a poverty girl, (Griselda) he chose to take as his bride.  Now after some time, Walter  became jealous and insecure (he would have been a perfect candidate for IWSG) about his wife.  He wanted to test her loyalty her steadfastness so he would constantly test this humble women I suspect hoping to see if she'd break.  I didn't quite understand the lengths that the marquis took to test her such as taking their children, hiding them and letting her think they were dead.  Despite her husbands wicked plans, Griselda remains vigilant and always accepting graciously her husbands decisions.  Yeah, I wanted to slap her more than a few times.  Still the story was incredibly engaging and had the makings of a modern day melodrama.

What about you?  If you think about marriage vows and the honor and obey part...how far could someone like the marquis push you?  

Have a great Wednesday.

Mina B.