FAMOUS FICTIONAL PEOPLE

NOW APPEARING...!

Today's thoughts have nothing to do with writing and everything to do with writing.  The topic is famous fictional people.  Although it is not possible to name all my favorites, permit me to name a few.  Each is worth a deeper study for creative writers.  However, this is about being a fan.  I am writing this for fun.

WALTER MITTY

You can't read James Thurber's The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, without realizing he is a fictional person; a fictional dreamer.  He is an everyman, for those of us, who  live undistinguished lives.  Somehow, Walter Mitty is certain he should be more than he is, except fate set him on a different path in life.  One thing Walter Mitty does not lack, is a vivid imagination.  The one thing he can't escape, is he is a henpecked husband, regularly brought back to reality, by his over-bearing wife.  She is also partly responsible for him living, as much as possible, in the imaginary world he creates.  Walter Mitty might have made a great writer, were he a real person.  He has come to be a part of American Culture, even making his way into some dictionaries.  Best of all, the story is a fun read and Walter Mitty is a fascinating person.  Destined to always be undistinguished, in literary form, he has become an American legend in the real world. 

SHERLOCK HOLMES

Sherlock Holmes, is possibly, the most famous fictional person and detective in the English-speaking world.  In fact, Sherlock Holmes is so famous, some people think he is a real person.  There have been attempts by people to visit him at 221B Baker Street, London, England, his fictional apartment address.  Sherlock Holmes first appeared in print in 1887, with the original tales covering the 1880 to 1914 period, according to Wikipedia.  In The Final Problem, the Sherlock Holmes author Arthur Conan Doyle, not only formerly introduces Holmes archenemy Professor Moriarty, he attempts to kill off both characters, intending to put an end to the great detective stories.  Naturally, he eventually resurrected Holmes from the dead.  In part, this was due to his popularity, but also, because of the author's financial needs.

Sherlock Holmes stories tend to be filled with logical reasoning, scientific methods, and pure genius.  Holmes at his best is a problem solver.  That some of the scientific ideas introduced in Holmes stories went on to become a part of Scotland Yard's actual detective methods, may play a strong role in why many people believe Sherlock Holmes is a real person.  Until the method later proved faulty, the old method of using plaster-of-paris to create a mold of a footprint at a crime scene, originally introduced in a Sherlock Holmes story, was used by Scotland Yard detectives and police forces around the world, to capture, then convict criminals.  Despite all this, Sherlock Holmes remains no more than a famous fictional person.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Like a good cliffhanger movie or story, this project is to be continued in the future.  This allows me to express my thoughts freely, while trying to hold the writing to a readable word limit for you, the reader.  For any writer to create a memorable character, with the staying power of a Walter Mitty or a Sherlock Holmes, is a dream come true.  This is as close as a writer comes to achieving immortality.  For readers, it gives readers a ficitional person to pass down to future generations of readers.  Someone everyone knows and everyone can discuss.  Most of all, someone everyone can enjoy.  I hope you have a few famous fictional people in your life.  I leave you now to return to my imaginary world..."The Siren Song of Cyren is the tale of...