Everyone knows that all characters should be three dimensional. You’re more likely to believe in a fictional character when you can recognize the humanity–however manufactured–within them. One way of doing this, I’ve found, is to have characters treat some people one way and others a different way. There’s a side of Swifty that doesn’t really come out except when he’s around Star Maiden. When he’s with her, we get that he’s more than just a crotchety old man. He has a heart and will reveal it given the proper opportunity.

That’s valuable to a storyteller because then, even when I show you Swifty being incredibly mean, you’re still thinking of this other side of him and you might wonder what’s really behind what he’s saying. It’s not a trick so much as the way human beings operate. We rarely are all things to any one person. We are the parts of ourselves we need to be, depending on the situation and who is present. But a storyteller? He has the privilege of peeking in on all the sides–a privilege he extends to the reader.

Did you know the SuperFogeys universe has crossed over? Check out the multi-planed webcomic series CROSSOVERKILL to see heroes from various webcomic universes as they visit Valhalla!