Ask a writer if their characters are real, and they will probably say, “Define real.” Characters are real in every sense, except being flesh-and-blood. They become a writer’s constant companion even when the writer isn’t hunched over a computer screen tapping furiously away. See that faraway look in a writer’s eye when you’re talking to them? They’re probably thinking about these characters and what they’ll put them through next. So how do these characters walk into a writer’s life and become as immediate as flesh-and-blood friends? Are they constructed through a writing exercise or is there an organic method to…