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Mockingbird Inspiration. Random Name Generator. Baby Names at BabyNames.com | Baby Name Meanings | Baby Boy Names | Baby Girl Names | Top Most Popular Names. Character and Characterisation in the Novel. How to write convincing characters Characterisation - the task of building characters - isn't easy. But if you're struggling to build characters with real life and vigour, here is our very own patented technique. If you haven't yet started your book, then work on the exercise below before you start. If you have started, but think that maybe you started prematurely, then back up, do the exercise and then look back over your existing work. Oh, and don't feel patronised at being given exercises. Learning to know your characters Strong characterisation is based on knowledge.

The Ultimate Character Builder Begin with a blank sheet (or screen). You should aim to cover at least five pages with this exercise. The less central a character is to your book, the less you need to know him/her. And the exercise will work. Checking your work Once you've got a fair way into your writing (say 5 to 10,000 words), then look back at it. Even genre fiction needs swiftly drawn, believable characters. 5 Questions to Ask Your Characters | Book-in-a-Week. Many writing workshops start their sessions on character development with a sheet detailing the hero’s name, age, eye color and hair color.

They then move onto his job, his hobbies, and his family background. Next they might add a picture from the Internet or a magazine which looks a little like the hero, and perhaps an image of his home or workplace. This is all useful information, and great for keeping track of details so you do not find them changing as you write. However, these are not always the most important questions. The questions that matter most are often the ones that allow you to delve into the character’s psyche. These questions can be answered in different ways. You may like to conduct written, or even tape-recorded, interviews with your characters. What keeps your protagonist awake at night? If you find prompts like these helpful, Peter Elbow has a very extensive list in his guide Writing With Power .

However, there is no need to turn to expensive writing guides. EVERY PHOTO TELLS A STORY/writing prompts/writers block.