Character Trait Chart Character Trait Chart and Personality Components It can sometimes be helpful to make a Trait Chart for each character. This is especially helpful during the early stages of character development, before the character becomes as real to you as your mother. There are several charts of this sort available, some extremely detailed and some containing only facts and figures. To use this chart, print it out and make a copy for each of your characters. Full name - a character's name is very important. Besides the character's official name, we also need to know what he is called (and, perhaps, what he prefers to be called). Date of Birth/Age - we should carefully consider assigning our character a birthday. Address - this can be as detailed or as vague as you wish, but it should answer a few questions: does the character live in a large city, the suburbs, a small town or deep in the country? Height - this doesn't need to be specific. Smell - everyone has a smell. Questions? Custom Graphics by:
Writers' Workshop | Characterisation 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, just follow these rules. If you do follow them correctly, we can pretty much guarantee that your characterisation will be just fine! Know what kind of character you are writing There are roughly two types of protagonist in fiction. The second type of character (rather less common, in fact) is the genuinely extraordinary character who would make things happen in an empty room. Either type of character is fine - don't struggle to equip your ordinary character with a whole lot of amazing skills, or try to 'humanise' your James Bond character by making him nice to old ladies and interested in baking. Empathy is about story and good writing Likewise, don't worry too much if your character is likeable. A) you write well enough that your reader is drawn in to your protagonist's world, whether they like it or not; and
How to Create Good Personalities for Your Characters Edit Article Sample Character DescriptionsCreating Personalities for Your Own Characters Edited by Secretive, Julia Maureen, Flickety, Ben Rubenstein and 19 others You're on a plane to a distant country to visit some weird old relatives you are somehow related to. Ad Steps Sample Character Descriptions Creating Personalities for Your Own Characters 1Start with a simple profile including these categories: Name, Age, Gender, and Occupation. 6Continue developing characters until your story is finished. Tips Keep the characters true to themselves. Warnings Don't copy off other characters in different, already well known books, such as Harry Potter.
Character Profile Templates Enter your e-mail to get the e-book for FREE. We'll also keep you informed about interesting website news. "I have searched the web and used different worksheets, but none have come close to your worksheets and descriptions of (what to do and what not to do). Both courses I have taken have with Creative Writing Now have been amazing. Each time I have learned something new. "As usual - I already love the course on Irresistible Fiction, rewriting a lot and improving greatly even after the first lesson. “Essentials of Fiction proved that I could indeed write and I wrote every day, much to my boyfriend's dismay (waa sniff).” - Jill Gardner "I am loving the course and the peer interaction on the blog is fantastic!!!" "I'm enjoying the weekly email course, Essentials of Poetry Writing. "Thank you for all the material in this course. "I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the lessons and feel they were very helpful in introducing new ideas and perspectives to my writing.
7 steps to creativity - how to have ideas A guest post by Simon Townley of WriteMindset As a writer, having ideas is one of the most important parts of your craft. But often it seems like one of the most difficult and challenging parts of the whole process. How do you keep ideas flowing? Some people like to wait for inspiration to strike. Luckily, there is a formula for producing ideas on a consistent basis. But if you need to produce strong and creative ideas regularly as part of your writing career, then it pays to know the formula, and how to use it. First of all, what is an idea? “An idea is nothing more nor less than a new combination of old elements.” So how do you combine old elements into new? “The capacity to bring old elements into new combinations depends largely on the ability to see relationships.” Young says the ability to see relationships between facts is the most important factor in coming up with ideas. How do you cultivate it? There is also a formula, however, a five step plan which Young outlined in his book.
Body Language Basics - Syncrat Publishing Throughout history it has been an advantage if an individual can read body language. Body language helps in everyday life from closing a business deal or trusting someone with your life, to recognising when someone is upset. Body language is the art of making an educated guess at a person’s feelings or intentions based on their posture, movement and positioning. Each action or stance in the following list means very little, unless there is more than one indicating the same thing. Arms Feet Head Chest Other
Ash’s Guide to RPG Personality & Background :: The Guide Writing The Perfect Scene: Advanced Fiction Writing Tips Having trouble making the scenes in your novel work their magic? In this article, I’ll show you how to write the “perfect” scene. Maybe you think it’s impossible to write the perfect scene. Honestly, I don’t know. But structure is pretty well understood. The Two Levels of Scene Structure A scene has two levels of structure, and only two. The large-scale structure of the sceneThe small-scale structure of the scene This may seem obvious, but by the end of this article, I hope to convince you that it’s terribly profound. Before we begin, we need to understand how we keep score. Your reader is reading your fiction because you provide him or her with a powerful emotional experience. If you fail to create these emotions in your reader, then you have failed. Large-Scale Structure of a Scene The large-scale structure of a scene is extremely simple. A Scene has the following three-part pattern: GoalConflictDisaster A Sequel has the following three-part pattern: ReactionDilemmaDecision That’s all!
How to Write a Novel in Six Months, Week 6: Outlining Now's the time in the novel writing journey where I start to get really nervous. I stare at my stack of index cards terrified that what I've written are nothing more than a collection of stupid ideas that will never come together into a coherent outline. Okay - now that that's out... The way I approached my outline was to transfer my index cards onto a spreadsheet. I know, but I really love spreadsheets. The Marshall Plan I have mentioned The Marshall Plan for Novel Writing before, and it was actually one of the first books I ever read on writing. Once I started poking around, I decided to go ahead and attempt four viewpoint characters as Marshall suggests for my word count (100,000 words/mainstream fiction). Marshall goes into a lot of detail with his outlining technique (using section sheets) and I'll get into that in the next article, Week 7: Detail Scene Beats. Spreadsheet Outline In case you wonder how I set up my spreadsheet, it's pretty simple. Week 1, Mapping Out the Six Month Plan
Character Questionnaires - Get to Know Your Characters Receive more writing tips and advice (along with special offers and other Gotham news). One of the best ways to get to know your characters is to ask questions about them. Many writers do this as a kind of homework before they actually start writing a story. The more you know your characters, the fuller they will be. This might also make your story easier to write. The following questionnaires may be downloaded so you can work with the actual documents. Character Questionnaire 1 This questionnaire is found in Gotham Writers Workshops Writing Fiction. You might start with questions that address the basics about a character: What is your characters name? What is your characters hair color? What kind of distinguishing facial features does your character have? Does your character have a birthmark? Who are your characters friends and family? Where was your character born? Where does your character go when hes angry? What is her biggest fear? Does she have a secret? Look at your characters feet.
The Writers Survival Kit Dramatica Writers are in danger! Professionals struggle to make a living and amateurs struggle to express themselves. To make it, every writer needs an edge, and that’s why Storymind.com created the Writer’s Survival Kit. Use the menu to the left to access all your bonus items including complete downloadable books on writing from Storymind Press, hundreds of articles on all aspects of story structure and storytelling, hours of streaming video programs , downloadable audio programs in mp3, charts and reference guides, accessories, and software utilities to enhance your writing endeavors. Please feel free to share this web site with your friends. We’ve been doing this for more than twenty years for 15,000 customers and with more than a quarter million web site visitors each year. At Storymind.com we create some of the most useful tools for creativity and productivity.
Seven Common Character Types Seven Common Character Types by Terry W. Ervin II Fiction writers employ a variety of characters while weaving their tales. Beyond the standard definitions of protagonist (the main character in a literary work) and antagonist (the main character or force that opposes the protagonist in a literary work), recognizing the types of characters and the parts they play while reading an interesting story can add to the experience. In addition, a fuller understanding of the character types and their uses can increase a writer’s effectiveness in weaving his own fictional tales. Below is a list of common character types, followed by an explanation and short example. Confidante- someone in whom the central character confides, thus revealing the main character’s personality, thoughts, and intentions. Example: In a story, Melvin Sanders is a detective on the trail of a serial killer. In this example Chops is a confidante. In this example Ebenezer Scrooge is a dynamic character. Copyright © Terry W.
Character Chart FAVORITES Color: Music: Food: Literature: Expressions: Book: Quote: Expletive(s) (swears): Mode of transportation: HABITS Smokes: What? How often? Drinks: What? How often? SELF-PERCEPTION One word character would use to describe self: One paragraph description of how character would describe self: What does character consider best physical characteristic? Immediate goal(s): Long range goal(s): How does character plan to accomplish goal(s)? How character react in a crisis (calm/panic/etc.)? Jewelry? Owns a computer? © (c ) copyright 1990-2011 Rebecca Sinclair ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Authors Note: I worked hard on this. ~ Permission is granted to LINK TO the Fiction Writers Character Chart. ~ Permission is granted to print out a copy of the Fiction Writers Character Chart FOR PERSONAL USE ~ Permission is NOT granted to copy and/or use the Character Chart in print and/or electronic form (including the internet) without express written permission)