Character archetypes

3 Steps to Writing a Novel with Unforgettable Characters Character development is one of the first essential steps of writing a novel and it involves creating the people who will carry out your story. There will most likely be a variety of characters needed for your story, but none as important as your lead character – your protagonist. A well-developed protagonist has much to do with the success of writing a novel. When writing a novel, the protagonist should be someone that your readers feel is a “real person” that they come to love (or at least like a whole lot), can relate to in many ways, and will care about and think about long after they’ve turned the final page on your novel. How to Create “Real People” for Your Novel When writing a novel, there are many ways to go about creating characters and much has been written about it in “how to write a novel books”, sometimes in great detail. Writing a Novel – Four Attributes of a Lead Character: 1. 2. 3. 4. Writing a Novel – Three Attributes Every Character Has: 1. 2. 3. 1. 2. 3.

6 Key Things to Consider When Developing Characters By Jody Hedlund, @JodyHedlund I have to admit, I don’t write (or often read) character driven stories. My books are full of action and drama and are primarily plot-driven. But, that doesn’t mean I neglect my characters. In fact, I'm currently in the pre-planning stage for a couple different books. And one of the most important parts of my pre-writing process is developing my characters. I find this time of getting to know my characters one of the most delightful aspects of the entire writing process. I thought I'd share a few of the things I consider when I'm developing my characters in the pre-writing stage. 1. Obviously I consider their physical appearance. But I always go much deeper than physical appearance. 2. Not only do I try to understand their skills, abilities, and talents, but I also attempt to determine their personality type (are they dominant, passive, loyal, outgoing, etc.). 3. I may not need to know when they had their first scraped knee or lost tooth. 4. 5. 6.

Cheat Sheets for Writing Body Language Translate emotions into written body language We are always told to use body language in our writing. Sometimes, it's easier said than written. I decided to create these cheat sheets to help you show a character's state of mind. The Top Five Tips For Using Body Language Use body language to add depth to dialogue. If you want to learn how to write a book, join our Writers Write course in Johannesburg. Even if you're not busy with a book, prompts are an excellent way to exercise the writing muscle. If you enjoyed this post, read: How to Figure Out the Worst Thing That Can Happen to Your Character This week’s video examines the advice to “think of the worst thing that can happen to your character, then make it worse.” Writers are always being told to think of the worst thing that could happen to their characters—and then to make it worse. Being something of a literalist, the first time I heard that, my original thought was something like, The worst thing? You mean like kill him? With maybe a few interpretative exceptions, death is pretty much the worst thing that can happen to any of us. So what did they have in mind? The point of this exercise is not only to up the stakes and create conflict, but more importantly to generate character growth and advance his personal arc in the story. For example, if your character is about to propose marriage to the woman he loves, his worst thing might be her discovery of a secret in his past. Tell me your opinion: What is the worst thing that could happen to your character at this point in your story?

List Over 300 Ways to Say Character Chart for Fiction Writers - EpiGuide.com If you're a fiction writer -- whether you're working on a novel, short story, screenplay, television series, play, web series, webserial, or blog-based fiction -- your characters should come alive for your reader or audience. The highly detailed chart below will help writers develop fictional characters who are believable, captivating, and unique. Print this page to complete the form for each main character you create. IMPORTANT: Note that all fields are optional and should be used simply as a guide; character charts should inspire you to think about your character in new ways, rather than constrain your writing. If this character chart is helpful, please let us know! Looking for more character questionnaires / charts?

How to Write a Flat Character Arc, Pt. 1: The First Act Next to the positive change arc, the flat character arc is the most popular storyline. Also called the “testing arc,” the flat arc is about a character who does not change. He already has the Truth figured out in the beginning of the story, and he uses that Truth to help him overcome various external tests. The flat-arc protagonist will be confronted with tremendous opposition. …the protagonist changes his perspective, learns different skills, or gains a different role. So how exactly does this work? If you’ve hung with me for the last few months, you’re already familiar with the foundational principles of the positive change arc. The Truth the Character Believes The positive change arc is all about the Lie the Character Believes—which he will spend the entire story overcoming. This is why we often see change arcs in the first book in a series and flat arcs in the following books. The Normal World The Characteristic Moment The First Act 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11.

Traits of Human Consciousness Several Steps Further: Aside from the listing above, traits of human consciousness can be viewed from a number of other perspectives. Here are several: Traits Organized from Psychological (Inner-oriented) to Social (Outer-oriented) Human personality/character traits can be divided by those that are inner/psychological; and those that are outer-oriented/social. Traits Expressing in the Vertical Scale of Human Consciousness (Physical, Vital, Mental) The individual human expresses exits at three fundamental planes or levels of being -- mental, vital, and physical. ARTICLE: Positive and Negative Human Traits (from a spiritual perspective) New Fundamental Traits/Capacities that Enable Higher Achievement and Personal Growth From our research, we have determined that there are certain fundamental human traits and capacities that enable an individual to accomplish at a higher level, as well as rise in consciousness and fulfillment in life. Personal and Society's Values

Writing Killer Fight Scenes Fight scenes are dangerous territory for writers. On the surface, they seem as if they’re guaranteed to keep the reader glued to the action in the same way as they often do at the movies. In reality, though, readers tend to skip over fight scenes – skimming the long, tedious, blow-by-blow descriptions in favour of getting back to the dialogue and character-driven drama that truly engages them in the story. My novel, Traitor’s Blade, is a swashbuckling fantasy in which fight scenes are a crucial part of the storytelling. This means having to ensure that every piece of action is vital and engaging; it means that every duel must draw the reader in and not let them go until the end. GIVEAWAY: Sebastien is excited to give away a free copy of his novel to a random commenter. Column by Sebastien de Castell, who had just finished a degree in archaeology when he started work on his first job. 1. No matter what you might think, violence is actually boring. 2. 3. 4. 5. You might also like:

Creative Writing Prompts: Secrets and Lies for Your Characters Nothing is better (or more fun for the writer) than a story-relevant secret or lie. Give some dilemma beneath the surface story to give your character depth, add suspense and tension, and keep your reader turning the pages. You can drop hints throughout your writing and when the reveal comes—you will surprise, shock, and delight your reader. Creating a character with a strong internal conflict, secret, or burden makes for one compelling read! (To see more on writing a compelling protagonist, check out The Compelling Protagonist Part 1 and Compelling Protagonist Part 2.) It’s vital to have conflict in every scene, and when the action is quiet in your book, internal conflict will keep a reader turning the pages. Below are writing prompts to help you find some ideas for internal secrets, lies (and therefore conflict) for your characters. Write about a broken promise. Write about a secret. Write about a lie that protects. Write about a lie that is told to hurt.

Top 10 Tricks to Make your Villain Stand Out Welcome back to the column that breaks down gaming into what’s really important, ten things at a time! Any story arc needs a good villain. The best big bads are more than just another devil or vampire or dragon. These ten suggestions can help take your villain above and beyond the ordinary and give your players a more memorable game. 1. Why do people follow this villain? 2. The villain should have a single overriding goal that drives all his or her actions. 3. Along with the goal, place concrete steps the villain needs to take to reach the goal. 4. The villain should be making progress if nobody is stopping him or her. 5. Give your villain a weakness the adventurers can figure out and exploit. 6. Avoid faceless or generic threats. 7. Make the villain’s presence known in every corner of the campaign. 8. One of the best ways to make the villain’s presence known is by reusing symbols and calling cards. 9. 10. Powered By DT Author Box Written by loganbonner Rating: 4.2/5 (25 votes cast)

25 Things You Should Know About Character Previous iterations of the “25 Things” series: 25 Things Every Writer Should Know 25 Things You Should Know About Storytelling And now… Here you’ll find the many things I believe — at this moment! — about characters: 1. Without character, you have nothing. 2. A great character can be the line between narrative life and story death. 3. Don’t believe that all those other aspects are separate from the character. 4. The audience will do anything to spend time with a great character. 5. It is critical to know what a character wants from the start. 6. It doesn’t matter if we “like” your character, or in the parlance of junior high whether we even “like-like” your character. 7. It is critical to smack the audience in the crotchal region with an undeniable reason to give a fuck. 8. You must prove this thesis: “This character is worth the audience’s time.” 9. Don’t let the character be a dingleberry stuck to the ass of a toad as he floats downriver on a bumpy log. 10. 11. 12. 13. The law of threes.