Posts dealing with character and characterisation.
For some writers, character name selection can cause massive writer’s block. Naming your characters can seem like the most pressing issue you have as a writer. What if I told you it did not matter? This is how you stop … Continue reading This is how you stop character names giving you writer’s block
Thanet writer, Jim Driver, shares a tip for writing better dialogue. Take away points from this video: Too realistic dialogue is boring Less is more when it comes to accents Try casting an actor for your role Jim Driver is … Continue reading Writing better dialogue in 5 minutes with Jim Driver
Today we will take a look at dialogue and dialogue tags to answer some common questions. How often should we writers follow dialogue with descriptions of reactions of the speaker? How much is safe to leave to the reader’s reasoning … Continue reading Dialogue and dialogue tags
In this post, I am going to try and cover all of the suggested topic “how to create three-dimensional major characters, versus two-dimensional minor characters”. Thanks to Allan for suggesting this topic. I am not confident I can do this … Continue reading How to create three-dimensional characters
Your hero or heroine should not be perfect. Far from it – their flaws and failings are what make them interesting. Flaws are something the character can struggle with as they grow, vices are things that can be used against … Continue reading Flaws maketh character
Today I’d like to challenge you to get to know your own character better – by writing a letter from them to you. In your letter, have your character explain what they hope their outcome will be. Are they keen … Continue reading Writing a letter from your main character
As we all gather to celebrate in whatever way seems appropriate, may your day be joyful and full of kindness. Christmas is a gift for writers because of the massive number of observable situations which we can draw on for … Continue reading Christmas – a gift for writers
Thanet, and particularly Ramsgate, owes some of its heritage to the local Jewish community. Most prominent of these influences is Sir Moses Montefiore who is the namesake of parts of Ramsgate. Sir Moses Montefiore has his links to literature too, being mentioned in Charles Dickens’ … Continue reading Writers Explore: Writing a Jewish character
Crafting a unique character with an interesting character backstory is quite easy – all you need to do is ask yourself the right questions. I wrote on my own blog that running an RPG game is very similar to writing … Continue reading Crafting a character backstory like an RPG player
If you are looking for an audience for your stories you could do a lot better than targeting white able-bodied blokes. That market is already saturated. There are a lot of people hoping to read about people like themselves. You … Continue reading Why we need to write fewer white male protagonists
Female characters. For whatever reason, they do not get the same page time as their male counterparts. There are no good reason for it aside from perhaps a lack of understanding of how to write a compelling female character. Following … Continue reading How to write interesting and compelling female characters