Week 8 - Honesty

19 Feb - 25 Mar: The Truth Will Set You Free

I have read the advice "tell the truth" on many occasions, and struggle with the idea of sharing my deepest, darkest secrets with others (even those who don't particularly care, but just wish to be entertained by a good story).

When I read Stephen King's excellent book on writing, I had to ask myself if I could publicly reveal the low points of my own life with such frankness, and unfortunately, I admit that I couldn't.  Having said that, Stephen King's story made me realize that 'the truth' isn't necessary about me, it's simply about 'the truth.'  It's about human nature; the hopes and fears that live within us, and that niggling meanness that most of us manage to suppress in the name of good taste and decency. 

I found it fascinating to read that Stephen King had been accused of being foul-mouthed, a racist and cruel to animals, among other things, I'm sure.  The author would apparently reply to critics with the sentiment, "it isn't real, you know."  But what a compliment!

Rust Hill's, Writing in General makes the following comment: "Slick (popular fiction) partakes of the daydream; quality fiction partakes of the night dream."  This is such a simple concept, and a good one, I think, for differentiating between 'making stuff up' and 'telling the truth.'

The following exercises aim to revisit the ideas of weeks 1 and 2, that is, to suppress the inner and outer critics so that we might tell the truth.  (If the idea of first person narrative is too personal, try writing in third person).

Exercise 15.   Study your reflection in a mirror for a minute or two and then write about what you see, using whatever style you wish.

Exercise 16.  Write a short piece based on one of your fears, physical or psychological (or both).




Week 9 will return to the technical basics by looking briefly at Point of View.

Week 7 - Character Development (cont...)

12 Feb - 18 Feb - The Good, the Bad, and Everything in Between

For a story to be a story, a protagonist should undergo some sort of change (usually) through interactions with other characters, and as a result of situations that they are forced to react to. 

In Writing in General and the Short Story in Particular, Rust Hills differentiates between 'character shift,' where a character changes inexplicably to facilitate a certain action, and 'movement of character' where things happen that lead to the change in character (for better or worse).  In other words, don't force the plot onto your characters.

In Burning Down the House, Charles Baxter does insist, however, that a writer sometimes needs to nudge his or her characters toward "interesting trouble" so that they make "interesting mistakes" that are worth reading about.  Lamott's Bird by Bird also stresses that a writer should not protect characters from their own misgivings.

So, does the secret to successful character development lie in the successful portrayal of flaws and imperfections of the protagonist?  Or adversely, in the strengths and 'goodness' of an antagonist?  I have no idea, but it makes sense that such contrasts might lead to surprising, and perhaps shocking discoveries that draw a reader (and writer) into the story.


The following exercises aim to explore the idea of contrasts for developing characters within the context of a story.  (These exercises have been borrowed from a creative writing course I attended; I am not aware of the original source).



Exercise 13.  Fill in the following table with qualities relevant to a potential story, for a) a protagonist, and b) an antagonist:

Protagonist
Strengths	Weaknesses
1	1
2	2
3	3
4	4
Opportunities	Threats
1	1
2	2
3	3
4	4
Antagonist
Strengths	Weaknesses
1	1
2	2
3	3
4	4
Opportunities	Threats
1	1
2	2
3	3
4	4

Exercise 14.  Using the following table, describe a character with a secret from a) his or her perspective, and b) from the world’s perspective.

	Character Perspective	World Perspective
Looks	1	1
	2	2
	3	3
Sounds	1	1
	2	2
	3	3
Feels	1	1
	2	2
	3	3

During Week 8, I intend to return to the idea of honesty in writing, just as a reminder, before returning to the technicalities (mundane perhaps, but this is how my methodical brain likes to learn).

Week 6 - Character Development

5 Feb - 11 Feb: The Art of People-Making

Okay, so we're thinking of our protagonist as a passionate competitor who will employ whatever trick he has in his arsenal to achieve his goal or solve his problem.  The guy might be an intellect who out-thinks his rival, or a woman of action who physically challenges her adversary.  Or he may have an assortment of psychological and physical tricks up his sleeve.

Of course, he doesn't count on the strengths of his opponent (or conflict), and he cannot control the circumstances in which he sometimes finds himself.  So how does she react when faced with obstacles?

To answer this question, it helps to know this guy or gal.  Really well.  Where was she born? What are his siblings like (if he has any)?  What do her parents do?  What is her relationship with them?  Is he in a romantic relationship?  What have his past relationships been like?  What does he do in his spare time?  What books does she have on her bookshelf?  (These types of questions can be found in many "How To Write" books that explore character development.)

The answers, of course, are not necessarily going to appear in the story, unless relevant to the plot, but greater familiarity with one's characters will undoubtedly lead to them being more believeable.

Personally, I like to have a physical picture of a character in mind, and so I cut out photos in magazines and jot down notes about people I see in public, and store these things in my notebook.  Once I can 'see' a character, I start to think of those little idiosyncrasies that might make them interesting.  I watch how real people stand, how they laugh, what they wear, and what they do with their hands.  Then, I like to think about the inner workings of a character: is he outgoing or reserved; is he flippant or serious; what is he passionate about?

In Bird by Bird, Lamott suggests infusing aspects of your own personality into those of your characters, (especially those deep, dark, secret ones that you're too ashamed to tell anyone about).

The trick, of course, is to paint the picture of the character using interesting and original language, and using tools that contribute to the flow of the story, rather than detract from it.  In 50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer, Roy Peter Clarke suggests avoiding 'cloudy' or abstract adjectives to describe characters, (eg. popular, scared, generous) in preference to allowing the characters to demonstrate these traits through their actions.



The following exercises aim to develop believable characters through dialogue and/or descriptive narrative without using abstract adjectives.


Exercise 11.  Observe a number of people in a public setting (supermarket, sporting event, etc) and write down cloudy adjectives that you think describe aspects of their personality (eg. rude, caring, serious etc).  Now, write down the observations that led you to each conclusion.
(This exercise is from 50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer by Roy Peter Clark).

Exercise 12. In a public place (again), eavesdrop on a conversation and write a scene or short story based on what you hear, concentrating on the individuals involved, what they say and how they say it, and their body language.  Try to capture the 'mood' of the interaction.



Week 7 will explore character development within the context of a story.