Writing Characters Part Two Dr Gitsham Creative Writing Elective Lesson Seven: Writing Characters Part Two www.paulgitsham.com @dcijoneswriter © Paul Gitsham 2013 – Free for non-commercial use

Stories are about characters Many would argue that it is often the character that is the most important component in any story Ask a person what they liked most about a story and often they will name a character

They are hopeless with women Imagine a sitcom about a group of flatmates who are University Physicists They are hopeless with women Their idea of a good evening involves rolling dice and pretending to be orcs and trolls They are obsessed with Star Wars and Star Trek The woman across the hallway is a failed actress who waits tables Switching a light-switch off via the internet makes them run around the living room in excitement So why is this the number one sitcom in the US, entering its seventh season and earning its stars up to 1 million dollars per episode?

Dr Sheldon Cooper PhD

Every person has a story to tell Look around the high street next time you are in town Every person you see has their own story Some are heroes, some are villains, all of them have personality, all of them have quirks. Ask the right questions and nobody is boring.

Take a photograph from the pile Study it and answer the following questions: What is their name? Where are they from? How old are they? What is their favourite pastime? What do they do for a living? What is their most precious secret? What is their fondest desire? Flesh out some extra details eg What is their favourite colour? What sort of music do they like? These things can be as profound or as banal as you wish. As grand or as small

What is their story? Write a short story – just a few paragraphs about your character Write whatever you want Eg What’s the story behind the photo? A typical day in their life The day that changed their life Their dream.