Ways to Give Your Character a Life And Other Tips

Dashes and Ellipses in Dialogue Helps it sound like real conversation Dashes indicate interruption: “Hey, did you see that - ?” “Yes, it was awesome!” Ellipses (…) indicate trailing off in thought / zoning out / pausing / searching for words “It’s just that I . . . I’ve never told anyone this before.”

Internal Dialogue Before your characters do anything big, they need to be thinking about it! Example 1: I ran for the stairs, thinking that it was the shortest way to the exit.  Sure enough, I popped up on the roof.  It was really high up.  I decided to jump anyway, and I swung my legs over the edge of the roof, and then took a leap.  I landed, BOOM, and rolled like I had been trained to do.

Internal Dialogue Example 2: I ran for the stairs, thinking that it was the shortest way to the exit.  I knew that I had to get out, and fast.  If they caught me, they’d take me back to the home base, where it could mean torture.  I wasn’t prepared for that, and the thought made my heart pound and sweat come out on my forehead.  I popped up on the roof.  It was really high, and I had to take a deep breath before I looked over the side.  I knew I had to do it, I really didn’t have a choice, so I swung my legs over the edge of the roof, prayed that I wouldn’t break a leg, and took a leap.

Internal Dialogue Which one isn’t “better” but more memorable? Why don’t we use internal dialogue for everything? Example: In front of me was a box for Rice Krispies, Frosted Flakes, and Cheerios. I knew I wanted cereal, but which one? I loved Cheerios on a normal day, but today I felt like some extra sugar. I thought briefly about the Rice Krispies, and dismissed them as too bland.

Ways to Give Your Character a Life Where does internal dialogue come from? Your personal reactions / thoughts when faced with a situation What you think your character would do or feel Physical details of their reaction / feelings (heart pounding, sweat, breathing, shaking, body reactions, how people would move in that scenario) Knowing enough about your character’s private life

Learning about your Character List-making Personal history of character (Have they met this person before? What did they think of them?) Rituals / World-building Relationships with other characters Steal moments from your own life