Our characters reveal themselves by how the speak and how they behave. With that in mind, this workshop focused on how to get your characters talking in consistent but unique ways.
First, a few terms simplified.
Dialogue - the speech of people in your story. The words they speak out loud.
e.g. Birdman (2014)
Monologue - when only one character speaks.
e.g. Selah and the Spades (2020)
Tactics - the things characters say or do to get what they want and need.
The Four Layers of Character
Adapted from The Playwright’s Guidebook by Stuart Spencer
1. General Qualities
The starting points for character, but not character itself. These are the general truths about a person (e.g. good, evil, nice, mean)
2. Emotions
This is how a character feels at any given moment in your story. Emotions are motivated by the general qualities of your character (e.g. a kind character might feel empathy)
Note: we get what is called a Complex Character when emotional states seem to contradict the general qualities of a character. For example, a “kind” character who doesn’t feel empathy, or a “mean” character who feels charitable.
3. Action
Action is what a character wants. It arises from their general qualities and emotions and motivates all speech and behaviour.
4. Speech/Behaviour
What your character says and does in the pursuit of their desire. This is how characters are revealed.
Character Building Exercise
1. Write out 5 general qualities for characters
2. For each of these general qualities, attach an emotion to them
3. Given your general quality-emotion pairs, create an action. What might someone with each combination you’ve created want or desire?
4. You now have now laid the foundation for 5 potential characters. Which one of these combinations most intrigues you? You will now take the character into the monologue exercise and get them speaking.
Write a Monologue
Prompt: Your character wants to leave a party they are at.
· Using dialogue only (the character’s voice) and given their general quality, what do they say? Who are they speaking to?
· Keeping in mind the general quality, how do they feel and what are they saying to justify leaving this party (what details are they reacting to?)
· One restriction: they can’t leave this party in this monologue!
· Don’t stop. Don’t censor. 15 minutes.
Potential Follow-Up: Bring one of your other characters from the Character Building Exercise into the party. What if they don’t want your original character to leave the party? What do they say? How do they behave given their general quality?