MY WRITERS SITE
When people look at my
‘When people look at my pictures I want them to feel the way they do when they want to read a line of a poem twice.’ ROBERT FRANK
20 Essential Positive Traits to Make Your Characters Empathetic to Readers
20 Essential Positive Traits to Make Your Characters Empathetic to Readers
- Empathy: The character
demonstrates an understanding of others' feelings and shows compassion.
- Courage: The character faces
fears or challenges bravely, inspiring admiration.
- Determination: The character
persists in achieving their goals despite obstacles, earning respect.
- Kindness: The character is
compassionate and considerate towards others, evoking warmth.
- Humor: The character has a
sense of humor, making them endearing and relatable.
- Honesty: The character is
truthful, creating trust and a sense of reliability.
- Vulnerability: The character shows
vulnerability, making them more human and relatable.
- Curiosity: The character is
curious and open-minded, inviting readers to explore with them.
- Resilience: The character
bounces back from setbacks, inspiring hope and admiration.
- Generosity: The character is
generous, creating a sense of goodwill.
- Loyalty: The character is
loyal to their values or to others, inspiring trust and admiration.
- Optimism: The character
maintains a positive outlook, even in difficult situations, inspiring
hope.
- Creativity: The character is
imaginative and innovative, sparking curiosity and admiration.
- Wisdom: The character
demonstrates wisdom beyond their years, earning respect and admiration.
- Integrity: The character acts
according to a strong moral code, earning respect and trust.
- Empowerment: The character
empowers others, creating a sense of inspiration and admiration.
- Altruism: The character acts
selflessly for the greater good, inspiring admiration and empathy.
- Resourcefulness: The character is resourceful in solving problems,
earning respect and admiration.
- Independence: The character is
independent, inspiring admiration and respect.
- Passion: The character is
passionate about their goals, inspiring admiration and motivation.
Brusque
Brusque comes ultimately from bruscus, the Medieval Latin name for butcher’s broom, a shrub whose bristly, leaf-like twigs have long been used for making brooms.
Bruscus was modified to the adjective brusco in Italian, where it meant “sour” or “tart.” French, in turn, changed brusco to brusque, and the word in that form entered English in the 1600s.
English speakers initially applied brusque to tartness in wine, but the word soon came to describe a harsh and stiff manner, which is just what you might expect of a word bristling with associations to stiff, scratchy brooms.
Good Hours by Robert Frost
I had for my winter evening walk—No
one at all with whom to talk,
But I had the cottages in a row
Up to their shining eyes in snow.
And I thought I had the folk within: I
had the sound of a violin; I had a glimpse through curtain laces
Of youthful forms and youthful faces.
I had such company outward bound.
I went till there were no cottages
found.
I turned and repented, but coming back
I saw no window but that was black.
Over the snow my creaking feet
Disturbed the slumbering village
street
Like profanation, by your leave,
At ten o’clock of a winter eve.
Essentials of Spontaneous Prose by Jack Kerouac
• 1. SET-UP
The object is set before the mind,
either in reality. as in sketching (before a landscape or teacup or old face)
or is set in the memory wherein it becomes the sketching from memory of a
definite image-object.
• 2.
PROCEDURE
Time being of the essence in the
purity of speech, sketching language is undisturbed flow from the mind of
personal secret idea-words, blowing (as per jazz musician) on subject of image.
• 3.
METHOD
No periods separating
sentence-structures already arbitrarily riddled by false colons and timid
usually needless commas-but the vigorous space dash separating rhetorical
breathing (as jazz musician drawing breath between outblown
phrases)--"measured pauses which are the essentials of our
speech"--"divisions of the sounds we hear"-"time and how to
note it down." (William Carlos Williams)
• 4.
SCOPING
Not "selectivity' of expression
but following free deviation (association) of mind into limitless
blow-on-subject seas of thought, swimming in sea of English with no discipline
other than rhythms of rhetorical exhalation and expostulated statement, like a
fist coming down on a table with each complete utterance, bang! (the space
dash)-Blow as deep as you want-write as deeply, fish as far down as you want,
satisfy yourself first, then reader cannot fail to receive telepathic shock and
meaning-excitement by same laws operating in his own human mind.
• 5. LAG IN PROCEDURE
No pause to think of proper word but
the infantile pileup of scatological buildup words till satisfaction is gained,
which will turn out to be a great appending rhythm to a thought and be in
accordance with Great Law of timing.
• 6.
TIMING
Nothing is muddy that runs in time and
to laws of time-Shakespearian stress of dramatic need to speak now in own
unalterable way or forever hold tongue-no revisions (except obvious rational
mistakes, such as names or calculated insertions in act of not writing but
inserting).
• 7. CENTER OF INTEREST
Begin not from preconceived idea of
what to say about image but from jewel center of interest in subject of image
at moment of writing, and write outwards swimming in sea of language to
peripheral release and exhaustion-Do not afterthink except for poetic or P. S.
reasons. Never afterthink to "improve" or defray impressions, as, the
best writing is always the most painful personal wrung-out tossed from cradle
warm protective mind-tap from yourself the song of yourself, blow!-now!-your
way is your only way-"good"-or "bad"-always honest
("ludi- crous"), spontaneous, "confessionals' interesting,
because not "crafted." Craft is craft.
• 8.
STRUCTURE OF WORK
Modern bizarre structures (science
fiction, etc.) arise from language being dead, "different" themes
give illusion of "new" life. Follow roughly outlines in outfanning
movement over subject, as river rock, so mindflow over jewel-center need (run
your mind over it, once) arriving at pivot, where what was dim-formed
"beginning" becomes sharp-necessitating "ending" and
language shortens in race to wire of time-race of work, following laws of Deep
Form, to conclusion, last words, last trickle-Night is The End.
• 9. MENTAL STATE
If possible write "without
consciousness" in semi-trance (as Yeats' later "trance writing")
allowing subconscious to admit in own uninhibited interesting necessary and so
"modern" language what conscious art would censor, and write
excitedly, swiftly, with writing-or-typing-cramps, in accordance (as from
center to periphery) with laws of orgasm, Reich's "beclouding of
consciousness." Come from within, out-to relaxed and said.
The Temple of Athena, Lindos at Rhodes, Greece
The Temple of Athena Lindia was a sanctuary in Lindos in Rhodes, dedicated to the goddess Athena. It was a significant Pan-Hellenic shrine of Athena and arguably the regional center of her cult.
The cult of Athena on Rhodes differed somewhat from the cult in other parts of Greece, as it required the burning of the entrails from the sacrificial animals on the altar, an act which may have been unique for Rhodes. Philostratus the Elder described the cult on the sanctuary in 3rd century:
The Birth of Athena . . . Two peoples are already sacrificing to Athena [i.e. on the day of her birth] on the acropolis of two cities, the Athenians and the Rhodians, one on the land and one on the sea, [sea-born] and earth-born men; the former offer fireless sacrifices that are incomplete, but the people of Athens offer fire, as you see yonder, and the savour of burnt flesh. The smoke is represented as fragrant and as rising with the savour of the offerings. The goddess has come to the Athenians as to men of superior wisdom who make excellent sacrifices. For the Rhodians, however, as we are told, gold flowed down from heaven and filled their houses and their narrow streets, when Zeus caused a cloud to break over them, because they also gave heed to Athena. The divinity Ploutos also stands on their acropolis, and he is represented as a winged being who has descended from the clouds, and as golden because of the substance in which he has been made manifest.
Steven Pinker, The Sense of Style: The Thinking Person’s Guide to Writing in the 21st Century
The advice to omit needless words should not be confused with the puritanical edict that all writers must pare every sentence down to the shortest, leanest, most abstemious version possible. Even writers who prize clarity don’t do this. That’s because the difficulty of a sentence depends not just on its word count but on its geometry. Good writers often use very long sentences, and they garnish them with words that are, strictly speaking, needless. But they get away with it by arranging the words so that a reader can absorb them a phrase at a time, each phrase conveying a chunk on conceptual structure.
- Steven Pinker, The Sense of Style: The Thinking Person’s Guide to Writing in the 21st Century
Writing facial expressions
Angry + Frustrated ]
- Red face
- Tensing up jaw/body
- Clenching fists
- Gritting teeth
- Stomped feet
- Rolling eyes
- Crossing arms
- Kick/Hit something
- Eyebrows furl
- Face crunches up
- Tight lips
- Narrow eyes
[ Happy + Excited ]
- Laugh/Giggle
- Smile from ear to ear
- High tone in voice
- Smiling/Grinning while talking
- Heart Pounding
- Clapping
- Breathing deeply
- Squeal/Scream
- Talking fast
- Contentedly Sigh
- Tilted head
- Hand clasped over mouth
[Bored + Tired ]
- Pace back and forth
- Sigh loudly
- Blank face
- Play with fingers
- Staring off into space
- Yawning
- Fidgeting around
- Leaning head on hands
- Rubbing eyes
- Droopy eyes
- Dark circles under eyes
- Complaining
[Sad + Scared]
- Trembling lips/body
- Tears in eyes
- Bite Nails
- Curl up/tuck knees to chest
- Bite nails
- Eyes burn/turn red
- Stop breathing OR breathe fast
- Lose appetite
- Frowning
- Darting eyes
- Blinking quick or not at all
- Pounding heart
HOW TO GIVE PERSONALITY TO A CHARACTER
Giving personality to a character is an essential part of character
development in storytelling, whether you're writing a novel, screenplay, or
creating a character for a role-playing game. Here are some steps and
considerations to help you give personality to your character:
- Understand Their Backstory:
Start by creating a detailed backstory for your character. Where were
they born? What were their childhood experiences like? What significant events
have shaped their life? Understanding their past can help you determine their
motivations, fears, and desires.
2. Define Their Goals and Motivations:
Characters often become more interesting when they have clear goals and
motivations. What does your character want? It could be something tangible like
a job or a romantic relationship, or it could be an abstract desire like
happiness or freedom.
3. Determine Their Strengths and Weaknesses:
No one is perfect, and characters should reflect this. Identify your
character's strengths and weaknesses. This can include physical abilities,
intellectual skills, and personality traits. Flaws can make characters
relatable and three-dimensional.
4. Consider Their Personality Traits:
Think about your character's personality traits. Are they introverted or
extroverted? Shy or outgoing? Kind or selfish? Create a list of traits that
describe their character. You can use personality frameworks like the
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator or the Big Five Personality Traits as a starting
point.
5. Give Them Quirks and Habits:
Quirks and habits can make a character memorable. Do they have a specific
way of speaking, a unique fashion style, or an unusual hobby? These details can
help bring your character to life.
6. Explore Their Relationships:
Characters don't exist in isolation. Consider how your character
interacts with others. What are their relationships like with family, friends,
and enemies? These relationships can reveal a lot about their personality.
7. Show, Don't Tell:
Instead of explicitly telling the audience about your character's
personality, show it through their actions, dialogue, and decisions. Let the
reader or viewer infer their traits based on their behavior.
8. Create Internal Conflict:
Characters with internal conflicts are often more engaging. What inner
struggles does your character face? These can be related to their goals,
values, or past experiences.
9. Use Character Arcs:
Consider how your character will change or grow throughout the story.
Character development is often about how a character evolves in response to the
events and challenges they face.
10. Seek Inspiration:
Draw inspiration from real people, other fictional characters, or even
historical figures. Study how people with similar traits and backgrounds behave
to inform your character's actions and reactions.
11. Write Dialogue and Inner Monologues:
Writing dialogue and inner monologues from your character's perspective
can help you get inside their head and understand their thought processes and
emotions.
12. Consider the Setting:
The setting of your story can influence your character's personality. For
example, a character who grows up in a war-torn environment may have a
different personality than one raised in a peaceful, affluent society.
13. Revise and Refine:
Don't be afraid to revise and refine your character as you write and
develop your story. Characters can evolve and change as the narrative unfolds.
Remember that well-developed characters are dynamic and multi-faceted.
They should feel like real people with strengths, weaknesses, and complexities.
As you write and develop your character, put yourself in their shoes and think
about how they would react to various situations. This will help you create a
compelling and believable personality for your character.