Character Development *podcast transcript*

Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/episode/63KJVAhR5essu9h3eJUkqR?si=Zm8trFZKSB-ZRa1i3LWMAA

Hello! I’m Jenna Michal! Welcome to Breaking Writer’s Block! Here you’ll get your weekly dose of writerly inspiration in under ten minutes. Why? Because sometimes all you need is one spark to get you writing.

Each episode I will start off with a writing tip based on knowledge from professional writers. I will give 3 writing prompts to use as you wish. Lastly, I’ll end each episode with a book rec!

I hope you enjoy!

- Writing Tip -

It’s the first episode of Breaking Writer’s Block. I am so excited to get going! Writing has been such a huge passion of mine for as long as I can remember, and all I’ve ever wanted was to be a part of a community of writers who support each other, share their work, discuss, joke, and hold each other accountable. So this is what I’m trying to make.

I want to get to know all my fellow writers, whether you are published or not, whether you solely write poetry, or nonfiction, or if you write a bit of everything. Like me.

No matter what, or how often you write, please consider sending in a voice response to the podcast! Let us know what you write and any suggestions you may have for future podcast topics. Also! Always feel free to share your writing. I want to hear it!

The tip I got for you this week comes from the book Writing Tools written by American writer, editor, and writing coach: Roy Peter Clark. I will be talking about tool 27 titled: reveal traits of characters. If you have the book, or want to purchase it – which I recommend because it’s easy to understand and will benefit your writing – the chapter starts on page 133.

In this chapter, Clark talks about how you can show your readers who your character is in a way that feels natural rather than forced. He says that instead of using adjectives to describe your character such as compulsive and sassy or quiet and sweet, you should instead show how your characters fit these characteristics through their actions in the story. Have them do something compulsive or give them sassy dialogue. Or put them in a scenario where they can demonstrate how quiet and sweet they really are. This way, your character can become real to your readers.

- Topic -

For this first episode, we’re going to start off with one of my favorite parts of writing: building characters. I absolutely love character development. Characters are what make storytelling so harrowing and reality-based. Especially our beloved main characters. We put them through it. But they mean a lot to us. And, they’ll mean a lot to our readers.

- Prompt #1 -

Today’s prompt is to write a story based on a character generated from a random name generator. The name generator I used is called behindthename.com/random/. The link will be in the description. Or you could look up “name generator.” You’ll find many different sites to use.

Once you have your first and last name you can get to work building this name into a character. You can take notes on who they are, their background, what they look like, what they enjoy doing, who they’re around the most. Who they’re around the most will become the side characters of your story. If you struggle with developing your character, you can use a personality quiz to generate ideas. Just take the quiz from the perspective of your character, and you’ll learn more about who they are.

Once you have a character that’s relatively solid, you can write their story. Mine is Kacey Antiochus! I ended up going with this first prompt because I liked the sound of her name so much and wanted to develop her further.

- Prompt #2 -

For this next prompt, you’ll need a character that you’ve already made. This could be a character from a story that you don’t particularly like. That way you can give your character a second chance. Or maybe you never got to writing their story at all. This is your chance.

If they need further development, feel free to use the same techniques used with new characters. Don’t worry if anything conflicts with who the character was in your last story. Characters develop and change just as people do.

Once you have your character fully thought out. Their new story may begin. The prompt is that your new character has been forced to leave where they are and who they’ve always been behind because of a reason only known to them.

Now, get writing! Have fun!

- Prompt #3 -

If neither of those prompts got your fingers tingling and ready to write. Then don’t worry! With this last prompt, you will be delving into the dynamics between introvert and extrovert characters. For this prompt, you will need to make a character duo. One of which is an extrovert and the other an introvert. You can plot out your two main characters just as you would if you only had one. Except this time, you’ll also be developing who the characters are to each other.

When you’re ready to get going with their story, you can write from both perspectives or just one. It’s up to you!

Okay, yay, so that’s all the prompts I've got for you this week. I hope you’ve found inspiration to spark into being a new story or more development on an old one! I hope the week treats you well and you find yourself writing like a madman!

- Challenge -

This week I challenge you to share a portion of your writing with at least one other person.

Sharing is the most terrifying and rewarding part of being a writer. This is when you’ll be able to see how your work effects people. What emotions you stir up in them. And of course, what you can do to improve your work.

For this challenge, you can ask someone if they want to read your work. Or if someone in the past has asked to see it, show them!

For the future, when the next person asks if they can read your writing. After you’ve screamed internally for a bit, share with them. Your writing does not need to be perfect for people to enjoy it.

- Book Rec -

Now, time for this week's book rec! I already said I recommend Writing Tools by Roy Peter Clark earlier in the episode if you’d like to read about how to strengthen your writing.

But, if you want something more along the lines of reading for entertainment, especially entertainment rich in heart-wrenching characters, this is the book for you: Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward. In the book, Esch, the main character, and her brothers live on the Mississippi Golf Coast. You get to see the dynamics of their entangled lives before and after Hurricane Katrina hits them.

- Outro -

Thanks so much for listening! It’s a pleasure to talk about storytelling with you guys. Please share your writing in the comments of the podcasts’ transcript on my blog. Just go to jennamichal.blogspot.com. Or click the link in the description.

I also have an Instagram dedicated to reading if you’d like more recs: @acollectionofpages_.

Join us next week as we talk about what drives our stories forward. This week we talked about who drives our story forward, now we’ll talk about what.

Adios escritores! See ya next week.