Writing Great Fiction

Lecture 4: Fictional Characters, Imagined and Observed

intimate, told from inside one consciousness. How you answer that

question will tell you how to create your character.

Austen, (PPD.

Bernays and Painter, :KDW,I"

Brontë, -DQH(\UH.

Hynes, 7KH:LOG&RORQLDO%R\.

———, 7KH/HFWXUHU¶V7DOH.

———, Next.

1. This exercise is drawn from an excellent book called :KDW,I":ULWLQJ
   ([HUFLVHVIRU)LFWLRQ:ULWHUV by Anne Bernays and Pamela Painter: Pick
   a character from a story or novel that has already been written, either by
   you or by someone else, and make a list of everything you know or can
   infer about that character. Include basic features, such as the character’s
   name, age, gender, appearance, relationship status, and so on, but also
   include such attributes as the character’s fears, obsessions, and politics,
   even if they aren’t explicitly mentioned in the text. Depending on the
   sort of narrative you’re working with, you may not be able to get a
   complete list for any character. Such a list for Elizabeth Bennet from
   3ULGHDQG3UHMXGLFH, for example, would include a great deal about her
   opinions and personality but nothing about her appearance. In contrast,
   \RXFDQGHWDLO6DP6SDGH¶VSK\VLFDODSSHDUDQFHEXW\RXFDQ¶W¿QG
   much about his opinions on anything. This exercise reinforces the idea
   that different sorts of stories require different types of characters.

Suggested Reading

Writing Exercise