Category Archives: Characters

This category covers characters from practical tips to psychological theory.

Browse through the articles or use the search box at the top of the page to find just what you are looking for, and may the Muse be with you!

Character Development Tricks!

Posted on August 22, 2020 by Melanie Anne Phillips

From our YouTube channel:

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Developing Your Characters’ Points Of View

Posted on July 7, 2020 by Melanie Anne Phillips

Although you have a clear plot that you have created from the position of author, it is going to look quite different to each of your characters, depending on their particular situation and tempered by where they are coming from … Continue reading →

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Is Your Antagonist Also Your Influence Character?

Posted on June 28, 2020 by Melanie Anne Phillips

The Antagonist and the Influence Character do two different things, but both of those jobs can be given to the same person in your story. The Antagonist fights against the Protagonist over the goal; The Influence Character fights against the … Continue reading →

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Characters Are Not Real People

Posted on June 25, 2020 by Melanie Anne Phillips

Characters are not real people: they represent types of people.  Rather than creating characters from scratch or based on an individual, fashion them on the personality types you encounter every day. Build characters step by step with StoryWeaver

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The Influence Character

Posted on May 28, 2020 by Melanie Anne Phillips

Every writer knows a story needs a protagonist and an antagonist who battle over the goal, but equally important are the main and influence characters who battle over the message. Typically, writers recognize that their plot would have no tension … Continue reading →

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Characters Have Two Jobs

Posted on May 26, 2020 by Melanie Anne Phillips

Characters have two jobs. One, they must respond as real people so we can identify with them. Two, they must function as part of your plot to they contribute to the message. Characters who don’t ring true drop your readers … Continue reading →

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Character Likes and Dislikes

Posted on May 25, 2020 by Melanie Anne Phillips

“Snakes… Why did it have to be snakes….???” What a character likes and dislikes takes the curse of its larger than life stature. Whether you are writing a novel, play, screenplay, or teleplay, your characters loom in the hearts and … Continue reading →

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How to Create Archetypal Characters

Posted on May 18, 2020 by Melanie Anne Phillips

Archetypal characters have a bad name.  Many writers think such characters are two-dimensional stick figures that come off more like plot robots than real people.  But the truth is that archetypes represent essential human qualities that need to be explored … Continue reading →

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Letting Go of Characters

Posted on April 13, 2020 by Melanie Anne Phillips

Over the course of the story, your reader/audience has come to know your characters and to feel for them. The story doesn’t end when your characters and their relationships reach a climax. Rather, the reader/audience will want to know the … Continue reading →

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Forget Your Protagonist – Who’s Your Main Character?

Posted on November 8, 2019 by Melanie Anne Phillips

For just about any story you read, you get a sense of who it revolves around – who is it really about? Who is the character whose shoes we stand in, through whose eyes and heart do we see and … Continue reading →

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