how to CREATE a CHARACTER from *SCRATCH*✍🏼my 3 step character developing process
TLDRIn this video, Anna shares her 3-step process for creating a character from scratch, emphasizing the importance of aligning character development with the story's themes. She uses her own character, Robin, from her project 'BB' as an example, highlighting how the character's background, motivations, and social position reflect the narrative's focus on feminism and revolution. Anna encourages viewers to consider these elements when crafting their characters to ensure a compelling and thematic story.
Takeaways
- 📝 Start by understanding how your story came about to determine the character's role and importance in the narrative.
- 🎯 Focus on the main characters, usually one to two, to keep the story concentrated and impactful.
- 🌟 Align the character's traits, such as gender, age, and social status, with the themes and plot of the story.
- 👥 Choose characters that reflect the story's themes; for example, a female character for a narrative with feminist themes.
- 🏰 Consider the character's background and environment to inform their motivations and attitudes towards the world.
- 🔍 Develop the character's personality and backstory to explain their actions and decisions within the story.
- 👣 Use character profiles to dive deeper into the character's interests, motivations, and relationships with others.
- 💡 Offer side characters to add layers and depth to the main character's development and story.
- 📚 Provide templates or guides for creating character profiles to assist others in developing their characters effectively.
- 📈 Emphasize the importance of character development in telling a compelling and meaningful story.
Q & A
What is the main focus of the video?
-The main focus of the video is to discuss a 3-step character developing process for creating a character from scratch.
Why does Anna emphasize the importance of starting with the story when creating a character?
-Anna emphasizes this because the story determines the type of characters needed, their roles, and how they contribute to the plot and themes of the narrative.
What was the book idea for Anna's project 'BB'?
-The book idea for 'BB' revolves around themes of feminism, girl power, and the dynamics between peasants and a kingdom, with an emphasis on revolution.
How did Anna decide on the main character, Robin?
-Anna chose Robin based on the story's themes and setting. It made sense for the character to be a female peasant with a backstory of hostility towards the kingdom due to her parents' exile and death.
What are some key elements to consider when developing a character from scratch?
-Key elements include the character's role in the story, their connection to the themes, their gender, age, social position, occupation, and personal convictions.
What is the significance of limiting the number of main characters?
-Limiting the number of main characters helps to maintain focus on the story and allows for deeper development of the characters that are central to the plot.
How does Anna use the character's backstory to inform their personality and actions?
-Anna uses the character's backstory, such as Robin's parents being exiled and killed by the king, to explain her thieving habits and desire for revenge, which shape her personality and actions within the story.
What is the role of side characters in the character development process?
-Side characters add depth to the main characters by providing additional layers to their personalities, interests, and relationships, enhancing the overall character development.
How does Anna recommend further character development after establishing the basic character traits?
-Anna recommends using character profiles to dive deeper into the characters' personalities, appearances, and backgrounds, and she offers free templates for creating these profiles.
What is the main takeaway from the video for viewers?
-The main takeaway is the importance of carefully selecting and developing characters to effectively convey the story and its themes, and that the characters should reflect and support the narrative's core messages.
Outlines
🎨 Character Creation from Scratch
In this paragraph, Anna introduces the concept of creating a character from the ground up. She expresses her excitement about discussing character development and shares her personal enthusiasm for crafting characters. Anna emphasizes the importance of understanding the story and its themes before creating characters, as this helps in determining their roles and significance within the narrative. She uses her own writing process as an example, explaining that she usually starts with the story and then develops characters to fit within that story. Anna also highlights the importance of having a limited number of main characters to focus on, and shares her approach to creating her main character, Robin, for her project 'BB'. She discusses how the themes of feminism, girl power, and social dynamics influenced her character choices, and how Robin's background and motivations were shaped by these elements.
🌟 Developing Characters to Reflect Story Themes
Anna delves deeper into the process of character development, explaining how the story and its themes should guide the creation and evolution of characters. She uses the example of her main character, Robin, to illustrate how a character's background, personality, and motivations are crucial for telling the story effectively. Anna points out that understanding a character's social position, occupation, and personal convictions helps in making them an integral part of the narrative. She also touches on the importance of side characters in adding depth to the main characters and the overall story. Anna concludes by encouraging viewers to explore her previous videos on character profiles and offers a template for creating character profiles. She hopes that the video's content and the example of Robin have helped viewers understand the significance of character selection and development in storytelling.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Character Development
💡Story Creation
💡Themes
💡Feminism
💡Peasants
💡Kingdom
💡Revolution
💡Backstory
💡Conviction
💡Social Hierarchy
💡Character Profiles
Highlights
Anna shares her 3-step character developing process for creating characters from scratch.
The importance of understanding the story before creating characters is emphasized.
Characters should reflect the themes and messages of the story, such as feminism and girl power.
The story should dictate the character's gender, age, social position, and occupation.
Anna's main character, Robin, is developed as a young female peasant thief with a desire for revenge.
Robin's backstory, including her parents' exile and death, influences her character and actions.
The character's role in the plot should be determined by their personal convictions and motivations.
Anna recommends focusing on 1 to 2 main characters to maintain a strong narrative focus.
The process of character development should come naturally for some writers, but it's beneficial to consciously consider these elements.
Once the character's role in the story is established, then their appearance and personality can be developed.
Side characters add depth to the main character and the story, providing additional layers of interest.
Anna provides free character profile templates for both main and side characters in her video resources.
The video aims to help viewers understand the importance of character selection and development in storytelling.
Anna encourages viewers to subscribe to her channel for more writing and character development content.
