Characters

  • Why your characters won’t behave themselves

    One of the biggest aspirations of writers is to create believable characters, whether they realize this or not. We’ve all seen the situation where characters onscreen or in print are just “too perfect” or where you’re absorbed in the story and then suddenly, something happens, and you involuntarily go:

    “What the hell?”

    That’s when stories die—regardless of where it goes after that.

    It’s not suspension of disbelief anymore. It’s outright disregard for plausibility, because plausibility is always bounded by the world you create for the audience, no matter when or where your story takes place.

    As an author, you can feel it before it gets that far. You know when the dialog feels forced, the action seems contrived.

    Where you reach for the plot armor or the “magic pixie dust” to get a character either into or out of a situation that’s critical to the story you want to tell.

    And that’s when you’re asking yourself:

    Why in the hell won’t this character behave?

    The answer is unfortunately that you’ve probably done everything you’ve read or been told was correct.

    You’ve created your character profile. You know everything about them from their favorite color to their childhood best friends and their nervous habits that give them away no matter what situation they’re in.

    You know their goals. You know their flaws, their scars and quirks.

    And you might’ve even come up with those lists based on published character development guides or by reverse-engineering some of your own favorite characters.

    But the reason your characters don’t “behave” despite everything you know about them is because we assume that if we have the right pieces and parts…

    …then we understand how something (or someone, in this case) is going to behave.

    But that’s not really how people (or the world) work. People don’t really do things randomly.

    People do things because they seemed like the best option at the time, based on who they are, what they know, what they believe about the situation and what they expect will happen.

    You don’t touch the hot stove if you expect it’s going to burn you.

    And yet a lot of the formulaic advice for creating stories expect you to do just that. Assemble the characters. Pick a plot. Put them in the blender of your brain and presto!

    You have a great story.

    But the part that’s missing in all that is understanding people in a way that “watch people” won’t ever help you achieve.

    You have to know enough about the characters in your story that you can predict how *they* would respond to any situation.

    That means writing isn’t actually about writing or defining characters—or even worldbuilding.

    That means writing is a whole lot more like acting.

    Robert Downey Jr. may have played both Tony Stark and Lewis Strauss, but they weren’t anything alike. They had the same basic physical features. You could tell it was Downey Jr.

    But that recognition only lasted from the first moment you saw him. After that, you weren’t watching Downey Jr. anymore.

    You were trying to save the world of the MCU…or you were trying to take your revenge against the leader of the Manhattan Project.

    So, when you’re stuck with characters that won’t behave, don’t pull out your character sheets and look at what they are.

    Look at what they’ve done, what’s happened to them, and try to “get inside their head” so you can figure out how they think, what they believe and what they’re going to expect.

    This is what the structure of the Breakthrough Scene Blueprint™ helps you figure out—how to understand what drives your character’s decisions.

    Because it’s not what they look like, their preferences or their favorite color who make them who they are.

    It’s how all those things you know about them work together to drive your character’s decisions.

    Because, in fact, your character is the sum of their decisions, not a function of the plot. And if those two things aren’t aligned…

    …then that’s why you’re stuck with characters who won’t “behave” the way you expect.

    Because you’re inside *your* head, not theirs.

    Once you understand what really drives decisions – for your characters or for anyone – then your job as a writer is to step inside your characters and let them tell you what they would do.

    Because, if you do it right, even when you don’t know what happens next.

    They will.

    So, if you’re stuck with your own story, go ahead and check out the Breakthrough Scene Blueprint™and see which parts you might be missing. If you don’t already have it, you can get your copy right here:

    https://storysys.me/blueprint

    The information you’ll find inside the Blueprint just might be the thing that makes it all click…

    …and your characters finally “behave” the way they’re supposed to behave.

    To unlocking the soul of your story,

    ast
    —
    Andrew S. Townley
    Creator of the Perpetual Story System™

  • Plot vs. Characters: which one really drives the story?

    There’s a lot of advice out there today that says the plot drives a story, and while this can be true to some degree, there’s far more to a great story than just picking the plot.

    In fact, without not just the right characters but also having a deep understanding of why they do what they do…

    …there’s no convincing way for the plot to come alive.

    And if the plot doesn’t live and breathe with your audience in a way that sucks them in and won’t let them go even after the story’s over…

    …then you need to ask yourself why you’re even writing the story at all.

    But there’s also more to it than just developing your character in terms of their background, their experience and their motives.

    You have to also understand something about why people do what they do, and the main reason people do what they do…

    …is because of what they believe.

    This realization has come from my own personal deep dive into psychology and human behavior for over 20 years and applying it directly in my business, professional and personal life.

    Because it turns out that beliefs drive everything—even things that are often seen as “evil” in both the world and the story.

    Sure, some people can’t help but operate this way, but if that’s all they have, then they’re as much of a stock character as the Fairy Godmother.

    Maybe characters like that are part of your world just like they are in ours.

    But those aren’t the characters that captivate your audience.

    The characters that captivate your audience do so not just because they’re relatable. The do so because they seem…real.

    Most of us aren’t really taught much directly about people and why we do what we do, and I think that’s one of the reason there’s so many stories with potential that end up never really going anywhere.

    It’s not because the idea wasn’t good…or the plot was bad.

    It’s because the characters didn’t behave like real people.

    And one of the truths about people is that every interaction we have with the world is driven by what we believe is true and right.

    It’s really that simple.

    So if your story’s stuck right now, then maybe it isn’t about your characters or your plot in the traditional sense.

    Maybe it’s that you don’t really know what your characters believe – what their worldview really is – and as a result?

    It’s obvious why you might be stuck with a particular scene or a story.

    You know it seems forced. You know it needs to happen.

    But you don’t understand the underlying beliefs, rationale and motivation that ultimately make it inevitable.

    So, if that’s the case, then I’d suggest you read the Breakthrough Scene Blueprint™, starting with The What on Page 9.

    And if you don’t already have the Blueprint, you can grab it here:

    https://storysys.me/blueprint

    Because your characters will tell you everything you need to know about how your story can unfold.

    All you need to do is learn to listen.

    To unlocking your story’s soul,

    ast
    —
    Andrew S. Townley
    Creator of the Perpetual Story System™