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A Character Development Writing Exercise
It's All About Your Point of View
Write a pivotal scene in your novel from a different character's POV. For instance: at a funeral, you may have written the grieving widow's thoughts and feelings. Write about that funeral from the deceased husband's POV, the eldest son's, or the step-sister's.
Respond to this exercise
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Similar exercises
Get your creative juices flowing with these similar writing prompts.
Jekyll and Hyde
Describe the same character twice. Once as the hero of a story and once as the antagonist.
Two Kinds of People
"There are two types of people: those that talk the talk and those that walk the walk. People who walk the walk sometimes talk the talk but most times they don't talk at all, 'cause they walkin'. Now, people who talk the talk, when it comes time for them to walk the walk, you know what they do? They talk people like me into walkin' for them," said Key in the 2005 film Hustle and Flow. Which of these two types are your characters? Write down an exchange between two of your characters that confronts this very difference between them.
The Best Day Ever
Take your main character and describe the best day he/she has ever had. This is a prompt that will generate questions like, "Why did the character think that was their best day?"
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Wanderlust
Transplant your character into an entirely new location. It could be a new country, city, or continent. How do they react to the new surroundings?
Reputations
Have each primary character free-write what they think about the other characters in the story. This will also deepen the secondary characters.
