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About Reedsy Terms PrivacyA Character Development Writing Exercise
Somewhere Familiar
Are you finding it difficult to get to know your fictional characters and/or differentiate them from yourself? Try this: Choose a character from your project and let her/him take a walk into a place you know well. Then describe this place from this character's perspective and ask yourself:
- What does (or doesn't) s/he notice?
- How does s/he feel about what she notices?What thoughts do the things s/he notices trigger in her/him? This can be memories, social critique, enjoyment or disgust etc.
- How do your character's impressions of, and responses to, the place differ from yours?
Respond to this exercise
Feel inspired? Share your story below.
Similar exercises
Get your creative juices flowing with these similar writing prompts.
Journaling From Your Characters' Perspectives
Set a timer and start free-writing from one of your character's perspectives. Try to really get inside their head - what do they want, what ticks them off, what do they feel passionate about? Are they writing in a diary, telling a story to a friend, or dictating a formal letter?
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.
A Day in the Life
Write about the hero of your story going on the most mundane errand you can think of. Rely solely on the character to make the story interesting.
Reputations
Have each primary character free-write what they think about the other characters in the story. This will also deepen the secondary characters.
Blind Date
Your protagonist meets your villain for the first time - on a blind date. What happens?
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