Character Dosier

Sister Mary Clarence:...If when you wake up in morning and you couldn't think about anything, but writing, then you're a writer.

After my 9-to-6, I head on over to borders to do some writing. I'm feeling good about this story idea I've had for quite some time. Before I get started, I even do a little writing exercise: A wants something from B, but B wants something from A first. A little tip: when starting this exercise on a laptop, write down the two character names, which is better than A and B, one line on top of the other, copy those two lines, and copy and paste, etc., down the page. And bada bing, before you even have any lines written, you're committed to this little drama because you have outlined two characters that go back and forth WAITING for you to insert the story. I'm a visual person, and when I saw this, I got inspired.

So, I'm writing this little scene and half way through, I realize that in a short play like this, I still don't know what this is about. Not good. And I started to think that in my last couple of short plays, it takes me a while for me to get into not only what is this story about, but what are these characters like?

I stopped in my tracks and, with this question in mind, I started to write my play... but in a very different way that I've written everything else. There are two different philosophies of writing. 1) sit down and start writing. The characters will eventually start talking to each other and to your own wonderment, a story happens and in a very schizophrenic kind of way, these characters start to write their own story while you're just there as a stenographer. 2) start out with writing down what each of these characters are like. write down everything they went through; what their history is; what is their needs; what makes them... them. In doing so, in theory, the characters will start to write your play, but with motivation and forethought.

I believe in both philosophies, especially the first one, because of that artistic sensation of really creating something from nothing. Very organic since you're just letting it happen. But last night, I started writing out the Character Dosier for each of my characters, but in the organic kind of way, I've discovered more themes to the play itself. I was as excited to write this as I was when I just free wrote.

Needless to say, I came out of this writing session with more that I thought I was going into it: stronger individual characters. I'll still be working on this for other characters, but the goal is still the same in the anticipation of seeing what each of them has to say to each other.