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Last
month we began a look at my process for characterization I call
Personalizing. If you haven’t read part one yet, please do so here
before you proceed.
This month we take up the
discussion with Level C of characterizing:
Level C: Personalizing
the Character.
At this level the character
becomes a unique person, with inner values and a resulting set of
traits and mannerisms. You can now get to know your character by asking
questions that naturally follow the answers you’ve received in Levels A
and B.
For example, let’s return to one
of the characters mentioned in Part I: the newly rich woman. Continuing
the line of questioning you began in Level B, you might ask: Would she
view money as less or more important than a woman who was born to it?
The trick is to play out each line of questioning until you “hit
bottom.” Say you continue questioning your newly rich woman to find out
just how important money is to her. The answer: very important. Probe
further. Is the money more important than friends? Family? How
differently would she feel about herself if she didn’t have the money? Very
differently, she admits; my self-identity would be
gone. Aha! You’ve just “hit bottom”—the “So what?”—with this
line of questioning (step #2 in the Personalizing process). You’ve
discovered one of the core truths, or inner values, of your character:
her self-worth is based not on who she is or what she’s done but what
she has. This “inner value” lies at the very heart
of your character and will drive many of her actions and desires.
Now, how will this inner value
translate into outward attitudes (step #3)? Question your character
further until a resulting trait is revealed. You may discover she is
proud and bragging about her wealth. Or maybe she’s tightfisted, for if
she ever lost her money, what would she be? The key here is not to
leave this step until you understand how the inner value will directly
affect your character’s outward personality.
Once you’ve discovered the trait
linked to your character’s inner value, continue questioning to see if
you can “hit bottom” a second time (step #4). If you do, you’ll
discover one or more mannerisms tied to the inner value. For example,
you might ask: With a self-worth based on money, what has she spent her
money on? Let’s say you discover she’s bought herself a large diamond
ring that she always wears. This information has singled out her hands.
What else do you know about her hands? Is she proud of them? Perhaps
she tells you they’re not as attractive as she’d like, even though the
nails are groomed and polished. If it weren’t for the ring—a sign of
the wealth by which she defines herself—she wouldn’t draw attention to
her hands. But she wants to show off that ring.
This
is the second and final bottom of this line of questioning. At this
point, you can proceed to personalizing step #5. Your knowledge of this
character can now translate into specifics of how she will use her
hands. She may talk with them, spread her fingers in graceful poses,
rest them on the table at dinner rather than in her lap. Or she may
have the mannerism of tapping a nail against her cheek as she’s
pondering something, or on a table when she’s frustrated.
For another example, let’s
return to the young Marine recruit we left in Level B. Say you discover
this young man feels he can never measure up to his father’s and
grandfather’s expectations. So: What’s his definition of “measuring
up”? Perhaps he says measuring up means a lifetime career in which he
attains the rank
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of
general, and it means upholding honor and integrity
as expected of a strong Marine. That’s a mighty lofty definition. Probe
further. What part of this definition came from his father? His
grandfather? The character’s responses might surprise you. For
instance, attaining the rank of general may not necessarily have come
from the grandfather.
Let’s say you discover your
character has a difficult relationship with both men because of their
constant pushing him to achieve. The grandfather has always been
dissatisfied with the performance of his own son, your character’s
father. And the grandfather has now placed high expectations regarding
honor and integrity firmly upon your character’s shoulders. Further,
your character’s father seeks his own redemption in the old man’s eyes
through his son’s accomplishments. The father is the one who has
decided that the young man must become a general.
Now you are at the bottom of
this line of questioning (step #1). Time for a “So what?” question:
Which is more important: integrity or becoming a general? What if
telling the truth about a certain situation meant that he would be
passed over for a promotion? Which would he choose? Let’s say the
character answers: If I knew I would not be discovered, I’d
lie rather than lose the chance for promotion, because if I can reach
the rank of general, I’ll prove myself to both my father and my
grandfather.
Aha! Once again a major
discovery! The character’s answer has revealed an inner value (step
#2): Proving himself to his father and grandfather is more important
even than personal integrity. This inner value will drive the
character’s emotions and choices.
Now, what traits and mannerisms
might this inner value give rise to? We’ll discuss that in Part III
next month.
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Excerpted
from Getting Into
Character: Seven Secrets a Novelist Can Learn from Actors by Brandilyn
Collins.
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