Strip your characters

That's right - strip 'em! Right down to their undies! Metaphorically speaking, of course. I'm not suggesting you go out, find your character and take all their clothes off!* I accept no responsibility for anyone cool crazy enough to do that!

I've heard of writers who create a character then follow a basic method to get to the heart of their new creation - interview them. Imagine you're the interrogator and they're sitting right in front of you all smug-like (depending on the character of course). You ask them all sorts of questions a cop might ask a murder suspect.

This forces the character out of their comfort zone and makes them address the issues they'd rather avoid. (NB - I say address here as opposed to answer, because some characters might stay silent)

I've never used this method, but I can see it would be a brilliant way to strip the character bare and see who they really are. I don't recommend you do this in a cafe though - you'll look a wee bit weird! But if anyone's brave enough to record themselves doing this, I'd love to see it!

SPOILERS: 'SUPERNATURAL' SEASON 3

Anyway there's a scene in 'Supernatural' that reminds me of this technique. Dean (Jensen Ackles) essentially argues with himself. Something that makes Dean cool is the clothes he wears, the way he acts, the music he listens to etc. That's who he is. But if you (the writer) decided to tear those aspects apart, what would happen? Probably this......



Notice how Dean (the real Dean) is stripped naked? (Sorry female readers, not literally!) He goes from his usual smart-mouthed self, complete with cocky attitude to a quivering wreck when forced to address the things he'd rather avoid. What was once cool about Dean is revealed to be.......pathetic(?) - the awesome Chevy Impala, the music etc

This scene also gets down to the heart of Dean's character. His sole goal in life (and in the series) is to look out for his little brother Sam. The writers never lost sight of that throughout the show and this played out brilliantly as a result.

And finally, address one of the most important issues when it comes to characters - fear. Your characters have to be afraid of something. That's what gives them something to lose in their journey. Whether it's not winning the football match, not winning the fight, not saving that damsel in distress, or - in Dean's case - becoming a demon.

Strip your characters down and take them to a place they'd do anything to stay away from. Expose their dark side. Make them overflow with emotion. That might result in buckets of tears, a psychological breakdown, a suicide or a blast in the chest from a sawn-off shotgun. Just please remember to take the proper precautions when interrogating your more violent characters - always wear a bulletproof vest (just not this one)!

Expose their fears and see what happens. There's a saying that goes "You don't truly know someone until you fight them." It's true to a degree. But I'd say "You don't truly know someone until you take them to an emotional place." Only then do you really know what a person is capable of.

Try this next time you want to really get to know one of your characters!

*Unless it's Buffy or Faith

What's your favourite season?

I recently started re-watching 'Buffy' from episode one, trying to squeeze in at least one ep a night. It's my way of keeping sane. I'm now up to the end of season 2. That's one of my earliest memories of exciting serial television - the whole Angelus saga really kept me hooked. When Buffy and Angel had sex and he woke up in pain. He screamed Buffy's name then turned into one hell of a bastard. He was of course, losing his soul.

My very earliest memory of exciting serial TV was 'Power Rangers' - the original, not those horrible sequel shows. It was the Green Ranger saga that was so cool - Tommy was a real badass before he became the poncy White Ranger. Good stuff!

So my question is - what's your earliest memory of exciting serial television? By serial I mean the show's ongoing storyline as opposed to a great episode of something. What show made you come back to find out what happened next?

Jekyll & Hyde & Metallica

For a long time now I've had a tiny idea for a feature film. It happened approximately 0.23 minutes after finishing Robert Louis Stevenson's The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde for uni last year.

The idea is definitely a modern take on the classic tale so there are some clear story ideas floating round. But I've been in no rush to get it down on paper. Is that a bad sign? If it was really good I'd not be able to help myself right? Of course, it's very hard and risky to attempt an original take on such a well-known work.

Anyway, the story's not going anywhere - I'll never forget the horror Stevenson creates in his Gothic novel. Then, earlier this week, I had an epiphany! Well, I say epiphany......what I mean is a writing epiphany, which is just one more idea that there's no time to write!

I was doing a bunch of uni work while listening to Metallica (as always). 'Sad But True' came charging at me from the CD player. I've heard it time and time before and know it off by heart so I sang along instinctively until the end. Then I thought "Huh.....". I played the track again, this time listening to every single word. Then I put the song on repeat and listened to it a further 10 times in succession.

Epiphany!

The similarities between Stevenson's Jekyll & Hyde and Metallica's 'Sad But True' are uncanny. James Hetfield (Metallica's frontman and songwriter) has always incorporated literary references into his work ('Enter Sandman,' 'For Whom The Bell Tolls' et al, but I've never noticed this before.

Have a listen/read to 'Sad But True' and you'll see what I mean:



I'm not going to rush the story, but if I can combine Louis Stevenson's terrifying story and Metallica's mind-penetrating anger, maybe.....just maybe......I can create something quite special.

Wednesday's Whedonism

I laugh in the face of danger, and then I hide until it goes away.

-- Xander (Nicholas Brendon), 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'

Story 101

I'm preaching to the choir preaching the horse's mouth* here but sometimes it needs to be said - stories are very simple things.

A character wants something (a goal).

There are obstacles.

These obstacles do their best to thwart the protagonist at every turn. But he carries on no matter what. In the end, he "wins", or achieves his goal.

PROTAGONIST wants GOAL but OBSTACLES

Another point is that stories can or cannot have happy endings. But life doesn't have a happy ending.

If a story ends with a "they all lived happily ever after," fair enough. But really, it should go like this: "they all lived happily ever after......until the next obstacle reared its ugly head."

OBSTACLE > OVERCOME > NEW OBSTACLE > OVERCOME (ad infinitum)

There are no happy endings in life, so if your story has a resounding happy ending, maybe there's something wrong with it?

That's not to say there can't be happy endings (it all depends on your story and theme afterall), but this game makes my point.

Obstacles never stop coming and there are no happy endings. In the end you always turn into a fine mist / hit a wall / fall to your death. Enjoy......

PS: My top score is 6817 - let me know if you top that.

* 'Angel' reference

Weekly Interview (22)

This week it's not so much an interview as a video from the BBC film network. Follow the link to see a brief overview of the stock characters one might find in a horror film. Watch video.

'Three' (short film)

I'm happy to announce that my short film 'Three' will be filmed in the next few months.

'Three' is a short comedy about three hitmen who discover they have been sent to kill eachother. Finding themselves in a stalemate, they have no choice but to talk out their issues.

It will be directed by Darren S Cook, who will be working with his loyal film crew.

'Three' is the first script I ever wrote - about 18 months ago - before any knowledge of the screenwriting world. It was part of a university module in the basics of scriptwriting; I remember three of my friends getting up in front of the class to act out the first draft. I owe a lot of the film's success to various friends who read through it and my creative writing tutor at uni - Linda Lee Welch. Without them, it definately wouldn't be as good as it is.

After that semester at uni, the script then found itself sidelined for more ambitious projects as I learnt more and more about writing.

But now it's back!

So without further ado, I present the teaser trailer for 'Three.' Enjoy.....



I've also set up a facebook group for the film, so if you have an account, I'd really appreciate your support.

I'll keep you up to date on all things 'Three' - including cast and filming - as they develop.

Stay shiny,
Neil.