These notes are taken from the LDSPMA writers’ conference of 2023. Any misinformation in the notes is the fault of the note taker. Presenter by Kaela Rivera
The importance of character investments:
- Plot characters and world-building are the trinity of investment in writing.
- Plot, motive, world-building makes people believe. Readers stay for the character. That is because we thrive on connection.
- Example series: TV series, The Mandalorian. The protagonist protects baby yoda and acting as a Dad.
The scale of character investment:
- Flat and unmemorable. Harmful stereotypes. Flat objective (they are not interesting. Character is reduced to a plot, a tool for another character’s motivation. Wish fulfillment. Cliché characters. As they move away flat they move from cliché.
- Quirky and fun but with no substance.
- Characters that live rent-free in your head. Life-integrating character. Character is a fully rounded human being with their own motives, wants, and needs that are a meaningful impact on the story. book; hey Arnold.
Markers of flat character:
- Flat character’s problem often boils down to these main issues.
- No personal characters arc. The love interest in James Bond females. The wife killed to motivate the protagonist to revenge.
- Do they have personal characteristics?
- Exist solely to motivate the protagonist
- Exist sole to instigate the plot
- Examples: most loved interests of James bond movie and Cinderella (1950)
Character and the plot 8 character roles:
- Protagonist
- Antagonist
- Love interest
- Confident
- Deuterogamist (the actor next in importance to the protagonist.)
- tertiary characters
- Foil
- Impact character
- In function, they all revolve around what they do for the protagonist. Separate the role from the character themselves. Make sure they are distinguishable. They are their own separate people. Otherwise, the character becomes a stereotype: the mean girl, cute guy in the book
- Separating roles from characters. the character themselves should not just be their roles. Not doing they can lead to stereotypes (particularly harmful ones)
- A character’s role may be defined by how the protagonist perceives the way they intersect with their lives, but the character does not exist just for the protectionist.
- The TV series the air Binder is Avatar the air bender. irao is the mentor and impact character for prince Zuco. When zuco leaves, he has an entire world plan. Take over the city for the rebellion. He has great motivations on his own.
Why flat characters are a real-life problem:
- Can send a message that other characters are objectives that exist solely to motivate the main character’s plot.
- Defines the character’s worth solely by their relationship to the protagonist.
- Often perpetuate harmful and hurtful serotypes. (This can cause a lack of worth in characters.) No one is just one serotype.
- At best, demotivates the audience investment because there’s no connection to character (because you can’t connect to what you don’t know or understand)
- At worse, reduces the value of the story overall because of weak plot character arcs. and even suspension of disbelief
- No one is just one stereotype.
- At best demotivates audience investments. Because there’s no connection to characters( because you don’t connect to what you don’t know or understand)
- At worse, reduces the value of the story overall.
How to avoid those Issues?
- Character Dignity: first building principle of companion arch
- Characters must not be used solely to generate plot points or be a lot points.
- Characters must not exist solely for another character
- The way the characters is viewed/depicted should be challenged at least once in the story.
- Respect your characters. They do not exist just as a vessel to the house you and your reader’s wish fulfillment 22.
The relationship between characters’ dignity and human dignity:
- How we treat them in often proactive for how we treat real people.
- As we practice respecting characters and building dignity in their stories. We build space to do the same for real-life people.
Examples;
- Not taking ‘no’ for an answer (which can lead to abusive relationships)
- Entitlement thinking our desires sound dictate other’s actions
- Viewing others’ lives as less “real” or “important” compared to our own.
- This is a chance to put more good into the world
Principles of balance power: relationships between characters.
- The power balance in the story: one character shouldn’t be sown as inherently better or more valuable than the other. Both should how their value and be needed to accomplish the end goal.
Example Miraculous: tales of ladybug and cat Noir vs Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. (Annabeth and Percy rely upon each other to need each other to get out of situations.
- The power balance in relationships: relationships require equal turns of helping, offering vulnerability, and in some cases romantic overtures. They shouldn’t be one character’s responsibility.
TV series: gravity falls. In the last season, one twin has to give up everything to her sister, making the relationship unbalanced.
Bringing together the companion arc.
- Paralleling the plot development and individual character growth of both the protectionist and their companion
- The companion arc: paralleling the plot development and individual character growth of the protectionist and their companion.
- Principle 1 character dignity for protagonist and companion.
- Principle 2 balancing power between protagonist and companion.
Examples of companion arcs:
- Castle in the sky- 34 – Patsu and Sheeta (friend/romance)
- Spirited Away – Chihiro and Haku (friends/romance)
- Whispers of the heart -Shizku and Seiji (romance)
- Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls [ Ceci and Coyote (best friends)
- Cece Rias and the King of Fears -Cede and Juana (sisters)
- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone = harry Ron, Hermione (friends – a triple!)
- The Irregulars (episodes 1 and 2) – Bea and Jessie (sisters)
- Ever after – Danielle and Henry (romance)
- Freaky Friday (mother and daughter)
- Quote from Hayao miyasaki. They’ll need a friend or a supporter, but never a savior.”
The companion arc. What it looks like in action:
Checklist to test your story:
- Characters share thematic and plot relevance.
- Characters are individually motivated and both grow and develop.
- Characters take independent actions for a shared purpose.
- Overall, united in purpose, but both should be individually integral to the plot and theme, and thy should have their own character arcs. They need each other for the end goal.
Companion arc in the diagram:
- It would be easier to combine the inciting incident.
- Also good to combine the climaxes. One character’s strength helps the other.
- Separate the belly of the beast. Separate their individual motivation.
- Suggest separate falling actions where we see the consequences of each character for their behavior.
- Movie: whispers in the heart is a good example.
Sharing the spotlight: Main, secondary, and tertiary characters:
- Not every character can be the same amount of time, and the Companion Arc is best suited for main and secondary characters. So what about tertiary and other side characters? The vignette approach is a good way to address this.
The vignettes approach
- Is a series of small glimpses into a character’s threat that builds a full character’s arc once put together?
- Three vignettes at least are typically needed.
- The principles of a character’s dignity all apply, but the most important guiding rule in this: the characters is the main characters o their lives they make choices according to their lives’ motivations. (The butler has a family)
Questions:
- Q How to organize these characters’ suggestions? Create an after map of the book after the first chapter. Then see what plot points are missing to full the above suggestion. Had to review each character-to-character beats and then revise the text.
- Q: How to find the theme? See what others readers took away from the story. Sometimes takes soul searching of what takeaway you want from your story.
- Q: How does balance between characters? You need half of the chapters for the first character and their companion/ adventures. You need another set of characters for the second characters.
- Q: When not happy with character arch should an author stop writing and start over? No. finish the book and then revise in drafts. Let the text sit to give you perspective. Have beta readers.
