Carrie Baker – The Growth Collective

Hello again, welcome back!
How is your day going? I hope you are finding these blog posts helpful!

This next activity I found eye opening, as a newbie writer I hadn’t thought about making my character more interesting and alive by make their life a misery!

Are you ready to get started?

Let’s begin!

Activity 3: Torture Your Characters

Goal + Obstacle = Story

If your story has stalled, most of the time it will be because of two problems: either your character does not have a strong enough need, OR the obstacles in their path are too easy. Stories are always about someone wanting something and not getting it……at least not right away.
Learn to torture your characters to keep the story exciting.

John gave us an activity here using one of his plays, involving reading through a scene and then discussing ways to make it harder for one of the characters – by torturing him!
Since I don’t have access to that play, why don’t you use a scene in the story you are writing, or from a book you are reading.
Choose a part where the character is having trouble getting what they want or overcoming an obstacle.

Now write ways to make it harder for that character! Torture them!! What else can go wrong for them? How can you make it harder for them to reach their goal? (You get the picture!)

“Torture your characters, to show what they are made of.” Unknown

So when you feel that a part of your story is a little flat or lacking a certain ‘something’, raise the stakes for your character and see what they do!
You may surprise yourself!!

Go Forth And Write!