He enjoys frequent intellectual vacations. He looks like he’s comfortable walking past his broken dreams along the boulevard of life. She often marches in the army of optimism. He thinks his cut-glass wit is his only skill. These lines get to the heart of the character and say A LOT more without going overboard. Never risk being mundane.įor example, here are a few lines that nest in a notebook of mine. You can definitely be a bit more poetic, artistic, and fun with descriptions. Why is there “burnt-in hurt” in her eyes? What is it? What caused it? How long has it been there to be “burnt-in”?Īll answers are coming, I assure you, in the script itself! So for your own descriptions, set up questions! Then answer them later in the actual plot! This is far more interesting for a reader, a mini-mystery, and will hook your reader to keep turning pages!Īs a writer, I find that reading scripts, and even referencing novel prose, can really help. Why is there a shifting/mercurial quality to her? Why is Katy “ always coiled”? What happens when she is uncoiled? NOTE: These words not only describe, but give the reader a feel for the actor that could play her, the tone, and the character arc.įor example, some questions it poses are: So each line has narrative mileage that will pay off later. But this is my central protagonist, and we’ll be spending a lot of time with her. And you haven’t bored a reader to death with blocks of over-explaining.ĭo you see the short, sharp, terse sentences? As well as half-formed clues as to what to expect from Katy? Of course, I’ve gone over three lines. So, can you set up something to pay off later? Can your description hint at your character’s choices in an interesting way that tells us all we need to know?įrom these three “puzzle pieces”, a typical reader should be able to picture a general idea of who that character is. a sense of threat, humour, warmth, fear? (more later). Just don’t go overboard.ģ) The general vibe and atmosphere of what they bring to the story, e.g. This can be visualised with clothing, size and build, no problem. Anything that feels like it’s been written/said before (more on this later).ġ) Name, gender, age (as a general frame for a reader to visualise)Ģ) Who the character is: a superhero, a police officer, a lower-class orphan, whatever. Reject cliches and the first thing that comes to mind. If it’s not important, this can be decided by casting and the director later. Remove race, religion, anything that doesn’t matter. Your reader wants to raise their eyebrows, and not shut their eyelids.Īim to create punchy descriptions. You can include a sense of your writer's flair. A maroon shirt, Caterpillar boots, sunglasses, frayed jeans, etc. Lastly, keep these pointers in mind even before you start writing:ĭon’t craft a description with a long string of physical descriptors, e.g. Then you must get on with your script, bible, treatment, beat sheet, or scene. Sometimes just cutting your description by 50% is already a great improvement. Not the main course.Īnd the more direct, impactful, and nuanced you make a description, the better. Then let the actual script tell us more about the character through action. Ideally, character descriptions should simply give the reader a “taste” of who that person is. Write out the key characteristics you want to convey, then review and trim it down. Now, this is an incredibly tough feat, and there’s no perfect character description. Ideally, character descriptions should be no more than one to three lines. Keep character descriptions short, terse, and minimal (1-3 lines).Hooks the reader from the first time they are introduced (i.e. Here are 10 ways you can create character introductions that/are:Įstablish tone, genre conventions, and hints at “what is to come”Įvokes rich imagery and engages reader's emotions It doesn’t scream, “Read on! This person is going to really surprise you!” But it’s not exactly interesting, is it? Nor is it arresting or hooky. Now I’m sure you have a very general idea of who this person is. JOHN (30s), beard, a teacher, in a red flannel shirt and a baseball cap. In writing, a typical simple character description might read as: If you’re like me, you have TOO MANY incredible details you need the reader to know! But you can’t possibly include all of them…right? What a descriptive dilemma.īut character descriptions need not be just the formula of: Character descriptions are a challenge for any scriptwriter.
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