Nolafus

Aspiring something

Age 27
Male
Lost in thought... again
Seen March 3rd, 2018
Posted March 11th, 2017
5,722 posts
10.9 Years
Alright, we're over halfway done! This week's lesson is a little shorter than the others, but that's because I'm simply adding on to the previous two. The homework assignment will deal with the previous two lessons as well, so I want some real effort put into it. Not that I doubt you guys would, but just thought I would put it down.

Character Interaction

Alright, so now that we have the basics of character creation and dialogue, it’s time to take a look at how these characters are going to interact with one another. Character interaction is extremely important because your main character is going to be around a lot of different characters, and even more than you might realize at first. Even if your character is standing alone, your character will probably start to think about different characters, and that counts too. In other words, your characters are constantly interacting, and thinking about the other characters, so it’s important to have an idea on how to do believable character interaction.

We’ll take a look first at body language. Yes, this is written word, not pictures or a movie, but body language is still important. Showing that a character is standing tall, or backing into a corner, will show the reader a little bit about the character’s personality. As you’re writing out the scene, play it out in your mind, but pay close attention to how the various characters move. If there’s anything that gives away what the characters might be thinking, it may be a good idea to include it. This can include anything about looking down at the floor, to furrowing the brow in deep thought. Sometimes, it’s the little things that really make a story pop.

But beware, you don’t want to bore the reader. You want enough to convey the scene, but you don’t want your readers falling asleep. What I’m trying to say is don’t get caught up in the details. It’s nice to have them, but don’t go overboard with them either. If you’ve taken a paragraph to describe how one of your characters opens cupboards, it might be time to reconsider what you’re doing. You want just enough to get the point across.

If you’re having trouble getting ideas for your character’s reaction to a certain event or person, try making a chart. A simple column and row table will work nicely. In the first column, put the event that you’re thinking of, and then make another column for each character that’s involved. In each box for the characters, write a little description of their reaction. This will keep everything organized, and you won’t forget anything when it comes to writing out the scene.

The biggest tip I have is to just listen to your gut. If you’re worried that a character’s reaction isn’t appropriate, it most likely isn’t, and that comes from my own experience. Try paying attention to how you and your friends react in various situations. If you’re stuck, think about how you would react. People react to situations very similarly, the only difference is how they go about it.

Which brings us to personality and staying in character. If your character is constantly doing things that’s not consistent with what you’re trying to convey, the character is going to look fake. If your character is more reserved, but you want them to go bungee jumping, it’s perfectly fine to have them do that, but you have to set it up. Have their friends finally convince them to do it, but you can’t just have them do crazy things out of the blue. It’s all about staying in character.

Can you have your character break from what they would normally do? Yes, but keep it to a minimum. If your reserved character just got shot, instead of having them accept their fate, it’s okay to have them rise up and fight back. The key is making it believable is having your character go through extreme circumstances, for instance, getting shot. Be careful though, this can only happen once or twice in your story, depending on the length. If you do this often, your character won’t feel real to the reader.

Just remember that characters need to interact with each other. Their realism comes with those interactions. If you can get those interactions down, your story will be ten times better, guaranteed. Body language is important in any conversation, and in writing, it’s no different. Try to pay attention to these things when you go out, and you’ll see what I’m talking about. The trick to making a character seem real is to keep them in character. You can have someone do something out of character, but only in the case of extremes. Once you have all of that down, character interaction will be much easier.

Homework Assignment:
Alright, I want you guys to write out an interaction between two or more characters. This could be a conversation, a fight, or even a marriage. I just want to see your skills at character interaction. The only guidelines I have is that I don’t want to see an essay. I just want to see a paragraph or two. If you’re going through this with a story idea in mind, it wouldn't be a bad idea to write out a major event that’s happening.
PairPC sister

Phantom

Uh, I didn't do it

Age 32
Female
Minnesota
Seen September 18th, 2017
Posted September 18th, 2017
1,182 posts
11.8 Years
All right, let's try it out. It's a little longer than what you asked for, but I sort of wanted you to have the context. It's not THAT long.

Spoiler:
The planet was a white wasteland - not only was it desolate, it was a deathtrap. Blowing and falling snow cut their visibility short, leaving them vulnerable to the rocks and cliffs in the area. Daniels felt he was lucky to even be able to see his own boots. They trudged on through the deep snow drifts, at times past their knees. The wind was so strong the snow never had the chance to settle. He couldn't tell if it was actually snowing or if the ♥♥♥♥ was just blowing around so much that it looked like it was.

There was only the sound of their boots crunching in the snow, until a shout broke out. Daniels turned around to find that Lynch was missing. The fear in Ramos' eyes mimicked the pounding in Daniels' chest. "♥♥♥♥," was all he could think to say. Without another word he sprinted toward where Lynch had just been standing, only to realize that they were on the edge of a cliff and hadn't even known it. He leaned over. His heart leapt into his throat as he saw Lynch hanging over the edge of the cliff face, his hands barely gripping onto the stone.

Daniels threw himself onto the ground, sliding as he neared the edge, and grateful for Ramos' sudden, but firm grip around his ankles to keep him from plunging over as well. "Grab my hand!" he called out with a grunt, his arm outstretched.

Lynch reached. Their fingers met but only just. Lynch grimaced as he shifted against the cliff face, inching his hand forward and failing again. Lynch locked eyes with the major. Daniels recognized the look. He'd seen it when Lynch had charged an Eclipse heavy mech with nothing but a hand cannon for protection, and he saw it again now. "Major-" Lynch's voice said quietly over the comm.

Oh no you don't! "Shut up," he barked back. Daniels twisted against the snow, shouting over his shoulder to Ramos. "Give me more! Now!" He ignored Ramos' curses over the radio as he stretched himself as far as he could go. Finally, his fingers locked around Lynch's forearm. With a grunt he managed to heft the man back up and over the edge.

For a moment the three sat in the snow catching their breaths and letting their hearts slow. The major clapped a hand on Lynch's shoulder. "Didn't I say something about not making this a recovery mission?"

Lynch laughed lightly. "Sorry, boss."

Ramos stood, offering a hand to Lynch. "Let's avoid the cliffs from now on, eh?"

Nolafus

Aspiring something

Age 27
Male
Lost in thought... again
Seen March 3rd, 2018
Posted March 11th, 2017
5,722 posts
10.9 Years
@ Phantom

I liked it!

The reaction of each character was really good. Nothing stuck out in a bad way, and I enjoyed the little rescue mission that Daniels clearly didn't want. Since it's such a short passage, I found the technology references to be a little out of place, but attach this to a story, and you're good to go. Nice job!
PairPC sister

Nathan

Blade of Justice

Age 25
Male
Earth
Seen January 1st, 2023
Posted September 23rd, 2022
4,066 posts
10.9 Years
Beware, I've always been bad at this :(

Spoiler:
The house where they took refuge wasn't exactly in a good state. The walls were all cracked up which let some rays of light enter the sinister room. The three of them were standing, none wanting to say a word. Finally Davis decided to break the ice. He looked over to Nathan. "Do you realize the extent of your mistake, boy?"

Nathan gritted his teeth and crossed his hands, visibly irritated. "I didn't ask you to come back, I would have been fine without your help." It was starting to get dark outside, they must have closed the dome. It was going to be really hard to get back to the shelter this way. Especially with Davis on his back. "You can leave if you want, not that I need any of you anyway." He turned his back on the two waiting for them to leave him alone.

"You know full well we're not going to leave so don't even bother." This time, Amanda was the one to talk. She was usually quiet but this didn't stop her from exposing her view when the time arose. "You just gotta accept you messed up on this one, stop being so cocky." He hated it when they tried to give him moralizing lessons. Suddenly an alarm went off in the background, it was signalizing the curfew which also meant patrol changes. If they wanted to move, it was now or never. He walked towards the door and peeked above his shoulder, looking at the two. "Are you coming or not? I'm not gonna wait forever."

"And an arrogant little brat you are," Davis raged. "I'm taking the lead this time so you don't ♥♥♥♥ up again." He stared at his eyes angrily. "And I won't take no for an answer."


I think I've badly ended it but oh well...
|| ||

Nolafus

Aspiring something

Age 27
Male
Lost in thought... again
Seen March 3rd, 2018
Posted March 11th, 2017
5,722 posts
10.9 Years
@ Genesis

Don't worry, this wasn't bad at all! On the contrary, I thought it was pretty good. Your character interaction seemed pretty natural, and the conversation didn't seem out of place. I would like to point out one thing, though.
"Do you realize the extent of your mistake, boy?"
This made me immediately think that Davis was the oldest, and used to being in charge. "Boy" makes it sound like he's calling Nathan a kid, and beneath him. Whether or not that was intentional, it did do a lot. I just thought I would let you know, just in case that wasn't what you were going for.

One thing I will comment on is your spacing. You hit that enter button twice once a new person speaks, or you want to form another paragraph. You didn't really space out the dialogue properly, and you'll probably get called out on that in the future. Here's a little chunk of your writing, and what it should look like:
"You know full well we're not going to leave so don't even bother." This time, Amanda was the one to talk. She was usually quiet but this didn't stop her from exposing her view when the time arose. "You just gotta accept you messed up on this one, stop being so cocky."

He hated it when they tried to give him moralizing lessons. Suddenly an alarm went off in the background, it was signalizing the curfew which also meant patrol changes. If they wanted to move, it was now or never.

He walked towards the door and peeked above his shoulder, looking at the two. "Are you coming or not? I'm not gonna wait forever."
PairPC sister