by Will Dunne
Second portrait. Some of the traits and facts in the first portrait are more important than others. Sharpen your focus on the character by revising your description down to a length of about 5o words. As you do this, you may simply eliminate half of the words in the first portrait or use new ones, but honor the limit.
Third portrait. Review your shortened summary and cut it in half again. Try to retain the most important parts of the description, within a length of about 25 words. As before, you may simply eliminate words or use new ones.
Fourth portrait. Continue to sharpen focus on the character as before by revising the portrait down to a sentence of exactly io words-no more and no less.
Fifth portrait. Revise the portrait down to exactly three words-no more and no less. You may use new words if you wish. They may either work together as a phrase or read separately like items on a list.
Sixth portrait. Revise the portrait down to one word. You may simply choose one of the three words from the fifth portrait or find a new word that best sums up the character.
WRAP-UP
What is the most interesting discovery that you made about your character? How is he or she universal? How is he or she unique? Use what you have learned about the character to guide your scene and story decisions as you develop your script.
Scenes are the steps of a dramatic journey. Ideally, each scene centers on one main event that reveals new information about the characters, changes the world of the story, and brings the dramatic journey closer to its destination. Use these scene development exercises during writing or revision to flesh out the elements of dramatic action, add power and depth to scenic events, and refine your dialogue.
THE QUICK VERSION
Integrate a basic set of questions into your process for developing a scene
BEST TIME FOR THIS
During scene planning
THE SCENE: A BASIC BUILDING BLOCK OF DRAMA
Every dramatic story is a quest of some kind. No matter how complex the quest may be, it traditionally boils down to one main character trying to achieve one overriding, all-important goal. This goal may be tangible-such as a pot of gold, secret formula, or kingdom-or intangible-such as truth, love, justice, or freedom. Either way, a series of dramatic events occurs as the character pursues the goal and encounters obstacles that make it difficult to attain.
If enough is at stake, the character tries different strategies to overcome these obstacles, and sometimes succeeds and sometimes fails. This action continues under increasing pressure until a crisis is reached and the character must make a decision that triggers climactic action, reveals important truths about the character, and often changes him or her in a meaningful way. In the end, the quest succeeds or fails as a result of everything that has happened along the way.
These story dynamics reflect the three most basic principles of dramatic action: desire (what the character wants), motivation (why the character wants it), and obstacle (anything that might prevent the character from achieving the objective). The same principles are at work on a smaller scale in each scene of the story.
A scene is a unit of dramatic action caused by a character who wants something, has an important reason to pursue it here and now, and must deal with whatever problems stand in the way. The action typically takes place in one setting in real time, and adds up to a dramatic event. For example, something is begun or ended. Or, something is accomplished or fails to be accomplished. Whether positive or negative, the main event of the scene changes the world of the story in a significant way, and moves the character closer to, or further from, completing the quest.
From a technical point of view, each scene breaks down into smaller units of action called beats. Each beat has a single focus, such as a certain character need, behavior, or topic. Some beats may reflect the inner work ings of the character's heart and mind, but most represent strategies, or tactics, that the character tries in order to achieve an objective. For a detailed look at beats, see "Thinking in Beats" later in this guide.
As you develop the main event of a scene, you need to think about how this event fits into the larger sequence of events that add up to the story. You also need to think about how this event breaks down into the smaller components of moment-to-moment dramatic action. Each scene thus requires an eye on the big picture as well as the details of the ever-changing here and now.
ABOUT THE EXERCISE
There is no "correct" way to develop a scene, and it's important to find a process that works best for you. More likely than not, you will gain much from taking the time to warm up before you leap into the scene and begin making discoveries in the moment. By doing some preparation first and getting a feel for the scene dynamics, your writing process may be faster, easier, and more productive.
TWELVE QUESTIONS FOR YOUR CHARACTER
The main character of a scene is the one who drives most of the dramatic action and makes the scene happen. In most cases, the main character of the scene is also the main character of the story, but not always. Use the following questions to flesh out the main character of any scene you are about to write. If you wish, you can adapt these same questions to the other characters in the scene as well.
I. Who are you? (character). This is the most important question because the character is the story. In any scene, the lines of dialogue and beats of action all flow from who the character is. To create a dramatic event, you need to know your character inside out. If he or she has changed since the story began, you also need to know what specific changes have occurred and how this redefines the character here and now.
2. Where are you? (setting). You can find a lot of story action by making specific choices about the physical setting for a scene. To say only that it takes place in the character's "home," for example, is to miss the creative opportunities that might arise from knowing exactly where in the home your characters will interact, whether they are in the kitchen, bedroom, attic, or backyard. Take the time to know what's in the setting as well. Think visually, and look for the truth in objects. Is there an object here, common or uncommon, that could be pivotal to the dramatic action of the scene?
3. When are you? (time and given circumstances). The hour of the day, time of the week, and season of the year can all influence how a scene unfolds. Sometimes the time frame includes special circumstances-such as a holiday, birthday, or funeral-that can heighten this influence. Know exactly when the scene takes place and whether this time includes any immediate circumstances that may affect the character's entrance or behavior.
4. What's your situation here and now? (social, political, economic life). The world of the story is in constant flux. If there are any important social, political, or economic dynamics currently at work, make sure you know what they are and how they could affect your character in the scene.
5. How do you feel? (physical and emotional life). It's easier to put yourself into your character's shoes when you know how the character feels both physically and emotionally, especially when the scene begins.
6. What are you thinking about? (intellectual life). What is not said in a scene can be just as important as what is said. Know what's on the character's mind at this time in the story. Stay aware of what the character cannot say during the scene. Look for opportunities to suggest, not explain, any important conclusions that the character has reached.
7. What do you want from the other character? (desire or objective). This is another key question because the character's scenic objective is what makes the scene happen. In some cases, the character enters with this objective in mind. In other cases, the character enters with something else in mind and the scenic objective is aroused because of what happens early on. Know what your character wants and what triggered this need. Know, too, that once the scenic objective is achieved or fails to be achieved, the scene is over.
8. Why do you want that? (motivation). Dramatic characters tend to be driven by high stakes which make it increasingly important in the story to achieve their
scenic objectives. If properly motivated, characters will fight hard to get what they want. Who characters are and aren't, what they believe and don't believe, what they have experienced and not experienced-all contribute to their motivations in the scene. Make sure the stakes are high enough to make the scene happen.
9. What's the problem? (obstacle or conflict). The character's pursuit of a goal begins to generate dramatic action when the character meets obstacles or conflicts that make the objective difficult to achieve. There is always a problem to be solved. The size of such problems tends to grow as the story continues, with life getting worse and worse as the action unfolds.
io. How will you deal with the problem? (strategy or tactics). If the scenic objective is important enough and if the central conflict is big enough, the character will probably need to try different strategies in order to tackle the objective. These changes of behavior show different sides of the character and create the beats, or units of action, of the scene.
i i. How will the past influence you now? (exposition or backstory). Every scene fits into a continuum of experience that began long before the story did and will continue after it ends. Drama shows us the "here and now" and suggests the "there and then." Know how the recent and distant past will affect your character in the present tense of the scene.
12. What will happen as a result of all this? (main event). Though much may be discussed and much may occur, each scene adds up to one main event. This is a stepping stone in the main character's dramatic journey: a turning point-positive or negative-that moves the character closer to the final destination of the story. Know what happens in the scene.
WRAP-UP
This basic set of questions can be applied not only to your scenes but also to your whole story. As you prepare to write or rewrite, keep your primary focus on who your characters are (question I). Then make sure you know what they want (question 7), why they will do everything possible to achieve that objective here and now (question 8), and what specific obstacles stand in the way (question 9).
THE QUICK VERSION
Explore the physical life of a setting and use it to find new story ideas
BEST TIME FOR THIS
During scene planning
FINDING YOUR STORY IN THE PHYSICAL LIFE OF THE SCENE
No matter what your story is about, and no matter where your characters happen to be now, they are rooted in a physical life that reflects certain truths about them, their world, and the dramatic journey that is unfolding. At any given moment, physical life includes the setting and time of a scene, the objects in this setting, and the physical elements that define or govern this place. You can often discover exciting new story ideas by taking the time to explore a scene's physical context.
For example, imagine a desk drawer stuffed with papers. What do they suggest? Are they unpaid bills? Old love letters? Pages of an unfinished novel? Each answer leads to a different story. Or imagine the drawer not full of papers, but hiding a gold key. What does that suggest? Who put it there? And why? In either scenario, knowing what's in the desk drawer might be integral to scene planning. In other cases, the contents of the drawer may be totally irrelevant. So may the desk.
Physical life helps paint a picture of who your characters are, where they live, how they live, and what's happening-with little or no dialogue. Think of the upright piano in The Piano Lesson hand carved with mask-like figures resembling ancient African totems. Sitting in a parlor in Pittsburgh in the 193os, the piano becomes not only a focal point of dramatic action but also the symbol of an African American family's past that stretches back to the days of slavery and personal family tragedies.
Or, think of Babe in Crimes of the Heart wandering the house with a loose noose around her neck, or Lieutenant Colonel Kilgore in Apocalypse Now standing fearlessly among battlefield explosions to enjoy the smell the napalm in Nam while others flee. Physical life images like these instantly reveal a lot about the characters, bring visual power to the story, and reduce the need for words of explanation.
ABOUT THE EXERCISE
Use this exercise to flesh out the physical life of a scene, and find objects and elements that can trigger or influence dramatic action. To do the exer cise, you need to know who will be in the scene and have at least a rough idea of what will happen.
You also need to know where and when the scene will take place. Remember that setting and time do matter. Interaction in a bedroom is different from interaction at a bus station. Outdoors is different from indoors. Day is different from night. Be sure to make the most appropriate choices for your characters and action. If you have used this setting before in your story, focus on how the place has changed.
Exercise examples are from my play Hotel Desperado. Character i is Max, a drifter in his twenties who is haunted by a violent past and has now ended up by chance in a strange and sleazy residence hotel. Character 2 is Bolton, an elderly ex-con, who is a permanent resident here. Their relationship: they met recently in the hotel lobby. What happens in the scene: Bolton comes to believe that Max is a criminal. Setting and time: Max's hotel room just before midnight.
EXPLORING THE SETTING OF YOUR SCENE
A quick way to understand the physical life of a scene is to put your characters in a specific place that you yourself have actually been-for example, it's not just a hotel room. It's a real hotel room where you once stayed. This approach lets you know automatically what's it like there and where things are. If it's not possible or appropriate to use a setting you have experienced firsthand, your writing will be easiest if you can picture the place clearly in your mind's eye.
For either approach, think about the setting you chose to explore and how this location is unique. Try to be as specific as possible as you answer the following questions. Remember that big discoveries can evolve from small details.
I. Which physical elements here might affect the scene? It may be important to know, for example, that there are two locked doors, that the room is overheated, that it has a foul smell, or that fireworks are exploding in the distance. Explore the setting through your senses:
• See it. Visualize the setting. Look around carefully. Find three interesting images and describe them briefly-such as a broken alarm clock on the bedside table, an old Bible in the drawer with a phone number written in blue ink on the inside cover, and a small blood stain in the carpet.
• Listen to it. Name at least two sounds that you can hear in this place, however faintly, and describe them-such as a scratching sound inside the wall, and the muffled sound of a TV from the room below.
• Smell it. Name at least one smell, pleasant or unpleasant, in this place-such as a hint of lilac bubble bath or a strong whiff of dirty socks.
• Taste it. Is there anything here to be tasted? If so, find it, identify it, and describe its taste-such as cold, acidic coffee with too much sugar.
• Touch it. Imagine running your hand over parts of this place or the things in it. You might focus on texture, or surface temperature, or other sensations of touch. Describe an interesting one-such as the sheet of the bed gritty with sand and damp with perspiration.
• Feel it. Now try to feel the place again with your whole self. Focus this time on the general atmosphere, mood, temperature, or feeling of the place from either a physical or intuitive point of view and describe what it feels like-for example, cold and drafty, or gloomy, or claustrophobic.
For an in-depth sense study of a scene, try "In the Realm of the Senses" later in this guide.
2. What objects matter most? Whether it's a lottery ticket in a coat pocket or a mostly empty takeout box of fried chicken, objects are real, they're concrete, and they help root your story in the here and now. They become most important when they motivate character behavior, influence the course of dramatic action, and help turn the story in unexpected directions. In your setting, think about the following:
• Objects we can see. Some of the objects in your setting will be clearly visible when the scene begi
ns. Without repeating a previous response, look around again. Identify two or three objects that could play a key role in the dramatic action, and tell where these things are located when the scene begins-for example, an opened bottle of bourbon on the floor beside the bed, a leather belt draped across the back of a chair, and an old seascape calendar on the wall with all of the pages ripped off.
• Objects we can't see. Some objects are not in view when the scene begins. They may be simply out of sight or intentionally hidden. Look at the room again, but this time with X-ray vision. Find one interesting thing in the room that cannot be readily seen because it is either intentionally or unintentionally out of view. Tell what and where it is-for example, a gun hidden under the pillow of the bed.
3. What lies beyond? There is always more world beyond what we can see in front of us during a scene. Knowing what's out there may help you find more story. If there are two doors in a bedroom, for example, it may be important to know that one leads to a bathroom where someone is hiding. It also may be important to know that beyond these walls lies a Chicago ghetto, or an African jungle, or a beach leading to the Mediterranean. If the setting is outside, look around in every direction. If the setting is inside, go to the windows or doors and look out. Describe what lies beyond the immediate setting of the scene.
4. How does the time now affect this place? Think again about when your characters will be in this setting and make more specific choices about the hour, day, month, and season. Even if you don't identify this precise time in the scene, it may affect the lighting, temperature, weather, and other physical elements as well as the atmosphere and mood that we will experience. Identify specifically when the scene occurs and how this time might affect the dramatic action. For example, it's approaching midnight on a cold rainy Easter Sunday in April. The mood is dark and lonely. The characters are tired, uncomfortable, on edge.