by Will Dunne
Character is the root of scene and story. To develop a dramatic script is to examine its characters: who they are, what they want, why they want it, and how they deal with obstacles. In the end, the character and the story are the same thing. Every exercise in this guide can thus be approached as a character exploration, even when the focus is on scene or story development.
Plot is essential to dramatic writing, but a script dictated by plot points can lead to false characters and melodrama. By letting the plot evolve primarily from the characters rather than vice versa, you can develop dramatic stories that shed light on human truths rather than sacrifice them for dramatic effect.
This collection of dramatic writing exercises builds on a simple but powerful idea: The character is not something added to the scene or to the story. Rather, the character is the scene. The character is the story.
■ HOW TO USE THIS GUIDE
Like The Dramatic Writer’s Companion, this guide invites you to review its contents, select the specific information you currently need, and use it to produce results. Most exercises can be completed in about thirty minutes.
NONLINEAR DESIGN TO FIT YOUR WRITING NEEDS
The tools on the following pages are each self-contained, so you can use them in any order at any time and repeat them at different times with different results. This approach reflects the idea that there is no single way to develop story and lets you adapt the guide to your writing process and level of experience.
SIMPLE STRUCTURE TO FACILITATE GUIDE USE
Exercises are divided into three main sections focusing on character, scene, and story. Each section is further divided into three stages to suggest when an exercise might be most appropriate during script development.
At the end of this guide, you will find a troubleshooting section to help you tackle difficult scenes. It includes twelve sets of questions for problem solving and suggests exercises in this guide to address related topics further. This section is followed by a glossary of key terms used throughout the guide.
EXAMPLES TO ILLUSTRATE TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES
The guide is sprinkled with hundreds of examples from dramatic stories, many of which have been developed as both plays and films. Some examples are quick references. Others include more detailed script analysis. The dramatic works used most often or in most depth include Anna in the Tropics by Nilo Cruz; Bent by Martin Sherman; Circle Mirror Transformation by Annie Baker; Becky Shaw by Gina Gionfriddo; Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) by Alejándro Gonzalez Iñárritu, Nicolas Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris Jr., and Armando Bo; The Clean House by Sarah Ruhl; The Cripple of Inishmaan by Martin McDonagh; The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, adapted for the stage by Simon Stephens from a novel by Mark Haddon; Defiance by John Patrick Shanley; Doubt by John Patrick Shanley; Fences by August Wilson; Glengarry Glen Ross by David Mamet; The Goat by Edward Albee; Hamlet by William Shakespeare; In the Next Room (or the vibrator play) by Sarah Ruhl; Joe Turner’s Come and Gone by August Wilson; The Lieutenant of Inishmore by Martin McDonagh; Love and Drowning by Will Dunne; A Marriage Proposal by Anton Chekhov; Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck; The Piano Lesson by August Wilson; The Roper by Will Dunne; Ruined by Lynn Nottage; Seminar by Theresa Rebeck; The Sixth Sense by M. Night Shyamalan; A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams; Topdog/Underdog by Suzan-Lori Parks; and Water by the Spoonful by Quiara Alegría Hudes.
GETTING STARTED
You can use this guide in whatever way works best for you. The following suggestions are similar to those for The Dramatic Writer’s Companion. If you are not familiar with the original guide, be sure to review these steps:
1. Select a section. Think about where you are now in the development of your script. Then go to the table of contents and choose the section that feels appropriate.
• Use “Developing Your Character” to flesh out the population of your story. Exercises range from a character interview to in-depth character analysis.
• Use “Causing a Scene” to plan, write, or revise any scene. Exercises range from an exploration of the physical setting to more advanced tools for refining dramatic action and dialogue.
• Use “Building Your Story” to develop a throughline and clarify what you are really writing about. Exercises range from defining the rules for the world of your story to developing a hypothetical marketing poster.
2. (Optional) Select a level. If you prefer a more structured approach to exercise selection, choose the level that matches where you are now in script development.
• Stage 1 starter tools can help lay the groundwork for new material during the early stages of script development, when you have the most to figure out.
• Stage 2 exploratory tools can help you learn more about a character, scene, or story that you’ve already begun.
• Stage 3 focusing tools can help you simplify, prioritize, and clarify your work during later story development, when you have the most to track and manage.
You may do these stages in chronological order. Or you may choose instead to intuitively create your own system of use. For example, you might try a stage 1 exercise during later script development. The leap backward can shake up material that has grown stale. Or try a stage 3 exercise during early script development. The leap forward can help you plan the work that lies ahead.
3. Select an exercise. Scan the exercise summaries in this category at this level. Trust your instinct and pick the most appealing one. If you encounter any unfamiliar terms, check the glossary at the end of the guide.
As you do exercises, you may occasionally not know how to answer a question. In some cases this may signal that you need to devote more attention to a certain aspect of character, scene, or story development. In other cases your lack of response may simply mean that this topic is not relevant to your particular script. Remember that the purpose of this guide is to support you and that you are the final authority on what matters in the world of your story.
4. (Optional) Explore the topic further. By reviewing the table of contents or the streamlined “Exercises at a Glance,” you may find other tools in this guide related to the topic at hand. If you have The Dramatic Writer’s Companion available, you can continue exploring the topic or a related one in that guide as well. To keep you aware of what the other guide offers, each chapter in this guide concludes with suggestions of additional exercises to consider.
For best results, approach each exercise as if there are no wrong answers. Look for what’s new rather than rehash what you already know. If a question has you stumped but feels important, trust your instinct and take a creative leap into what’s possible in the world of your story. You may find your best material where you least expect it.
INTEGRATING THIS GUIDE INTO YOUR WRITING PROCESS
You can continue to use this guide as an ongoing writing companion to warm up, explore ideas, and develop scripts. Use the troubleshooting section at the end for any scenes that are difficult to write and the glossary for any terms that are unfamiliar.
As you become familiar with the guide, you can shortcut exercise selection by using “Exercises at a Glance,” which begins on the next page.
EXERCISES AT A GLANCE
DEVELOPING YOUR CHARACTER
Stage 1. Fleshing Out the Bones
Exercise Title
Exercise Subject
Character Interview
Traits and experiences
Beyond Belief
Credo
The Emotional Character
Emotional life
Meet the Parents
Backstory
Stage 2. Getting to Know the Character Better
Exercise Title
Exercise Subject
Sensing the Character
Sense memory
The Imperfect Character
Weaknesses and flaws
Objects of Interest
Physical life
The Invisible Character
Offstage popu
lation
Side by Side
How characters compare
Stage 3. Understanding Who the Character Really Is
Exercise Title
Exercise Subject
Character Fact Sheet
Defining truths
Two Views of One Character
What others think
Nothing but the Truth
Innermost thoughts and desires
What Is the Character Doing Now?
Telling moments of behavior
CAUSING A SCENE
Stage 1. Making Things Happen
Exercise Title
Exercise Subject
The Real World
Setting
What’s New? What’s Still True?
Given circumstances
The Past Barges In
Backstory
Levels of Desire
Objectives
Mother Conflict
Sources of conflict
Why Did the Character Cross the Road?
Motivation
The Strategics of the Scene
Strategies and tactics
The Scenes within the Scene
French scenes
Stage 2. Refining the Action
Exercise Title
Exercise Subject
The Color of Drama
Physical life
The Emotional Onion
Emotions in layers
Why This? Why Now?
Importance and urgency
Relationship Storyboard
Relationship and action
Classified Information
Hidden truths
Stage 3. Refining the Dialogue
Exercise Title
Exercise Subject
Phrase Book
Key terms and idioms
Better Left Unsaid
Subtext
Anatomy of Speech
Technical analysis of dialogue
BUILDING YOUR STORY
Stage 1. Triggering the Chain of Events
Exercise Title
Exercise Subject
Facts of Life
How this story works
In the Beginning
Opening scene
Character on a Mission
Inciting event and quest
Stage 2. Developing the Throughline
Exercise Title
Exercise Subject
Decision Points
Critical character choices
Living Images
Image and action
What Just Happened?
Nature of a dramatic event
The Dramatic Continuum
How scenes connect
An End in Sight
Foreshadowing
Stage 3. Seeing the Big Picture
Exercise Title
Exercise Subject
Two Characters in Search of a Story
Character arcs
Found in Translation
Dramatization of ideas
List It
Key story elements
Different Sides of the Story
Main event
Coming Soon to a Theater near You!
Subject, theme, and plot
Developing Your Character
Character is the heart and soul of story. This section can help you flesh out your characters as you prepare to write, make ongoing discoveries about them as your story unfolds, and focus on what matters most. Use these exercises anytime. You can always benefit from knowing more about your characters, especially if you begin to lose interest in them, get stuck in a scene, or feel unsure about the direction in which your story should proceed.
CHARACTER INTERVIEW
THE QUICK VERSION
Use the interview process to learn more about a character
BEST TIME FOR THIS
Anytime you need to know a character better
FLESHING OUT CHARACTERS: AN ONGOING PROCESS
Dramatic characters are each a combination of physical, psychological, and social traits shaped by the lifetime of experiences that have brought them to the threshold of a story. Some of these traits are common: we see ourselves and others we know mirrored in them. This enables us to understand and often sympathize with the character as conflict ensues. Other traits may be uncommon: we see what sets the character apart from the crowd. If we approve of such distinctions, we may root for the character to succeed. If we disapprove, we may wait for the character to get his or her just deserts. Either way, we are drawn into the story because we care about what will happen next.
To develop the kinds of characters who can grab our attention and keep us engaged, dramatic writers need to know whom they are writing about and how these characters will cause a dramatic journey to take place. This journey will be the most memorable period of their lives. They will have to do things they have never done before and find resources they didn’t know they had. They will make discoveries that affect them and those around them in profound ways.
Fleshing out characters who can accomplish such feats is not a simple or one-time task. It is a multidimensional process that can be both enjoyable and challenging and that requires the writer’s attention throughout script development, including revisions. When it comes to any character in a dramatic story, there is always more to be discovered.
ABOUT THE EXERCISE
You can learn a lot about your characters by interviewing them. This exercise offers forty revealing, emotionally charged questions to help you do this. Answer each question not as the writer but as the character. Since you will be responding from the character’s perspective and in the character’s voice, this process will be similar to writing dialogue.
The answers to some questions will depend on when in the story your character responds. If you are exploring a new character or starting a new script, try focusing on the character at the beginning of the dramatic journey. This can help you learn more about who is entering the world of your story. If you are well into script development, you may benefit more from focusing on the character at a later point in the story— the middle or end. This can help you learn more about how the dramatic journey is affecting him or her. To begin the exercise,
• identify a character to interview, preferably a principal character, and
• choose a timeframe for the interview: beginning, middle, or end of story.
As you conduct the interview, remember that the character may be truthful and insightful at some times and mistaken, misinformed, or deluded at other times. As a result, the answers will reveal what the character believes but not necessarily what is true and accurate in the world of the story. Keep in mind, too, that your character’s responses may be influenced by the timeframe you have chosen for the interview.
For best results, try to find your character’s response to every question. If he or she has no response, you need to determine whether the subject at hand is irrelevant to the story or a sign that you need to dig deeper into the character’s identity and life.
■ TO THE CHARACTER
1. In one word, how would you describe yourself as a child?
2. When you were growing up, who loved you most?
3. Whether good or bad, what is your most vivid childhood memory?
4. In two or three sentences, how would you describe yourself today?
5. Who among your friends and family would describe you in the most positive light, and what would this person say?
6. Who among your friends and family would describe you in the most negative light, and what would that person say?
7. Have you ever had a serious illness or injury? If so, what happened, and how has this affected you?